A blog that really got me thinking was done by jg5670 and basically stated that we are, in this time of crisis, solely reliant on media for our interactions. With our face to face interactions limited to our family unit, there is little to keep us connected to our peers, professors, or potential employers. As I thought about my use of media, I realized that, previously, my experiences were superficial at best. I interacted with friends on game sites and occasionally commented on sites like Instagram or Facebook. I Snapchatted regularly, but never really thought about media in terms of how it kept me dangling on the fishhook of society – bait for any passing challenge or sensational story. As this virus has us now limited to our homes and using media as our lifeline, I see that I need to approach it all with a lot more skepticism. There are people, organizations, parties, and special interest groups who seek to influence our thoughts and decisions. I can’t merely accept the constant barrage of media input; rather, I need to apply a lens of discernment and make informed decisions based on multiple sources from a variety of perspectives so that I am not simply led to believe what I already tend to believe. Many news outlets reinforce what our beliefs already are rather than challenge them. We have to be wary of that or we can all become complacent sheep.
