Media Issue: Desensitization of the Media.

Bodies of men, women, and children lay piled up all around  me; riddled with bullets, showered by the moonlight, open wounds caused by the gleaming, blood stained machetes wielded by the hands of the Kataeb Party, better known as the Phalanges. It is September the 16^th, 1982. Amongst the gunfire piercing the night sky, resonating amongst the stars that seem to be stunningly oblivious to the  height of the war, our homes have been broken into and our families separated; minds, hearts, and souls have been destroyed. “As’ad Kassis”, a voice harshly tore through the darkness, I glanced around for a moment, and a young man panicking on my left (presumably the man who identifies as the name the soldier called out) caught my attention. The soldier approached the man, whose hands clasped together, shaking them at the soldier, begging for mercy. The soldier, who donned armored plates and several knives, axes, and a pistol, grabbed the sobbing man, by the back of his neck and buried his face in the sand. The man now laying in the sand, quivering with fear, looked as if he was awaiting instructions with the intention to stay alive.  The soldier turned and took a step in the opposite direction, the turned back and used his boot to shove the man into the direction of freedom. The man began furiously crawling away. Big mistake. The soldier recognized that this man had most likely had military training, shown by the way he crawled through the sand. Not the most accurate test, but our inability to crawl was what our life depended on. The soldier approached the man for the second time tonight, although this time he had a very different objective. As’ad didn’t realize what was happening until the soldier grabbed his shirt and spun him around in the sand, raising a short blade to his neck. As’ad struggled, shouting about his children who were waiting for him and his wife who had been kidnapped weeks ago, which only resulted in being brought to his knees in front of us. The soldier stared at us, a sinister glare on his face, as he slit As’ad’s throat, dropped the lifeless body to the ground after his corpse convulsed for a few minutes, wiped his blade on As’ad’s shirt, then reached for my neck and threw me forward.

This September is never remembered, not quite as much as September 11^th, 2001. This story today has no memorial, no mention, and is paid no mind. The massacres of Sabra and Shatila burned the hearts of innocent and took many lives, an undisputed number, yet estimated to be around the same (or slightly more) than the death toll of 9/11. However, this blog post isn’t about life under occupation, the aim of this blog is to bring an issue to attention: the desensitization of stories, connection with real “people”, and isolation as individuals by the massive influx of media (numbers, statistics, stories) that we are presented with. This blog will also be a response to particular topics featured in the anthology “Revolution”, edited by Heather Zydek. I will bring some issues to attention, discuss how and why we aren’t paying attention to these issues, present a solution for them out of the book, and then submit my own in relevance to the media. Mis-representation, over-hyping and not being able to deliver stories in an effective matter, strips the humanity from people, giving them numbers and statistics that never mean anything.

Firstly, there are numerous characteristics that we as humans have embodied in our collective form as a society, for example, as explained in the book, we are “media moved people”.  This isn’t necessarily a negative point, but this just means that we are dangerously susceptible to being able to pay attention to and commit to particular causes, without letting these issues actually become an actual “social-wide” issue. We commit as a society to paying attention to “tear-jerking”, “heart-string-pulling” stories, commit to it for a couple weeks or months, and then when the “next big thing” in the latest media comes by, we turn our attention away. This becomes a bigger issue when we are only paying attention to “one-hit wonders”, issues that are happening once and once only (such as terrorism attacks), ignoring the issues that have been evident for quite a long time, becoming normalized and extremely unimportant in first world society. As Zydek explains, “Individual crises that become media sensations compel us – but everyday, perennial tragedies like international hunger or poverty simmer quietly in our social subconscious”. People are changing due to this massive influx of media and information, and this is one of the effects of the age of information.

The first issue, one that is internationally recognized by everyday society and the public (especially considering current events), is Gang Violence. Not only is this issue not paid attention to by, it is frowned upon to have any sympathy for those affected by it when you come from a background not affected so much by it. The author of this chapter, Doak Book, explains several aspects that create an atmosphere and metaphorical “breeding-ground” for gang association and violence. Too many people are scared to touch this subject due to over-the-top, violent representations of boys and men in the media, whether it is T.V shows, movies, or music, the “thug life” is nothing more than a wrong path taken, not another terrorist cell. There are many Anti-gang campaigns that you can assist in funding, and there are also programs such as Angel Tree Program (a program dedicated to buying Christmas gifts for the children of the incarcerated), and even just writing a letter to incarcerated persons can help someone question their life decisions (as suggested by the book).

Another issue, more widely spread and with more recognition, is the issue with a lack of clean water around the world. This issue is pretty straightforward. Not enough places in the world have adequate access to clean water. As for the effort of the media it can’t be said that they aren’t doing anything about the issue, because every platform of every kind has some form of advertisement for a campaign working towards eradicating this issue. The fact is, we don’t see the information enough, and we need to see it from one human being to another. This is obviously an issue because our two nations are vastly different, therefore it is extremely difficult to imagine similar circumstances within our own society. We see numerous short representations of a child’s life in Nigeria, Ethiopia and Uganda; all over T.V all the time. Although, another problem is that this is a normalized issue. For most people of this generation and some of the earlier generation, the lack of access to clean water in particular parts of the world is hardly seen, or felt; it has just always been there. For those that do wish to something about this issue, the best way to make a change is to fund and African water project, motivate friends to get involved and learn to educate yourself and others about the issue.

Lastly, I will discuss a cause (one of, not all) of the reason that stories such as these are not covered, and not effectively if so. The majority of stories we see in the news and on other various platforms of informative media, are written and published to sell. The most recent, shocking events will always be reported on, but is there ever any quick reminder about the growing devastation of AIDS/HIV? It’s old news. It doesn’t sell. Ebola sells, terrorism sells, fashion and pop-stars sell. What doesn’t sell is the need for humanitarian support around the world. As for the issue of desensitization of stories, the connection between people, and the isolation as individuals by the massive influx of media; the problem is that it isn’t being purposely done through someone’s agenda. Through the massive amounts of new technology and entertainment, not only us ourselves but children are becoming less sensitive to violence, gore, and image which are important to the agendas of those campaigns aiming to assist those in places affected by violence and oppression. Whether it is a coping mechanism or just because we don’t care, violent acts just aren’t that shocking anymore. In 2006, Saddam Hussein’s execution could be found anywhere on the internet, and people wanted it. When Osama was murdered, there was an outrage because the video and photos of his murder was kept private as well, and they still are. When, or if, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is murdered, the video or photos (if they exist) will be in massive demand, because we are getting less and less sensitive to violence, and more and more susceptible to hatred and violence; maybe not all people as individuals, but as a collective society.

As for a solution, something needs to be done about the rising levels of racism, violence, war, hunger, poverty, and start improving our lives as one race. Unfortunately, it will be a long time before this happens, maybe never. What we can do as individuals though, is search for openings to improve the lives of others. Spread the message of suffering that other people are experiencing and travel to those places being affected by poverty and hunger and assist through medical aid or education; if none of these opportunities are possible for you as an individual, assist those in your own country, help fund charities or campaigns, get active.