Propaganda, Inc.

• Author: Clyde, Marianne
• Position: POLITICAL LANDSCAPE

As I scroll through my Twitter feed and Facebook at trending topics, it is easy to look at the media outlet where the article originated, and assume how it will come down on a certain topic. Being a normal human being, you automatically zero in on the media outlets that support your way of thinking.

It is kind of funny--not funny ha-ha, but funny strange--that, when there are several outlets covering the exact same incident, by tweaking a few words and adding or deleting certain details, the stories end up saying something totally different from each other. It can be infuriating to see such polar opposites in the news. Meanwhile, everyone claims they are right and, if you dare express an opposing option--option mind you, not necessarily an opinion--you get slammed and shouted down until you either shut up and shut down, or just go away.

Propaganda is a tricky business, and people on all sides of the issues are slinging it around. Many of these individuals are well meaning, although some clearly are not. Some news outlets are so sure of their righteousness and validity that they take it upon themselves to lead their audience into a certain way of thinking. They state their opinion as fact and use inflammatory statements intended to make the American people feel left out or stupid or in the minority if they disagree.

Okay, I get it: this is about ratings and putting forth an agenda by bullying through a certain narrative. However, if citizens want to avoid getting caught up in the vortex of a propagandized agenda, we must be the ones to stop the reactivity, to slow down the rate at which we listen, think, and respond. We really are the ones who have the power to change the culture to what we want it to be, not what some politician or news source wants it to be--but we have to stop being lazy in our listening.

Blaming and finger pointing is lazy and reactive. If we are seeing a divided society or propaganda-slinging, we need to stop hoping it will go away on its own. Instead, we need to see ft for what it is and ask ourselves, "So, what do we do about that?" Awareness is the beginning of change. When we are aware of what we are dealing...