By: Arooj Fatima
Media plays a meaningful role and active role in the affairs of the country. It is a source of quick information. It must act as a custodian of democracy and must facilitate the decision making process. It must be instrumental in shaping publics opinion.
Media is a powerful weapon .It must address our emerging problems in an ethical way. As news media has become more commercial , producers and editors have been forced to make their news more appealing to wide audiences . Day time and late night talk shows are trending these days .
Society needs journalism , but in a different way . Investigate journalism is always relevant . But the talk shows these days are all about non- productive debates with fights and arguments that do not lead to any conclusion. It immediately stirs the listeners mind and is the cause of great hype . These divisive topics automatically trigger anxiety.
Our country is in midst of a big transitor and the stakes are high. We do not know what will happen and uncertainty is worrisome for many . When we experience uncertainty about something we care about , our mind registers this as a threat . We may avoid listening to views that are different from ours or even avoid interacting with others who have different political beliefs all together. And of course, we worry , we lay awake at night with all the debate we hear , scrolling across our brains .
Our brain constantly worries thinking what is right and what is wrong. Sometimes we do feel offended by someone’s views that leave us in stress and danger.
We believe that today’s partisan climate media polarisation and constant political debate are interfering directly with the fuel of happiness. Consuming too many negative and non constructive political debates can active the sympathetic nervous system, which causes your body to release stress hormones and lead to unhealthy conditions like fatigue, anxiety, depression and trouble sleeping.
Carolyn Heinrich ,professor of Public , policy education and economics at Vanderbilt University, wrote If someone would have told me I was going to spend 10_ 12 hours in front of a computer most days to do my job, I would never have chosen my current occupation , but it seems like most job these days require constant computer use. Now by this I mean we do everything electronically which has bound us to social media.
A professor at one of the worlds leading technological universities who are well known for several decades of research into human computer interaction wrote For the worse : The ritual of a weekly phone call with friends where they seemed like enough space to talk about things in a meaningful way has eroded to texting to “Keep up “ . On the other hand , several of my friends feel more in touch because they are sharing memes , they are sharing witty things on the spot , but there is less going into the depth . We don’t seem to be able to maintain both . That is what is really curious.
So try to set boundaries with conversations that you don’t feel are productive and only serve to increase your anxiety. And if you are too into these political talk shows , then only watch those in which such debate lead to some positive conclusion because mental health of a person is above everything.
An anonymous respondent wrote ,More access to communication and information hasn’t improved lives like we thought it would. In the early years of the Internet, it was life changing to send emails across borders and times zones , to look up encyclopedic answers any time you had a question or connect with family far away via social media.
Personally I have stopped using Flickr and Yahoo due to security issues. I have stopped using Facebook because of unreliable and untrue information shared there and email has grown to a bloated box of messages. I really don’t enjoy reading anymore. Digital technologies have made it more difficult for me to say on task and devote sustained attention.
This interferes with my work productivity. Increased isolation is a negative effect I feel in my life, the time I spend using digital technologies could well be spent in other more creative and productive ways.
It has become harder to take your eyes off a screen to enjoy life as its happening.
The influence of the media on the psychological development of children is profound.
Thus, it is important for physicians to discuss with parents their child’s exposure to media and to provide guidance on age appropriate use of all media , including television, radio , music , video games and Internet.
The objectives of this statement are to explore the beneficial and harmful effects of media on children’s mental and physical health , and to identify how physicians can counsel patients , their families and promote the healthy use of media in their communities.
An associate professor based in North America said, “ It is hard to be present with the omnipresent imposition of technology. When I am with family , technology reminds me of friends I am missing. When I am at work, I cannot be present when technology reminds me of friends and family.
A Senior fellow a major University on the US West Coast commented , I have seen friends and families where dining together is increasingly rare, even when people are distracted by their phones and tablets.
In the rush for the new thing or endorphin _ reinforced digital transaction they are forsaking the opportunities to interact with other people.
Many of the people are disconnected from those they love by the very technologies they loved to create.
So in this regard I would like to quote that using a lot of social media or watching too much talk shows can really stress out our lives so we should always watch appropriate material and avoid the negativity spread from talk shows.
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