Media and Ideology By Croteau

The name of the text I will be blogging about today is Media and Ideology and it is written by David Croteau. Croteau argues that media has its own ideology and has a tremendous influence over cultural and social norms in society. Many people say that the media doesn’t portray reality. Well, reality cannot be clearly defined because everyone’s reality is different then everyone else's. Media has its own ideology because it is used as an outlet to display beliefs and values whether the person behind it is aware of it or not. This ideology can be very powerful over people. For example, it can normalize certain behaviors that not everyone will agree with, or not everyone will feel is truthful. If one asks themselves what the purpose of media really is, most people would say to make money. Because this is it’s driving force, it is going to impact every single decision made after that. Media cannot be a reflection of society, because it is controlled by people in power. Instead it is a representation of something. However, even though people may be aware of this it does not have any less influence on them. The media is a thriving force that has more power than most people realize. One question I had after reading this article is why do so many people truly believe what they see and read in the media? My grandmother watches the news every night, and believes every single word that comes out of the newscaster's mouth. Is this because it’s easier to deny the truth? Or we want to think that the media could never be bias? After reading this article I definitely got a different perspective on the purpose of the media. There are so many contradictions within the media, and therefore contradicting ideologies as well. 

Teaching Film, Television, and Media