My Personal, Personal Opinion

I hung up the phone and yelled across the room. "There's an accident on Interstate 95 in New Haven," I said. "Is there is anyone dead?" asked my disgruntled co-worker. "No," I replied. "Then why should I care?" snapped my office mate.

To me this scenario lays the groundwork in order to begin asking who the media is. The media is comprised of people who are the gatekeepers of information. In some weird way it is as if they are positioned on the top of a snow-capped mountain creating tiny little snowballs and releasing only the ones that they see fit.

However, it is both sad and admirable that the media is in the business of not caring. Now, please let me explain. It is sad when one person goes through a hardship and the media turns its cheek, deeming it unworthy for coverage. However, it is admirable when journalists go after difficult-to-uncover information that would prove of interest to a mass population.

What is the media? That's a great question. That's a complex question. But, I am starting to believe that it is a huge, uncontrollable, yet sometimes mutable monster. And, I have to admit that I have been responsible, as a member of the media, for pressing that mute button and turning off stories that I didn't care about it. But, I don't want you to take that statement the wrong way. I don't hit that button irresponsibly, like a child pressing every button in the elevator at the mall. I do it with my audience in mind.

Now, even though I am apart of that media monster, I am still annoyed with it. I too want my news quick, concise, and non-biased. I hate reading newspapers (actual papers). And yeah, maybe as journalist, I should be ashamed of saying that. But, I am not! I do. I hate it. And, I cannot tell you how many people I have border-line offended with that statement. And yes, I did write for a paper during my college years. But, these days the only thing that I want the paper for is the sodoku games and the Target sale flyer.

I am more of the internet newsy. Without a doubt, I make up one of the 7 out of 10 Americans who turn to the Internet for news. It certainly does not surprise me that "some people have stopped reading print newspapers and instead get their news online [or that] those looking for national and international news have a host of 24/7, high-quality, free options," as mentioned in the annual report by State of The News Media.Who wants to pay for news? Who wants to pay for bad news? I don't.

I do, however, pay for magazines. I have a coffee table in my apartment dedicated to magazines. Is that a double standard? Maybe…But, to me magazines are of a different breed. Magazines offer an interesting twist to the news, especially when accompanied by a sketch or an amazing photograph that may actually be more powerful in conveying a message than that of the article itself. To me it is almost a no-brainer that in "varying degrees, [magazines] have also turned to writers from opinion publications," according to State of The News Media. News moves at the speed of light these days. Weekly publications would be utterly stale if they were to just report the news straight up; they would forever be playing catch-up. Journalists who write for magazine publications have more room to play around with ideas and criticisms - far more than the writers of newspapers. But, it could be that because I work in a local television news industry that frowns upon the slightest hint of opinion that, I enjoy journalism mixed with of opinion. It is sort of a guilty pleasure of mine - just as long as the preliminary facts are not distorted.