Conflicted

This Friday we were afforded the opportunity to argue that media conglomerates were

a. Beneficial to society

or

b. Harmful to society.

I was on the team that had to argue that the conglomerates were more beneficial than harmful. This was the harder position to take because the negative aspects of media conglomerates are so apparent, and they appeal to very personal concerns such as individuality how money is handled.

One positive aspect I see in media conglomerates is that they are a testament to the power of free capitalism in the United States. The companies who control the media have gained this control through shrewd business and without the aid of the government. Now, I realize that not all that comes along with a free market is good, yet it would terrify me if the government was the institution that controlled the media. Totalitarianism is what would come of such a set-up.

The most negative aspect I see in media conglomerates has to do with their agenda-setting function. Whereas I am glad that the government is not in charge of the media, I am disappointed with the issues the media attaches importance to. More often than not, the shallow and the sensational replace issues that are of much greater importance and which require action on the part of the people of the United States.

The irony is that, as citizens of a democracy, we have been allowed the freedom to create a system that ultimately ends up controlling us.

The worst part is we think it is "just TV."

The Romans were obsessed with entertainment, and consequently, as a culture, they were rather intellectually stagnant when compared with other civilizations.

We are sacrificing intellect and our ability to think critically when we let the media make decisions for us.

I am just wondering when it will catch up with us.

I am wondering when the empire will fall.