Media Reflection

            As we finish critical thinking I felt that it has made me more aware to the world around me. I have come to realize how much media affects me and how it has become such a large part of my life. I’ve come to realize that I consume a lot of media, purposefully and just in the world around me. I consume a lot more media then I should, and I knew it was a problem, but critical thinking has helped me realize how much of a problem it is. It distracts me and I feel like I have a shorter attention span because I’m on it so much. It makes whatever task I’m working on take so much longer because I take “breaks” on my phone that take a very long time. Even this reflection is taking me a longer time than necessary. I’ve always been aware that advertisers aren’t making this product for me, they just want to make more money. But now I’ve learned what they use to grab people’s attention. I’ve learned to filter out advertisements because there is just so many that try to catch people’s eye. This class has helped me filter out even more things, things I didn’t even know they were advertising. I’ve realized that even though there are advertisements you can buy on social media to advertise products; people also advertise things for free when they post about it.

            My media habits have definitely changed. I am able to put my phone down in a different room so I can focus better. I’m also more aware of my media consumption and have been trying to reduce it. I’ve thought that how much media I consume is normal, and while it may be normal for people my age, it isn’t healthy. I’ve realized I’ve been using the bandwagon fallacy and need to change that. I’ve also come to realize how stressed out social media makes me. It stresses me out more than it should when I already have enough stress on my plate.

            It is extremely important to have media literacy. If we don’t, then people won’t realize that people don’t always have your best interest in mind. Advertisers don’t care if you are spending all of your money on a product, they just want your money. It is also important to have media literacy because then you can realize that not everyone on social media is trustworthy. This class has helped me broaden my media literacy and understand advertising. Being an educated consumer is also extremely important. Advertisers love to lead you down the wrong path, and if we aren’t educated into what we are buying, we could buy something we don’t need or something we don’t even want. It’s important to keep in mind that the brand of the product doesn’t matter. Even if other advertisers say that the brand is important, ignore them because in reality they are selling the same thing as their competitors.

            From keeping this log, I’ve been able to understand more of what we were learning as I was writing. This blog allowed me to analyze social media and advertisements further. It has also shown me how much I’ve learned in this unit and how much more I know.