My Relationship with the Media

  

          From even before I was born, I was surrounded by the media. My parents once told me that I would kick in my mother's stomach when certain songs came on the radio, and I believe that same love of music is still with me today. Since I was little, I have always been fascinated by technology. Listening to the radio and dancing with my parents and siblings were some of my fondest memories as a child. I remember waiting religiously every Friday night with my sisters, waiting to watch Nick Cannon's music video countdown and discussing all of the top songs with my friends at school the next week. While music is only one form of media that has greatly influenced me and my life, there are millions of other forms which fill the air around us and occupy our schools, homes, and everywhere in between. 

         Growing up in the 2000's, I was constantly exposed to the media whether it was through my friends at school, billboards, or even household items. Although the effects of this media did not occur to me until much later on in life, it essentially consumed my mind and that of people around me. I remember seeing adds on Tv for butterfly gardens and animal-shaped plates at a very young age, then begging my mom to buy them for me because they "looked so cool." While the idea of a child wanting "cool" looking items from commercials on Tv seems harmless, the progression of the media's influence on my has greatly grown over the years, to the point where it now consumes most of my day and the world around me. 

          Unlike most kids my age at the time, my parents did not allow me to watch YouTube, go online by myself, or have memberships to games like Club Penguin and Webkinz until I was over ten years of age. When I was finally able to access these internet resources around the age of eleven, the media started to have a greater effect on me. YouTubers such as Bethany Mota and Michelle Phan became my go to's when it came to how I dressed for certain occasions or how I believed my hair should be done for picture day. Online games, such as Webkinz and FarmVille took over a large portion of my weekends in elementary school, and often costed my parents lots of money, due to all of the excess plushies and coins I bought in order to continue playing those games. Today, YouTube has become one of my main resources for entertainment, and has ultimately replaced Tv for me entirely. 

         While the YouTube platform has completely changed and diversified content-wise since I had first discovered it in 2014, I believe overall usage of YouTube by everyone in 2019 has greatly increased since previous years. In many of my high school classes, I have found that YouTube has been a common resource for informational videos when it comes to explaining science concepts, practicing our understanding of various languages, and discussing political issues. The idea that teachers nowadays would recommend using the internet and watching videos online to better help our understanding is very interesting to me, because I remember being in elementary school, and having teachers who would only go by the book in their lessons. I think these minor changes really show the impact that media has not only on me, but on everyone around me as well. 

         The influence that the media has had on me continues to be relevant today, and I believe that its effects are more effective on me now than ever. I have had Snapchat and Instagram accounts since the eighth grade, and I believe that ever since the day I downloaded those apps, I have became more aware of the world around me. On a day to day basis, I am surrounded by "fake news" and unrealistic standards set by corrupted ideals. I am well aware that social media in particular is mentally damaging to an individual. While I believe that having access to everything in the world and being accessible to world is generally a negative concept, I also believe that social media gives opportunity to people and can also be used as a powerful platform to not only get information from, but to give. Through the media, I have made many of my closest friends, stayed in touch with relatives in different states, and have become more aware of life and the reality of the world. The media has made a great impact on not only me, but the world around me, and continues to do so every day. While the media has had both a negative and a positive influence on my life, I believe that these influences have ultimately shaped me into the person I am today, and is what makes today's society work the way it does.