As a kid, I learned not to watch the news. My four year old brain already knew to hit the power button when I heard words like murder, homicide, or rape. I also knew that the weather, cartoons, and wildlife shows were ok to watch. Without media we would lose much of the individualism that motivates us and the information that guides our decisions. But would we also lose some of the the fear and anger that control us? It is my belief that media fuels many of today’s problems, mainly racism and terrorism.

Racism, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary,  is, “A belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capabilities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.” This belief has been sewn into our minds and heart by none other than our favorite news channels. A great example of this lies in George Zimmerman, a Hispanic American man, who fatally shot an African American teen, Trayvon Martin. According to Brian Stelter on his blog for the New York Times, NBC news edited a phone call conversation to promote a racist mindset. Zimmerman was giving a description of Trayvon to the police, describing his concerning behavior, saying, “This guy looks like he’s up to no  good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.”. When asked by the dispatcher, “ O.K., and this guy—is he white, black, or Hispanic?”. George then responded, “He looks black.”. In NBC’s “Today” show broadcast of March 27, 2012 however, he was quoted as saying “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.” This tremendous misquote made George look like a racist and unpleasant person, making a racism case against whites, while Zimmerman was Hispanic. What this tells us is that the media will take the side of troublesome, law-breaking, or violent people who happen to have dark skin over the man defending himself, who has light skin. In East St. Louis, Illinois, the population was 97.74% African Americans. 101 people out of every 100, 000 is the victim of homicide, but no major news channel cares. If one white man shoots a black man, however,  it’s a nationwide issue of almost forgotten racial tensions. If not for the news and Hollywood giving a one-sided view, would we really think in grayscale, with white and black as separate things? I believe we would see that man in a turban as a fellow human, not a suicidal terrorist portrayed in the movies

However, terrorism is a worldwide problem right now, with organizations popping  up like weeds throughout the Middle East and Africa. They choke out the people around them, and grow until they are seen as a threat . Not many people watched the Twin Towers fall from a street or bedroom window. Most saw it on the news, hearts dropping with the glass and steel. I’m not sure that we would be as scared of terrorist attacks if we didn’t see or hear about it every day for almost a month. News channels circulate fear like gossiping schoolgirls, telling everyone they know of what Al-Shabab did last night or what Boko Haram is doing over the weekend. The ISIS terrorist organization doesn’t bring an audience to their frequent beheadings, they post it on the Internet. They don’t need to circulate their violence, because CNN, Fox News, and NBC do it for them. Two researchers of a study from the Universities of Cambridge and Zurich, Dominic Rohner and Bruno S. Frey respectively, said, “Both the media and terrorists benefit from terrorist incidents.” Terrorists get free publicity, “...as reports of terror increase newspaper sales and the number of television viewers.”

Although media is a great tool, you need to know if you are using it, or it you. I believe that the media fuels many of the biggest present issues, fanning the fires of racism and terrorism as trouble grows for another figure on their paychecks. As I grew up, I chose who to like or dislike because of their actions, not their skin color. and my best friend was from the Middle East. I attribute this to not watching the news as a child, and became a more accepting person.  Next time you watch the late night news, try to watch for a forked tongue behind those smiling white teeth.