The United States of America has its share of triumphs and problems, both of which should be noted by discerning patriots. Unfortunately, triumphs need no work; they live in the memory but need no solutions. Practical observers could easily point out many ways that this nation could improve itself, many things that could be done to alter its missteps.
The sad thing is that, in light of all of the legitimate crises facing the world at large, politicians and media create false crises for their own political or monetary gain. These distractions serve to win votes and viewers, but fail to create meaningful discourse or solutions.
Our political system is, for better or worse, muddled and difficult to penetrate. Interest groups, industries, politicians, political organizers, and ordinary citizens all attempt to participate in our system with varying degrees of success. Everyone is trying to defeat someone else; it is an inherently vicious system. Politicians do not necessarily strive for the welfare or wishes of those they represent. I’m sure that there are some politicians who genuinely care about the desires and needs of their constituents, but most representatives will do only what they must to get reelected.
It is this insatiable hunger for votes that drives many politicians to create issues out of thin air or at least magnify insignificant issues. In Oklahoma, the state in which I attend school, senator Tom Coburn suggested that girls in the state may only go to the bathroom at school one at a time due to a wave of lesbianism in the educational system. These remarks had absolutely no statistical or observational support. They are simply the musings of one unbelievably ignorant representative. Yet, making an issue appear to be real reaps real political rewards. Conservative voters in Oklahoma, afraid of an imaginary rise in lesbianism, are more likely to vote for Coburn because he shares their same unfounded concerns.
Such political pandering and issue-dodging has long been a feature of political systems across the globe. However, the rise of mass media and communications has facilitated the spread of imaginary issues. The media illuminate every inane comment or false remark made by political figures in order to upset viewers (this is good for ratings). I especially enjoy Bill O’Reilly’s “culture war” segments, wherein he digs up obscure controversies and applies them to every facet of American social life.
Article comments
1 - Bryan McKay
Given the proliferation of media and "news sources", I think it's extremely important that we start teaching media literacy at a young age. We don't have direct access to the same sources the media has, and we still have to rely on mainstream media for our news. Given that, we absolutely need to give people the proper set of tools to decode and process the information we're exposed to on a daily basis.
2 - Baronius
Cole, I inferred from that story that Coburn was suggesting that it would be a good idea if girls went to the bathroom one at a time. In truth, he said that schools were only allowing one girl at a time to go to the bathroom. Plus, the comment is four years old. So ask not who in the media is running distracting sensationalized stories; it's you.
3 - Baronius
Cole, this is a well-written article which makes some valid points. I probably came down too hard on you for that Coburn comment. But my problem with the article is that it only lists social or culture stories as unworthy of attention. Specifically, social or culture stories that would anger conservatives. Would you consider Prop 8 to be equally unimportant? Are there social issues that you would consider important? And where in the media is there a lack of coverage of the economy these days?
4 - Cole Ford
Proposition 8 is a good example of a situation where the media makes an issue of equality and constitutionality an issue of moral indignation. They are skirting the heart of the issue in order to provoke outrage, most of which is justified by unsteady argumentation. With the Coburn bit, I was just giving an example. Though it is old, this sort of thing still occurs, as evinced by the debate over Proposition 8.