Your proper self:

Name:

Professor:

Institution:

Course:

Date:

How we are shaped by mass media (ads and music videos)

The society is filled with a number of perceptions that are influenced by various factors. Most of the perceptions individuals generate are as a result of the cultural background they identify themselves (Fourie, 2008). As a contributing member of the society, I am exposed to the social cultural norms that I experience on a daily basis. Over the years, the society has changed the way it views a number of factors. This is one of the results of the increased globalization across different communities. Globalization has increased the rate of socialization which in turn has influenced the society’s reception of new ideologies. Another factor responsible for the shaping of the society is the introduction of the media. The media displays the cultural, political and economical situations that are experienced in the society. One of the departments of the media is represented by the music industry. The need to reach out to the youth has resulted in the formation of an idea of the way the perfect individual should encompass. This has as a result placed a high amount of pressure on the teenagers who feel that they should meet these expectations (Gorman & McLean, 2009).

As one of the young members of the population, I am exposed to the same media influences as my peers. This issue is thus significant to me due to the fact that I face the same challenges that other teenagers and youth face. Music videos are created to supplement the singles that musician’s record. This is essential so that the song can have a theme and a storyline. The music industry has gone through its own type of metamorphosis. This is seen in the type of criteria that has been set for the people who feature in the videos. One of the examples of the music videos is the portrayal of females in the rap songs. A close look at the content of the videos displays the beautiful half naked woman dancing around fully clothed men. This type of videos put pressure on a high percentage of the female population to fit this description. This in turn has resulted in the demand for certain products such as plastic surgery, Botox, and different sorts of diets (Giddens, 2000).

One of the disadvantages of this phenomenon is the fact that the sources have lost the original message they once emphasized. Like all genres of music, rap music was intended to act as a voice for the social ills that the members of these communities faced as a result of social injustice. The success of the industry however, led to the creation of a flashy and boisterous lifestyle. This type of videos influenced the society in that all the men want to be like the male musicians and the women strive to look like the females in the music videos. This has placed an immense amount of emphasis on the image in regard to appearance and wealth (Curran & Gurevitch, 2005).

I am one of the youth in the present society. The media thus plays a significant role in determining my perception of different factors. Despite this, media has not entirely taken over my reasoning. Although it is easy to be swayed by the contents of the media, I have managed to gauge my own opinion by taking the positive and distancing myself from the negative. This type of attitude has shaped my personality as a whole.

References

Curran, J., & Gurevitch, M. (2005). Mass media and society. London: Hodder Arnold.

Fourie, P. J. (2008). Media studies: media and media representationVol. 2: Juta.

Giddens, A. (2000). Modernity and self-identity: Self and society in the late modern age. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press.

Gorman, L., & McLean, D. (2009). Media and society into the 21st century: A historical introduction. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.