Reflection Paper

The media I consume is in the form of television and social media, which seem to be the most common types of media. I watch a lot of TV and spend a fair amount of time on Instagram, neither of which have changed since I began this class. Now that I am aware of some techniques advertisers use, I have found myself getting more annoyed by the advertisements I see while on social media. Sometimes the manipulative properties of media are so obvious that it is quite irritating. It is a good thing that I see these tricks, I now understand that advertisers and companies are not there for me, they are there for my money and my attention. Consumers need to be able to see past the ridiculous attempts advertisers have to get our money, and they need to understand that the advertisers are not here for us, it's all selfish motives. I may spend a lot of time watching television, but I do not find myself being changed by it. In fact, I can now see the moments where a company sponsored the show so there is a close up of a certain car or a certain product that they were sponsored by. It is actually sort of upsetting to see how many aspects of our lives involve the media and advertising. We are quite literally surrounded by advertisements, which, according to many studies, is not good for us. By being able to see past all the lies and manipulations in advertising, we are not as affected by it, which could assist teens with their depression. Mental conditions like depression and anxiety disorder are at an all time high among the younger generation party because the teens are surrounded by advertisements that tell them they need to be better than everybody else. They need to be perfect physically, and it doesn't matter how it hurts you, as long as you spend money on the product. Therefore, if my generation can see that advertisers are not actually serving us, we can also see that that means whatever they say is not the truth. Nobody needs to have perfect skin, or be perfectly skinny, or have a certain product. Without the influence of advertising, we can just focus on being happy.