The role screens play in our experience can be very beneficial for our society and during any type of emergencies. I know it is horrifying at times seeing everything going on at times with the news and how they constantly projecting death statistics and the hardship people are going through, but it is fine to take a break from it once in a while. There are positives when it comes to media through this pandemic such as the stories Governor Cuomo talked about how people around the country are sending him masks, this show’s a glimmer of hope and that there are people who care and this act of kindness is symbolic in which they are connected to New York and feel for us. Without the media how would some of these people around the country and perhaps around the world know the struggle New York City is going through? And maybe seeing this through the news might inspire someone to do something positive, lend a hand, try to help out in any way shape or form. Just like those people who were handcrafting masks and sending boxes to the hospitals.
Another positive of the media is that it shows us which politicians are taking responsibility, which of them are the best leader, which of them are actually doing their job and it’s a way to recap and see how the government responded, was it successful? In the story And of Clay Are We Created, the media have all these equipment to document this tragedy and I would say it is horrible that they seem more concerned about their views instead of helping the poor child. But they aren’t all bad as we see Rolf wants to help the little girl Azucena but he can’t, he is doing the best he can. And that’s something I’m sure many of us during the pandemic can relate, where you’re not sure if you can do anything, how can one help? How can we be of use to help resolve the issue or mitigate people’s suffering? One of the best ways to help is following the guidelines and social distancing so you won’t infect others. If I were in the story, I would have projected on the tv screen, URGENT BREAKING NEWS: that’s going to reach the masses, put in the caption below the screen: THIS CHILD IS IN DESPERATE NEED OF HELP, WE NEED A WATER PUMP, CAN ANYONE BRING US ONE. Of course, this doesn’t mean someone might have one, but you never know, and if that doesn’t work, entice the public with a reward to bring one and help out, the reward would be a certain amount of money in exchange if they bring a water pump.
The newscast in the story should be held to some accountability, I would have had half or more than half of them help in search of a water pump or learn to make one quickly, while the other half continues breaking the story. For the politicians and the government, in my opinion, they have to do something because they are in a position of power, and with their position they have the influence to lead the nation to act in a certain way, to do a certain task, but that doesn’t mean we have to always rely on them. The people have to rely on each other, keep sharing and spreading information, learn and adapt to the situation because sometimes the government takes too long, or they don’t make the best decisions and that is why people have to organize between themselves, their community and businesses to do something to mitigate the issue while tailoring to their strengths.
Jeremy, Thanks for these reflections on Allende’s story. I particularly appreciate your reminders about all the ways in which we benefit from our access to media and all the good that an honest and transparent media can do.