Panel: Amanda Vella (KSU), Adrian Attard (3rd Eye), Eman Borg (KNZ) Matthias Mallia (JEF)
Moderator: Daniel Benson Camilleri
Highlights of the debate
- Mass media and social media have merged and became one and the same thing
- This has led to a decline in the value of news as everyday occurrences and petty pieces of information are shared and spread all over social networks.
- This undeniably has its benefits as it is much easier to pass on a message and it constantly keeps us up-to-date, but are we better off with all this information? Do we need to know everything that happens?
- In order for the public to read the article, the newsroom recognises that it must provide sensational stories that are somewhat different than the usual. This very often tends to be bad news.
- Another issue is truth and accuracy of detail. In an attempt to be the first to publish a story, newsrooms tend to overlook certain facts.
- Due to this, readers must refer to more than one broadcaster in order to get a better picture and be well-informed.
- Moreover, news must be filtered with a keen eye and the information reviewed properly so as to form an informed opinion when perspectives differ amongst broadcasters.
- Unfortunately, not everyone can do that, or worse, readers are not willing to go the extra mile and fact-check.
- A hurdle in face of this is the reality that media and entertainment have combined and no one really dwells on the authenticity when seeking to be entertained.
- Censorship sometimes is essential in order to allow members of a vast audience to not feel offended.
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Summary
The dramatic increase of popularity of social media has slowly led to its merger to Mass media. They became one and the same thing, with strong repercussions. This undeniably has its benefits as it is much easier to pass on a message and it constantly keeps us up-to-date, but we are constantly bombarded with information. This has led to a decrease in the value of news as everyday occurrences and petty pieces of information are shared and widely spread. In order to garner an audience, newsrooms recognise that sensational stories that are somewhat different than the usual must be uploaded. This very often tends to be bad news, without a shred of positivity.
Another pertinent issue is that of truth and accuracy of detail in news. In an attempt to be the first to publish a story, newsrooms tend to overlook certain facts. Thus, how reliable and believable are the articles that we read? Readers must refer to more than one newsroom in order to get a better picture and be well-informed. Moreover, news must be filtered with a keen eye and the information reviewed properly so as to create an informed opinion when perspectives differ amongst broadcasters. It is everyone’s duty to compare and contrast articles however, not everyone can do that, or worse, readers are not willing to go the extra mile, be selective and and fact-check. A hurdle in face of this is the reality that media and entertainment have combined and no one really dwells on the authenticity when seeking to be entertained.
