TheDyingArtofIntellectualLiving
LandinWilkins
Thebeautyofmediaisdyingandmaysoontobelostart,allbecauseoftheignorance andapathyexhibitedbytoday'sgenerations.Totrulyunderstandthegravityofthistopiconefirst hastounderstandwhatmedialiteracyisonafundamentallevel.Medialiteracy,inanutshell,is aboutbeingamindfulconsumerandcommunicator.Itistrulyaboutbeingabletounderstand whatastoryorpieceofmediaistryingtoconvey-orthattheremaybehiddennuanceor meaningbehindthesurface-levelstorythatisbeingpresentedatanygiventime.Thisskillis crucialtolifeingeneralformanyreasons,rangingfrombeingabletoenjoyworksoffictionona deeperlevel,tobeingabletounderstanddeepermessagessuchasallegoriesandworksofsatire toproveapoint,ortogainacriticalperspectiverequiredtodeterminehowaworkshouldbe viewed.Intoday’ssociety,itseemstobeadyingartwithfewerandfewerpeopleappreciating whatanhonorableskillitistobeabletoconsumeandunderstandmediaonadeeperlevel.So manyphilosophical,political,artistic,andoriginalideasarebeingoverlookedandwrittenoff becausethegeneralpublic,especiallytheyoungergenerations,doesnothavetherespector interesttolookalittledeeperintosomethingtocomeupwithanoriginalinterpretationor theorizeaboutit.Allofthisiswhyparentsandschoolsystemsneedtoprioritizemedialiteracy andsocialetiquettewithinyoungpeople'smindsastherearehorrifyinglylowreading comprehensionandetiquetteskillsthroughoutthenation,socialproblemsanduneducated actionsarebeginningtoaffectsocietyasyouthenter,andthereisanevidentdeclineinthe qualityofmediabeingproducedasthemainconsumerdoesnotcarefornorappreciatenuancein mediathatmakesthemthink.
Youngpeoplehaveahorrifyinglylowreadingcomprehensionandtrueunderstandingfor educationandhowtobehavesociallybecauseofthelackofattentionputonunderstandingand
appreciatingmedia.Some,whenthistopicisintroduced,maycontendthatthereisnoperceived needforimmediateconcernformedialiteracyandsocialetiquetteasoutsideeducationforthis indecadesprior,thesetopicshavebeenlargelyneglectedwithlittletonolong-termor widespreadconsequence.Therecentgenerations,(GenerationZandespeciallyGeneration Alpha)arethefirstgenerationswhohavehadthemajorityoftheirentireliveslivedwiththe advancedtechnologyandinternetthatcanbeusedtoday.TheexactyearthatGen.Alphastarted, 2010,wastheyeartheveryfirstiPadwasintroducedintothemarket.Thoughmedialiteracyand socialeducation/etiquettehaveperhapsnotbeenfocusedonactivelybeingtaughtinthepast decades,thisislargelybecausetherewasnoneedforit.Withnointernetandnoneoftheinstant gratificationthatweseetoday,learninghowtoproperlybehaveinsocietyandhavingageneral understandinginpickingupnuancethroughthemediawassortofanecessity;somuchsothat mostlikelydidn’tevenrealizehowmuchofanimpactithadondailylife.Beforetheageof mostmoderntechnology,activelycomingupwithanoriginalthoughtorgoingoutofyourway tosearchforananswertookcriticalthinking;goingandreadingormaybeevenusinglimited technologytofind,attheveryleast,wheretofindtheansweryou’relookingfor.Thisrequired complexandcriticalcognitiveprocessestocompletethetaskathand.Thisisallinsharpcontrast totoday’ssociety,whereanyquestioncanbeansweredquitepassively,withoutablinkofaneye aslongasyouknowhowtotypeandpressthesearchbutton.Thistoo,makestheneedfor humaninteractionthathadpreviouslybeenoneoftheonlywaystoobtainknowledge(whetherit befromtalkingtosomeone,havinginteractionatalibrary,meetingpeople,etc…)obsoletetothe pointwheremanyoftheyoungestgenerationgrowinguptodayhavenoknowledgeonhowto behaveorinteractsociallywiththoseawayfromascreen.Soalthoughnothinghastrulychanged
inhowtheyouthisbeingeducatedintheimportanceofcriticalthoughtandmedialiteracyevery otherfactorhaschangedtomaketheneedforthiscriticalthoughtindailylifesominutetothem, itnowseemstobeanecessitytocompensateforthatlossofthoughtinsomeformofoutside education.Thisiswhypushingtheimportanceofmedialiteracyandsocialetiquette.Inastudy donebytheAmericanInstituteofResearch,theywentthroughmanytestsofeighthgraders, includingexaminingscoresofNAEP(NationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress)tests throughouttheyears,interviewingthechildrenthemselves,etc..Oneofthemoresimple procedurestheyperformedwasaskingeighth-gradersiftheyreadthirtyminutesormoreperday, besideshomework.Fromthisstudyacrossonlytwoyears,theyfoundthatfrom2017to2019the percentageofchildrenwhoreaddropped4%,from53-49%.Notonlythis,butthesourcealso documentedthatspiritsregardingreadingalsodroppedaconcerningamount.“Positiveattitudes aboutreadingfelltoo.Eighth-gradestudentswerelesslikelytoagreethatreadingwasoneof theirfavoriteactivitiesorthattheyenjoyedgoingtothebookstore.”(Barshay,2021).Theauthor ofthisreport,JillBarshay,holdsadegreefromBrownUniversityaswellasamaster'sdegree fromtheLondonSchoolofEconomicsandalumnusofColumbia’sGraduateSchoolof Journalism.Sherelayedtheinformationofthisstudytonotonlylayoutthestatisticsofthe rapidlyfallinginterestratesinreadingandeducationbutalsotoexplorepotentialreasonsforthis dropinacademicstature;inthisway,sheseekstofindtherootcauseofhowthisproblemisa newfoundphenomenon.Tofindthefactsofhowsevereandwhatmaybecausingthisissue, BarshaywenttoreadingspecialistElenaForzaniatBostonUniversity.Atfirstglancelookingat thegiventestingscoresandinterestlevels,itwaseasytodeterminethatthosewhoreadmore andhadhighengagementineducationtestedbetter.However,uponcloserexamination,this
provedtobelessofthecase,asinsomeplaceswhereengagementhadremainedrelativelythe same,testscoresstilldroppedasithadwhereengagementwithreadinghaddipped.That’swhen Forzaniturnedtolookatanothermoreintuitivetheory-themoderneducationsystem.“Wetend totakethosekids(thosewhostruggletoreadattheirlevel)andthrowlowerlevelinstructionat them…It’sallfocusedonlearninghowtoread.They’renothavingcomplexdiscussionsabout thetext…We’reteachingkidstoreadinacontentandmotivationalvacuum.”(Barshay,2021).
Forchildrenwhomaynotfindreadingassimplisticorenjoyableasothers,itcannotbeeasyto beforcedtodosuchanunenjoyabletasksuchashavingtositdownandpracticephonicsor repetitivearticlesmeantnotforthechild'senjoyment,butonlytoforcethechildtounderstand howtoread.Thisseemstobeoneoftheflawsinthemodernwayofpushingchildrentobe educated,isthatitismadesounenjoyabletheyarenotonlydeterredfromreadingbutpushed towardeasier,moremindlessactivities.Theseactivitiesoftenaremoreisolating,givingyounger mindslessexposuretosocialinteractionandactivity;whichinthecaseoftheup-and-coming generation,mayprovetobedetrimental.
Thelackofsocialandetiquettecomprehensionthatyoungpeoplehavebeentaughthas beguntoaffectnotjusttheirownlivesbutbecomedisruptfulinthelivesofthosearoundthem duetoquestionableparentingtechniques.Admittedly,therearethosewhobelievethattheunruly andseeminglyobliviousactionsofmodernchildrenisnothingmorethantheclassicnatureof excitableandunrulyyouthandthattheywillgrowoutofitanditissimplyamatterofmaturing withtime.Thoughthisargumentmayholdfirminspecificcasesforchildren,thereisaneedto lookdeeperintotherootcauseofthisactivity,specificallythroughtheeyesofolderparents, teachers,andthosewhogrewupandarehavingchildrenoftheirown.Byinterviewingseveral
sourcesofolderparentsitwasreportedthatparentshavelesscontrolovertheirchildrenthan ever,duetoalackofdisciplineorsimplyallowingtheirchildinstantgratification.Oneparent, NancyAyers,motheroftwoadults,stated“Thewayparentslettheirchildrenwalkalloverthem isutterlyinsultingtowhatitmeanstobeintheauthorityofaparent.Theseparentshavefailedin teachingtheirchildrenhowtobehaveinasocialsetting,nowalltheyknowhowtodoisputtheir kidinfrontofascreentocalmthem.”Sothenarisesthequestionofwhy?Ifchildrenwereable tobesodisciplinedandcontrolledandtaughthowtobehavebefore,whathaschangedtoprove thatwhatthecountryisseeingisn’tindeedasmallphase?Tofindthisitseemstobenecessaryto lookatthegenerationprevioustotheyouthwhoaretheonesraisingthem,GenerationY(or morecommonlyreferredtoas,Millennials).ItseemsthatduetoGen.Ybeingraisedunderstrict discipline,thegenerationrebelledinastrangewayofbecomingquitefondofthe“gentle parenting”or“everyonegetsatrophy”idea.Thisphenomenoncultivatesinparentshardlyever sayingnoortellingtheirchildrenthey’vedonesomethingwrong,ratherattemptingtoredirect thinking.Thisparentingstyle,whentakentoextremes,alsousuallyinvolvesnotimpressingor pushingsocialetiquetteupontheirchild,essentiallylettingthemdoastheywishwithonlyminor instruction.Whilethisstyleofparentingisnotinherentlywrongasitcanbeeffectivelyusedin thecorrectsetting,itcanoftengettoapointwherethechildbeginstothinktheyhavepower overtheirparentsandcancontrolthem.Thispointiswrittenaboutinanarticlefromthe Law Liberty organization,thetopicoftheshiftingpowerbetweenparentandchildislargely discussed.“Inthisway,Millennialparentsattempttobuildanemotionalclosenesswiththeir childrenunderthefalsepretensethattheparent-childrelationshipisessentiallyoneofequals.” (Matthew,2023).Thisarticlewaspublishedin2023byElizabethGraceMatthews,holdinga
DoctorateinEducationfromSt.Joseph’sUniversity,andaMaster’sdegreeinEnglishfromPenn State.Shewritesaboutmanyexamplesofhowthishashappenedandhowchildrenusetheir parents'fearofseeming“controlling”toessentiallyusethemasadoormat.Thelargestissue regardingthistopicalsohastodowiththelackofobjectivelogicbeinginstilledintochildren's minds.Thisofcoursecanallbeconnectedagaintothelackoflogicandintuitionwhenitcomes toabsorbingandunderstandingmedia,butthatisneitherherenorthere.Childrenarescarcely beingtaughttheblack-and-whiteconceptsofgoodandevil,howtoandhowtonotbehave, regardlessoffeelings.Thisnotonlygivesthemthepowertobehavehowevertheywant,asthey knowtheywillreceivenoconsequence,butalsogivesthemanunrealisticexpectationforwhat therealworldislike.Matthewillustratesthispointquiteclearlythroughoutthearticle.“IfI assaultedanotherwomanonthestreetunprovoked,Iamunlikelytobetreatedtoasoliloquyon theanxietyofthepoliceofficerthatrespondstothescene.NoramIlikelytobeaskedwhyIam havingahardtime.MorelikelyIwillfacesomesortofcriminalpenalty-andrightlyso.” (Matthew,2023).Allthistosayraisingchildrenthiswaycreatesanunrealisticandself-absorbed expectationofhowtheyshouldbetreated.So,nowthattherootcauseisidentifiedthoroughly, whyshouldthisevenmatter?Well,therearemanyexamplesofhowthisdestructivebehaviornot onlyaffectsthechildandtheirparents,butalsothepeopletheyaresurroundedby.Forexample, therehavebeenreportsthroughoutthepastseveralyearsthattherehasbeenasignificant increaseinteachersresigningfromtheirjobsandreportingextremelypoorlyonthechildrenthat arerisingthroughelementarytoearlyhighschool.Manyofthechildrenwhohavebeenraisedin suchawaythatencouragesthemtodoornotdosomethingpurelybasedonwhethertheywantto ornothasmadeit,especiallyinthepublicschoolsystem,exponentiallydifficultfortheteachers
todotheirjob;manystudentsjustneverdowork.Inthetimewhenthesestudentsarenotdoing theirwork,theyaredisruptingclassinwaysthatmakeitnearimpossibleforstudentswhodo wanttolearntodosoatall,takingupalloftheteacher'stimetryingtodisciplinethem.Thisis alsooccurringoutsideofschoolinselectstores,oneexamplebeinginthemakeupindustry.
Here,reportshaveshownstoreslockinguppopularproductsandnolongerofferingsamplesizes ofproductsduetocustomerabuse,specificallyfromthedemographicoftento fourteen-year-olds.Allthistosay,allowingchildrentobedisrespectful,self-absorbed,and completelyblindtotheirsurroundingsandthepeoplearoundthemisanirresponsiblewayto parentandhasbegunaffectingpeopleoutsideoftheirpersonalbubble.Parentsmustreturnto slightlymoretraditionalwaysofinstallingrightandwrongandsocialetiquetteintotheir childrentoestablishthefutureofastableandresponsiblesociety.
Theissueofinsufficientmedialiteracyhasmanifestedinsocietyinseveralsubstantial ways,butperhapsnonesoobviousashowthelackofemphasisoneducationandcultivated mediapusheduponpeopleisaffectingthequalityofthemediabeingproducedbecausethe producingindustrycannotcountontheconsumertosupportqualitycontent.Onemayarguethat peopleintoday’ssocietyareconsumingmediaatclosetoalltimesduringtheday,whetheritbe throughmovies,music,television,socialmedia,reading,etc…Theybelievethatexposuremust insomewaybenefittheconsumerintrainingthemtobemoreintunewithmediaandhowto understandit.Whileitistruethatinthemodernworld,mostpeopleareconsumingmedia constantly,sayingthatithelpstogrowpeople'sknowledgeandunderstandingofnuanceand whatmediaisattemptingtoconveyisnotefficacious.Mostofthemediabeingconsumedbythe generalpublicisnotsomeeducationalfilmorpieceofmediawithexponentialnuanceand
hiddenmeaning,(withsomeexceptionsofcourse)itissocialmedia.Thisisnottosayalltimeon socialmediaisdestructiveorgoesonlyto“dumbdown”aperson’smind,butitdoeshavea greateffectonsomethingmanymaynotevenconsider-attentionspan.Lookingacrossthemany socialmediaplatforms:Facebook,TikTok,Instagram,Snapchat,Vine,etc…Theyallhavethe factorofbeing“instantgratificationapps”;givinginformationquicklyandinlargequantities. Lookingbackontheconceptofhavinganyinformationonecouldeverneedatthetipoftheir fingertips,constantinstantgratificationcanresultinshorteningattentionspans. The Study, didan intensivestudyin2023lookingintothetopicofhowtheuseofsocialmedialowersthe standardsforqualitycontentaswellasloweringattentionspans.Theyspeakofastudydoneby CNNHealthconcludedthatpeople'sattentionspanshaddecreased103secondsbetween2004 and2023(Hsu,2023).Thisshorteningofattentionspansalsomeanspeoplehavelesspatienceto lookfornuanceandpayattentiontoevencontentliketelevisionshows,whichseemdragging andblandincomparisontosomethinglikeTikTokvideos,whicharefilledwithbrightcolorsand fastsongs. The Study makesaninterestingpointastowhyyouthssoreadilyabandonactivities suchasreadingorcommittingtoanactivitythatinvolvescriticalthoughtandseemstobesimilar towhytheinterestineducationalandsocialactivitiesinfavorofisolation.“Poortestresults causenegativeemotionsthatstudentstrytoamelioratebygoingontheirphonesforarushof dopamine,leadingtoanever-endingcyclethatishardtobreak.Thus,astechnologybecomes evenmoreaccessible,andsocialmediaadvancestocatertoourdiminishingattentionspan,our attentivenesswillcontinuetodeclinealongwiththedesiretowatchanythingbuttrivialcontent.” (Hsu,2023).Theauthorofthisarticle,SophiaHsu,assistantprofessorofEnglishatLehman College,mentionsacrucialpointregardingwhatconsumerswantmoreandmoreasattention
spansdecrease.AllconsumersdesireatpresentiswhatHsudescribedas“trivialcontent,”such asmindlessscrollingthroughthesametrendsandmusicclips,watchingformulaicsitcoms,or beingcontentwithfranchise-typemediathatmakesnoattemptatoriginality.Thisisnottosay thatnooriginalorintellectualcontentexists,itismerelyhardertocomebyandmetwithoften muchworsereviewsasthatsortofcontentisnotappealingtothosewhodon’twanttothink.An adequateexampleofthiswouldbetolookatmovieslikedirectorWesAndersonchoosestoput out.Anderson'sfilmsareoftenfulltothebrimwithnuance,satiricalcommentaries,metaphors, etc…accompaniedbyanovelstyleoffilming,oftenfollowingmanyperspectivesthatthe viewermustkeepinmindtotrulyunderstandthestory.Mostofhisfilmswereaboxofficefail andwrittenoffas“styleoversubstance''wheninreality,theywerefarfromit,thepublicsimply didn’ttakethetimetotrulyunderstandormakeinterpretationsofwhatAndersonwasattempting todofromthesemovies.This,foraperiodoftime,madeAndersondullhismoviesdowntobea morepalatableexperienceforthegeneralunthinkingpublic.Thisveryphenomenonismuchof thetimewhymoviestudiosandproductioncompaniesrefusecreative,original,andnovelscripts infavoroffranchisemovies,sequels,orremakesthataresafeandhavebeenproventomake money. The Spartan Scoops articleentitled, “The Decline of Good Films'' is dedicatedto exploringtheseveryideas.Thearticlequiteobjectivelypinpointsthereasonfortheslowly decliningmovieindustryandattemptstobringtolighthowthereasonmovieproducersfeel safertoinvestinformulaicfranchisemoviesisduetoconsumersprovingthattheirattention spansandmedialiteracydonotdesiremorecomplexmoviesthanthat.“Themoviesofthelast fewyearsarequickandaction-packedshotsthateasilysatisfypeople’sever-shorteningattention spans;howevertheirplotlinesleavemuchtobedesired.Theinnovationseeninmoviesdecades
previousisrarelyseentoday.”(Buchholz,2022).AndrewBuchholz,theauthorofthisarticleis directorofphilanthropyatInterlochenCenterfortheArts,holdsaBachelorinSciencedegree, andMastersofScienceandEducationinCurriculumandInstruction.Hewritesalsoabouthow, muchlikesocialmedia,streamingservicesfeedintotheinstantgratificationthathaddulled mindssosubstantially.Allinall,technologyandsocialmediadonotseemtobedepartingor dwindlinganytimesoon,makingitextremelycrucialforparentsandpeopleofauthoritytoinstill intelligencevirtuessuchasmedialiteracyintotheyouthsothatthefuturecanlookbrighterin termsofcontent.
Findingtherootcausesofalltheissuestheworldseemstobefacingtodayiscrucialto solvingtheproblem.Throughstudiesofparentingstylestofaultywaysofenforcingeducation,it iseasytoseetheflawsinwhatchildrenarebeingconditionedtobelieveandsomeoftheeffects itcanhaveonsociety.Whatismoretricky,however,isfindingsolutionstothesesortsof problems.Thesolutionisthis:Parentingstylesandeducationalsystemsmustpushlearning correctmedialiteracyaswellassocialetiquetteasthenationandlargerworldisfacingissues regardinganalarmingdropintestscoresandreadingcomprehension,alackofsocialetiquette becomingdistrustfultothegeneralpublicasyouthsenterintosociety,andhowalltheseissues cancultivateintotheultimatedeclineofqualityinmediaasitisknowntoday. Itisimperative thateveryonebeginstoactivelyfosterrealcriticalthinking,respectfulsocialinteraction,anda moreadeptunderstandingofthemediathatiseverpresentineverydaylifetocreateamore effective,intellectualsocietyforthefuture.
References
Matthew,E.G.(2023,July27). The case against gentle parenting – Elizabeth Grace
matthew Law&Liberty https://lawliberty.org/the-case-against-gentle-parenting/
Hsu,S.(n.d.). Attention spans dwindle due to social media use TheStandard.
https://standard.asl.org/22338/opinions/attention-spans-dwindle-due-to-social-media-use/
Buchholz,A.(n.d.). The decline of good films SpartanScoop.
https://spartanscoop.org/2022/12/the-decline-of-good-films/
Barshay,J.(2021,May17). Proof points: Why reading comprehension is deteriorating. TheHechingerReport.
https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-why-reading-comprehension-is-deteriorating/