#4: Po-po-po-polarization!

Say it with me: polarization is REAL. Okay, now that that is out of the way, let's get started. Yes polarization exists. Yes, it is a bad thing...BUT polarization may also be a good thing. What??

As we saw in this week's online lecture and as evidenced by Jacobs and Townsley, shows like O'Reilly Factor and Hardball are quintessential examples of why polarization is horrible. What good can come out of being cut off, attacked and/or completely dismissed while you're trying to have a thoughtful conversation? What is the point? In situations such as these, nothing is being accomplished. As a viewer, I don't feel I'm gleaning anything useful; instead, I feel like my brain is on fire. If anything, I'm horrifyingly uncomfortable or incredibly annoyed, reactions that cause me to tune out, both physically and mentally. Obviously, this isn't helping to raise political engagement.

However, polarization could also be not so bad. Maybe it is within these gruesomely polarized shows where nuggets of goodness lie. Due to the extreme polarized we experience on these newer formats, we are seeing how not to interact with one another. Seeing the 'ick' factor of political shows encourages me to participate in more productive conversation with people who have different opinions. Is it easy? Hell no. Is it better for everyone if we hear each other out, ask thoughtful questions and maybe, just maybe, see things from different vantage points? Absolutely. Perhaps this would in fact increase political engagement (at least, more meaningful engagement). 

Are the shows mentioned in our prompt contributing to political polarization and a breakdown of dialogue and respect for difference of opinion? Some do and some don't. I don't religiously watch political shows, so I cannot say for sure, but from certain snippets that I have tuned into, I can tell that particular shows contribute to polarization in an extreme way and others do not. 

Comments

  1. Steve MacekApril 11, 2017 at 2:56 PM

    Elaina, you might be the first person ever to suggest that shows like Hardball teach lessons in debate etiquette via negative example. It would be interesting to empirically test how many other people react the same way to these shows. My fear is that most people who watch these shows end up imitating the rhetorical style of the guests and the host. And that is not a good thing. At least, I don't believe it is. Even though, there might be other reasons to defend these shows.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Op-Ed: Your OCD is Showing

If you can’t see something, does that mean it’s not real? We’ve all heard it before. Hell, we’ve all said it ourselves. “I’m so OCD about _______.” Cue collective laughter and affirming nods. Isn’t everyone a little OCD about something? That OCD is a legitimate, mentally-crippling disorder is unquestionable. And yet here I am, advocating for its validity and insisting that we begin to take it more seriously. Just picture this: a child creeps out of bed at ten o’clock on a school night. After descending the staircase quietly, their feet pad across ice-cold hardwood. Frozen in a unique mixture of paralyzing fear and overwhelming exhaustion, the child stares at the lock on the front door. Then, following ten long seconds of stillness, the child moves toward door, touching the lock in six quick, gentle movements, and sprints back up the stairs, careful not to look back. Three. That’s the number of times this child has peeled their tiny body from the comfort of their warm bed. This child is
Read more

A little somethin' somethin'

My final project centers around social media feminism and takes a look at whether feminists are more present online or in real life. To get a better sense of what is actually going on out there, I interviewed about ten feminists spanning the ages of 20 to 50, asking them a total of six questions to not onnly gage their thoughts on feminism, but to to get a sense of how they participate in feminism as a movement as well. I was really surprised at the feedback that I received, but what was most interesting was the parallels between the oldest feminists and the youngest ones. Between these two groups, there were some unexpected match ups between their definitions of feminism and whether or not the groups thought feminists were more prominent online or IRL.  Of course, there were some predictable answers, but I found it refreshing that there is less of a generational-influenced divide between older and younger feminists.
Read more

Prompt: Nobody to Somebody

Marc Lamont Hill's Nobody  is required reading for everyone, its contents rich and absolutely important. The entire book's purpose aptly instills a strong mixture of fear, disgust and utter disbelief–and for good reason. It goes without saying that every single black life lost has and always will mean something, and they all should still be here. Yes, it may seem strange that Hill is so optimistic in the end given the material he is writing about, but I can't help but take on an optimistic outlook too. Because the brutalization and systematic targeting of people of color has been so prevalent in America's history, it will take time. BUT just because the change is not immediate, it doesn't mean it can't start right now at this very second. It doesn't mean we can't enact change, even on a small scale. It's on us as citizens of this country to speak up and educate those who really just don't get it. I've reflected on this, before this readin
Read more