Newsletter: A Critical Introduction

All types of media are created for the sole purpose to send a message and garner a following. As a media consumer, I make sure to perfectly curate things I like to see across my algorithms and movie/ TV selections. I strongly believe that media needs critics to survive. Without them, there’s no baseline to accurately critique what we consume.

My relationship with media could be considered a love/ hate situation. I’m the chronically online person in my friend group. It they want to know the latest trend or random world event, I’m sure I’ve seen it and have an opinion about it. Although I love creative expression, some content doesn’t add value to society. I don’t expect all media to contain depth and prolific meaning, but I do expect a certain amount of effort. If a person chooses to make a reaction video, it doesn’t truly show me their thought process on the media clip they’re transposed on. This creates a loop of unengaged consumers that become bystanders without thought. From a critical perspective, I believe great pieces of media should tell some type of story. If I’m watching someone give their political views on policies, the content creator should be able to back their ideas with facts and research. If it’s a social media sketch, I should be able to figure out the plot and what makes it funny. Bigger scale items like movies or TV shows should also be easy to follow through every twist and turn. This ensures the audience stays engaged and creates return consumers.

The media genres and themes I’m drawn to vary across platforms. Themes I gravitate towards on social media are mostly educational through comedic outlets. I follow a good portion of ‘yappers” that give their take on an array of topics. Their methods are primarily conversational. This gives the feeling that I’m listening to an old friend via FaceTime. Other content creators convert world events into comedic sketches. This is appealing because seeing the humor especially in serious situations is a craft. I enjoy watching the videos or seeing memes that encourage me to dig deeper. This allows me to ingest what they’re saying without walking away feeling like I’ve been lectured. With movies, I lean heavily into psychological thrillers. I feel like this genre relies heavily on the intricacies of the mind to see things from a different perspective. TV shows that are more drama or deadpan/ dry comedy are my speed. It provides small spurts of excitement or speaks to my cynical nature.

            All these forms of media speak to the multifaceted approach I take on life. Having a variety of interests shows that no matter the topic, I can approach things with an open mind. I try to arm myself with enough example so when the time comes to critically analyze something, I have enough information to make an informed opinion. I believe once people know this about me, they are more inclined to trust my judgement on pieces of work. Everyone has their niche, but everyone should also embrace their inner critic to expect more from the media we intake.