Question

Choose two of the bulleted quotes below and decide to what extent you agree or disagree with the writer/speaker, support your claim.

Explain your argument/counterargument and use evidence and examples from class and your lived experience to Your response should be a minimum of 3 paragraphs.

• Social media is something of a double-edged sword. At its best, social media offers unprecedented opportunities for marginalized people to speak and bring much needed attention to the issues they face. At its worst, social media also offers "everyone" an unprecedented opportunity to share in collective outrage without reflection.
Roxane Gay, author

• Whoever controls the media, the images, controls the culture.
Allen Ginsberg, poet

• I have said that propaganda, misinformation, and disinformation have always been part of political warfare.
Social media and other new platforms have given it a new life and reach through which the fake news phenomenon can reach everywhere.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistani politician

• If people in the media cannot decide whether they are in the business of reporting news or manufacturing propaganda, it is all the more important that the public understand the difference, and choose their news sources accordingly.

Answer 1

Social media serves as both a platform for marginalized voices and a breeding ground for collective outrage without reflection. Control of media shapes culture and public perception, but is now more distributed among various content creators. It is a collective responsibility to mitigate misinformation and safeguard informed discourse.

Step-by-step explanation:

I agree with Roxane Gay's assertion that social media is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it provides a platform for those who are traditionally marginalized to have a voice and bring attention to critical issues. However, I also acknowledge that this same platform can lead to rapid and often reflexive sharing of content, sometimes without a full understanding or consideration of the nuances involved. An example of this beneficial aspect is the #MeToo movement, which utilized social media to amplify voices that were previously unheard or ignored. In contrast, the challenges are evident in scenes of collective online outrage that often escalate into cyberbullying or misinformation campaigns.

Allen Ginsberg's quote on whoever controls the media and images, controls culture resonates strongly in today's digital age. Media ownership and the gatekeeping of information shape public perception and can be seen in the way political narratives are crafted and disseminated. This power dynamic was starkly evident in the 2016 US presidential election, where social media platforms were manipulated to influence public opinion. However, it's also important to consider that control over media is more diffuse today due to the variety of content creators and sources available online.

The mitigation of misinformation and disinformation is a societal responsibility, requiring users to apply critical thinking, social media platforms to enforce policies against fake news, and governments to implement regulations for a more educated and informed public discourse. Change is possible through collective effort that includes media literacy education, transparent and effective moderation policies, and legal frameworks that hold platforms accountable for the dissemination of harmful content.