Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Mrs. Cramer
Comp Pd. 4
5 Oct. 2018
The People Censored
Supervision and control of the information and ideas that are circulated among
news reports, and other communication media for the purpose of altering or
war, the amount of graphic content and sensitive information that could be broadcasted
is almost endless. Even though the word censorship has a negative connotation doesn’t
mean it is bad for the people. In fact, the American people benefit from having
censorship in the media, with the media and the government blocking out gore and
sensitive information regarding the safety of others, as well as helping the people stay
To begin, censorship in the media is a saving grace for those who view the
media and are squeamish to gore or graphic depictions of accidents. For example,
society does not want a child picking up a newspaper or clicking an article on the
internet and seeing a decapitated head staring back at the child (Halbrooks). Seeing
this graphic imagery could scar a child severely, if he or she knows what they’re looking
at. Graphic imagery could even scar adults who don’t want to look at the graphic images
that could be presented before him or her. Society also doesn’t want young children
reading graphic details about an accident that occurred. This alone could cause children
typically feel the same way as children when it comes to graphic details. The reason for
society’s concern is that children are extremely easy to influence due to their still
developing minds. For instance, it would be harmful if a child were to read about the
works of Jeffery Dahmer and attempted to copy him because the child didn’t know that
what Dahmer did was wrong and ended up hurting someone. That wouldn’t be good for
the children to experience, nor would it be pleasant for the person who was the victim of
the hypothetical attack. Lastly, graphic violence should not be included in the media, as
Next off, censorship can be the line between life and death of the citizens if it is a
matter of national security. For instance, the media can give away details that shouldn’t
be well known by the people or by foreign enemies of the state (Anderson). Terrorists or
foreign enemies could gain knowledge of the military’s movements or the military’s
plans if the media were to leak it out to the public. For example, if the United States
were planning an attack on the Canadians, and CNN or FOX reported on the subject
when the Canadians didn’t know, and they found out because of it, it would be chaos.
Also, the reporters for the media need to be aware of the affects that their actions could
have on terrorists and their plots. Giving terrorists attention is exactly what they want,
they want to be shown and they want their message to be heard by the masses.
Terrorists manipulate the media to their advantage, a countless amount of reporters fall
right into that trap. This is especially troubling because terrorist groups could test the
waters and figure out what works best to get their word out to the people. To the
terrorists it’s all about sending a message. In conclusion, reporters that report on
attacks, or those that report on matters of national security, need to be aware of the
affects that they will have on the innocent people of the United States, this isn’t common
because reporters believe that the truth deserves to be known no matter what, which
In addition, censorship gives the public something that they can hide behind and
not have to face the horrors and truths of reality. To illustrate the point here, imagine
you are a citizen of the country of North Korea, where censorship of the outside world is
about as common as the air breathed by the population. The citizens of North Korea
only get to see what their country is like, due to them being an isolated country, and the
citizens within believing that they are the best and every other country is evil; this is
because they don’t get to see the outside world and see how good it is compared to
them. This is due to censorship. In this case specifically, censorship gives them a better
view of their world and their country. The inhabitants believe that they are the best they
can be, while actually being one of the most impoverished countries on the planet. On
another note, when the media censors the details of a violent act, such as a serial killer
or school shooting, the viewers don’t connect that story with a grim reality. Many go on
with their lives thinking nothing of the 13 school children that were gunned down by a
man wielding a firearm. They view it as a movie or a book, because they don’t give the
names of the children or describe the harm done to them. Because of this, the viewers
are able to compartmentalize this atrocity and go on being as ignorant to the world as
they can be, which is what they want to do. Lastly, people who don’t want to get the
details from the media are exactly where they want to be, as they won’t be getting what
people inhabiting these United States. Censorship keeps the viewers happy, it keeps
the viewers nice and safe, and it keeps the viewers content with their lives and their
lifestyles. According to Isaac Asimov, “There is a cult of ignorance in the United States,
and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread
winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that
Anderson, Terry. "Terrorism and censorship: the media in chains." Journal of International
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A14469310/AONE?u=pl1949&sid=AONE&xid=baa
Halbrooks, Glenn. “How Media Censorship Affects the News You See” TheBalanceCareers,