A Student's Musings on Today's News

W6T2: Reflective Writing on Media Conventions

News just isn’t the same anymore. As a Gen-Z who grew up with both traditional news media as well as social media, the influence of news isn’t the same as the previous generations. Traditional news media such as newspapers and TV serves the same purpose as it always had since its creation which is to inform the general public. The same news is presented across all channels however, the only difference is its delivery. Social media has always been a form of connection amongst people, hence to see it become a rising source of news for many generations is impressive.

My personal preference for receiving news is through social media, with the priority being daily news followed by entertainment and finally truth. Social media is my go-to when keeping up to date, with Twitter being my main source of news through the trends. However, it does not stop there. Following Twitter, I search through the hashtag to find articles from reliable news outlets such as The New York Times or Washington Post for a global perspective, and BFM and The Rakyat Post for a local coverage. I also follow SAYS on Instagram and Facebook for the latest update before proceeding to read articles for myself.

To me, it feels like a reliable method of gathering information as perspectives as I am not limited to one news portal for all the information. By reading other people’s tweets first followed by professionals and journalists, the knowledge gained is one that is from many different sources with different thought bubbles - hence the author of the story is easily identified. For most news portals, one can see that the journalist has done thorough investigation through the hyperlinks when making a claim or statement. Those hyperlinks redirect you to an article they have done or another source which allows the reader to learn more and gain more context - verifying a story.

For me, clickbait headlines or unbelievable stories often grab my attention the first and prompt me to share with others first without confirming. There have been a few times where I have shared a piece of incorrect information or news with friends however, after doing my own research after sharing, it is followed up with the correct piece of news. However, I have learnt never to trust people on Twitter as anything can be made up and spread easily - just like Whatsapp. Whatsapp is a platform where I have personally vowed not to take news from as there has been too many copypastas or fake news forwarded.

One of our ethical responsibilities as citizens and students is thinking responsibly and for oneself. Many of us are opinion leaders for our families and friends hence, we hold a big responsibility to share the right and accurate news to them. Older generations can be easily swayed and worried by news hence, it is also our responsibility to verify them as soon as we can to ensure that they have a peace of mind and educate those in their group. Finally, as we enter an age where anyone can be a journalist, there is an ethical responsibility we hold not to create fake news to scare others or misinform.