My Last Word

This country likes to pretend like we our so advanced and that we are on an equal playing field (mainly Caucasians)... especially with the election of Barack Obama as our president. Well, this class has taught me that we are not. In fact, we are no where close to living in a fair and just society. Every week in this class we held discussions that showed our divisions and brought people's misunderstanding of each other and different races and cultures to light. Don't get me wrong, America circa 2009 is a vastly better place for minorities to live compared to America circa 1969, or 1869 — but the road ahead is still long. I have heard many of my classmates make statements that have shocked me. To hear some people say things they honestly believe in regards to different races and cultures is scary. There is a huge amount of misunderstanding floating around that has kept us from being equal.

What is the culprit in keeping us from an equal society? I think that the problem is people keep trying to deny differences rather than embrace them. We are taught that racism is bad and judging people negatively based only on the fact that they look different than us is not acceptable, but I think we're just taught that, and not the other side — that everybody's individual uniqueness is a beautiful thing and because of our differences, we can strengthen each other. This has bred a terrible disease known as political correctness. I do agree that there is a degree of sensitivity people must hold to when dealing with others — that's what this class is all about, but not like the degree that political correctness has transformed us into. People try so hard to not be racist or sexist that they walk on egg shells and pretend that differences do not exist. In my opinion, by denying these racial, cultural and social differences is just a reverse form of discrimination.

As citizens preparing to assimilate into the media industry, we must take the responsibility to change this upon ourselves. We must recognize that being different is not a bad thing, but is what will make our society, our country, and our world as a whole thrive. You have taught us all semester long to step out of our proverbial boxes and see the world from other perspectives in order to get a better understanding of different races. When we step out of our box and feel uncomfortable this helps us "experience" life from other people's shoes. The more we as a society talk about and embrace our differences the more that awkwardness will disappear, because there will be a greater universal understanding. Ignorance is what causes the bulk of the problems, and education is the cure.

I had previously committed myself to doing my part to rid the media of the discrimination, the ignorance, and the negative way minorities and females are viewed, but having this class has just made me care even more.

As far as my thoughts on using blogs in this class, I did not enjoy them at all. I consider myself a technological person and all, but for some reason when it comes to class work and assignments, I am more of an old-school pen and paper kind of guy. In general, I don't like blogs because they undermine what we do as journalists. The vast majority of them are factually incorrect and just make it hard to discern fact from fiction. Blogging is a tool that has a lot of potential, but I think it's taken a turn for the worse and probably can never be used for much more than general gossip and web rumors.

Overall, I enjoyed this class and the things we have talked about. Thanks for a great semester.