How is it that the values of kindness, service, respect, honesty, etc., are quickly disappearing from society today? Fifty years ago, media started out as newspapers and magazines spreading news to those who read them. Television built on this and began to provide entertainment as another aspect of media. In today’s world, from magazines to everyday TV channels and quick access to the internet, the media has developed into an entirely different animal. Unfortunately, this animal is changing the morals and values of our culture for the worst. Through a series of attacks on the family, negative and often inappropriate examples of celebrities that many esteem to become like, and a degradation of the core morals and values of our society, the media has become a major hindrance to society.

Everywhere one looks, the value of family is being lessened. When looking at almost any TV show, one can see the debasement of the importance of family and the roles within. It’s not very hard to notice that in almost every show, the portrayal of the modern-day husband and father as stupid, lazy, and incompetent. What are children supposed to think about men, whether their own fathers or others, when they are constantly told that men are stupid and incapable of almost anything? As kids grow up surrounded by this negative influence, it changes their own views on male role models in their present lives and in their lives to come. Fathers are very important to the family structure, yet the media often belittles them. For those who do not have a father figure present, it is especially easy for them to be brainwashed by this message because they don’t have a real example of how caring and loving fathers really are.

Unfortunately, this negative influence and portrayal of men in the media often leads to higher divorce rates. People often get married and then feel like divorce is a crutch that they can rely on if things go bad. When there are strained familial relationships, the worse thing members of the family can do is watch TV shows that belittle men. As they view these shows, they start to believe that their own husband or father acts in this way. The portrayal of men on TV is often very exaggerated, but when people watch these shows over and over again, they are convinced that their own male counterpart acts in exactly the same way. All this does is strain the relationships of the family even more and can even lead to a premature divorce that could have been fixed without the influence of the media. The annually increasing divorce rate is, in large part, a result of the media’s influence on the familial structure. With the media as a catalyst, the importance of family is quickly spiraling down.

A large part of the breakdown within the family has to do with the negative influence of individual celebrities. Most of this problem lies in the build-up of self centeredness. Celebrities are completely stuck on themselves and this factor is very effectively conveyed to the public. Unfortunately, this narcissistic view of oneself is quickly catching on to many fans. When they become obsessed with themselves, it is impossible for them to function in a normal relationship. As relationships with others are destroyed, many result to following other faulty habits of the stars they admire.
Celebrities have great influence on the youth of today’s society and it is not a positive one. Drugs, alcohol, sexual promiscuity, etc., are rampant in the lives of celebrities. Dress and appearance play a large part in this negative example. Women wear skimpy clothes (if they are even clothed at all) implying that the body is an object to be lusted after. Problems with anorexia in girls arise after they constantly see pictures of “beautifully made up” and ultra-thin celebrities on the covers of magazines and on the TV. Not only do celebrities have a negative influence on the physical aspect of fans, but also on their health. Numerous examples of celebrities taking insane amounts of drugs (often resulting in death) are seen everyday. Celebrities are glamorized in this act rather than supporting a drug and alcohol free life. Many people become convinced that the key to a satisfactory life is through the escape of alcohol and drugs. As long as celebrities lead by negative example, the thoughts and actions of our society will continue to degrade and lose the value they once had.
Even just fifty years ago, society had very different morals than it does today. Much of this change has been charged by the influence of pop culture on today’s world. The core values of family and fidelity are being overcome instead by immorality and unfaithfulness. Much of society today has become corrupt and addicted, following closely in the footsteps of those it follows so obsessively. The insecurity in youth today is mind-blowing, accentuated only by the erratic dress and dieting of popular women. There is no way to stop this downward spiral unless those society “admires” so deeply change their course of actions or society as a whole stops gobbling every move celebrities make and asking for more.
This change will take effort on everyone’s part. While it does not take much change, it is required from everyone. Sadly, this makes it very difficult for this change to occur. Not everyone is willing to make the necessary alterations in their lives so that celebrities will have less control over society as a whole and so that society will stop looking to celebrities as their “go-to” example of who to follow and imitate. The choice is ours and the time is now. What will we decide?