Lieux et formes de pouvoirs (document en anglais)

I’m going to talk about the notion “Forms and places of Power”. Power can be defined as the ability to influence or to control people, events, environment or resources. It’s also the ability to make things happen despite obstacles, resistance or opposition. The Medias have a certain form of power. We called “mass media” the media which are able to reach and influence a wide audience. Nowadays the media is mostly associated with television, press and the internet. One may ask, what is the power of the media? First I would like to talk about the fact that the media inform and educate us, but they can also denounce facts. Then I would talk about the power of the media on public opinion (more precisely the fact that they can influence our opinion).

The mass media is a matter that touches all our lives because virtually/practically every day since early childhood, it has been playing an important role in forming our personality, enriching our knowledge or providing us with information of any kind. The main (principal) function/role of the media is to inform the public about the news of his city, his country or world. They allow us to always be informed about what is happening in the world. For example if a climate catastrophe occurred in a country through the media we can be informed. In addition the media serve also to educate the society. Thanks to media we can enrich our knowledge by reading an article or watching the program on TV. Educational programs for children are used to teach them to count, learn the alphabet or learn colors, for example. This is for example the case of program the “Dora the Explorer”. Moreover some press article can teach us things we did not know. It may be the case of scientific magazines. Medias can make more responsible, they can educate us. For example the campaign “Keep America Beautiful” was broadcast to fight against pollution. Besides media can also denounce. They can denounced problems like racism or corruption. For example, the media have publicized a health scandal in 2014. The leaders of a California slaughterhouse were indicted for selling meat from carcasses rejected by health inspection. In total it is estimated that about 5 million pounds of beef have been sold. So the media can inform and educate us but they can also denounce scandals.

The media can also influence public opinion. They can influence our way/manner we consume. For example the media, through articles or issues, can make us understand that we must eat healthy and to exercise to be in good health. In addition the media influence our attitudes. For example smoking was once widely accepted in American culture, even praised and glamorized in movies and televisions. But nowadays mass media campaigns have been used to inform the public of the danger of smoking. The mass media campaigns motivate millions of Americans to quit smoking. Likewise, the media campaigns for the safety belts and highway safety are another example of the Power of Media to influence attitudes and behaviors. Since this campaign (Vince and Larry), safety belt usage has increased from 14% to 79%. But media can also influence our political choices our political choices speaking more of a politician than another. Moreover media can make someone famous telling of the good deeds ha had made for example. But media can also destroy someone’s image. For example someone who is accused of murder will

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