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What is Positive Media Proposals?
POSITIVE
MEDIA PROPOSALS
"As you think so do you become", is the oldest adage in the world.
We must ask ourselves the question, "How do we come to think what
we think?" Quite literally, we think what the community, the family
and the media suggest. Recent studies have shown that the average
school child in America becomes exposed to twice as many hours
of television programming as school teaching by the time they
graduate from high school. We are inadvertently becoming the by-product
of socially irresponsible media programming. Ninety to ninety-five
percent of daily news broadcasting focuses on disasters, human
ignobility and marginal social beings that do not adapt to stressful
life in complex society. Somehow we have come to seek the worst,
report the worst and mistakenly focus on the worst in anxiety
producing situations and events. This has been called, "informing
the public". If in a city, the size of Salt Lake city, Utah, one
murder has been committed in a population of approximately 600,000
residents, where is the objectivity in the news report to balance
this isolated event? Along with the murder did we see the glamorized
cooperation of dozens of neighbors, police, social service workers,
and doctors and the rest of society that mobilized to neutralize
this ignoble human failure? Positive news coverage does not have
to become "milk toast" as so many media defenders suggest. Human
intelligence expresses itself creatively when properly stimulated.
We can end this "telling to ourselves" that we are corrupt, dangerous
and out of control. At any moment, we can change our focus and
we can change our self-fulfilling prophecies about human life
on this planet. The choices rest with individuals who exercise
their right to participate with redesigning the public information
that flows out through the media. Expanding mass communication
systems such as television, radio, newspaper, various printing
mediums and increasing varieties of computers have no intrinsic
value of themselves. Their usefulness rests solely in the decisions
made by broadcasters, editors, programmers and WE, THE CONSUMERS.
Who outnumbers whom? "Once power is accrued in any center, it
will never willingly relinquish that power. It must, therefore,
be destroyed from within by revolution or from without by war."
This paraphrase from the great philosopher, Bertrand Russell,
appears to be relevant when reviewing the media's inability to
govern itself towards performance for the upliftment of society.
We, as citizens have delayed in taking thoughtful responsibility
for sending positive directives to powerful media centers. We
no longer can avoid the confrontation between the power of the
few and the need of the noble majority. We the majority must positively
withdraw our consent for the misuse of public communications systems
through conscientious participation. Positive Media Proposals
encourages and helps direct individuals in specific ways of participation
with new directions for public media expression. In consideration
of limited time that individuals have for social involvement,
a carefully designed group of suggestions for action are presented
for your convenience.
From the Attic
Without having to leave the sanctity of your home or without meeting
with one other committee, you can sit, "even in your attic," to
write a letter of concern to any media control person. Your letter
can be sent to one individual or duplicated, ad infinitum, and
sent to dozens, hundreds or thousands of media involved people.
Hence, there is no ground for the argument that, "we do not have
time to become involved".
A slightly more ambitious approach might be individuals drafting
several types of media focused letters, and shearing them with
some like-minded friends. Copying and distributing these letters
in mass can then become a fun project.
A still more ambitious approach might be a group of individuals
getting together to lobby manufactures to use their advertising
dollars for the support of only those programs that reflect the
better part of human nobility. The obvious benefit for the manufacturer
lies in the public relations gained through such controlled outlays
of their advertising monies.
Other concerned groups may want to promote open dialogue in their
community to stimulate awareness for responsibility in media management.
These projects will affect the "whole well beingness" of our presently
weak society. Positively directed activities relieve us of the
self-inflicted feelings of victimization and get us informatively
participating with values of life worth preserving. We can launch
our own private campaign and go to war against the ignobility,
inhumanity and degrading preoccupation with antisocial behavior
focused on in the media.
Wholly Wholesome
When we are whole and in a state of balance, creativity is a natural
product. When we are ill or ill begottenly frightened we become
reactional and excessively defensive. Mass media can creatively
express itself when the participants have the whole well beingness
of the individual and the extended world populace clearly in view.
Death, mayhem, corruption and assorted forms of murder offer little
creativity and it's about time we stopped deluding ourselves that
it makes fascinating fare. Actually, sharing in the triumph of
a seriously handicapped person over apparent difficulties adds
fascinating hope instead of anxiety to our lives. Stimulating
the creative eye to look for positive media opportunities opens
the door to an endless source of uplifting expression.
Overcoming Objections
It is not necessary to fall into the error of believing that pointing
media towards positive directions will lead to whitewashing negative
aspects of human life. Over-react ional media persons delight
in suggesting that positive reporting equates to "propaganda style"
manipulation. Where did such silly reactionalism get its root?
Surely, we can afford to add 10% more positive reporting in the
news media without making a fairy-tale of life. One could legitimately
ask media personalities whether or not they would like their children
raised on a steady diet of what they themselves produce for mass
consumption. If we do not move conscientiously to correct our
social irresponsibility in monitoring media, 50 to 100 years form
now our children and our children's children will inherit magnified
problems of OUR MAKE.
Joint Support for Change
In order that we might find collective energy through individual
participation in these outlined efforts, we encourage you to share
your experiences with Positive Media Proposals headquarters. It
would be helpful if you were to send photocopies of the materials
or letters sent out, so that it may be sorted and documented.
A list of names and addresses to which your documentation has
been sent would serve several purposes for coordination of the
project. A large portfolio of proposals and appeals should be
collected and processed for statistical information. This research
data can provide valuable insights into future project designs.
If you share the general philosophy outlined in Positive Media
Proposals and would like to further public awareness, may we suggest
ordering more brochures in bulk at nominal rates. Please direct
all correspondence, orders and questions to coordination headquarters
in Paradise Valley, Arizona.
Important Note
Deliberate effort has been made by Positive Media Proposals to
free these projects from partisan political, social or religious
points of view. The sole purpose in forming the Positive Media
Proposals is to stimulate individuals to actively participate
in airing their points of view to media producers in a positive
and responsible fashion.
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