Media Matters

The things we read, watch, and listen to affect us. If it were not so, there would be no such thing as marketing. Advertisers know well the power they wield..  Just as the things we put into our bodies affect our physical health, the things we put into our minds affect us intellectually, emotionally, socially, and spiritually.  There are campaigns against unhealthy substances like drugs, alcohol, and tobacco, because these can cause irreparable, lasting harm. We have also been warned against sugar and junk food that can have a negative impact when consumed in excess. Our brains can also be damaged by what they consume. Consider pornography, the media equivalent of heroin; it is incredibly addictive and causes lasting damage to healthy relationships. Consider the violent and immoral messages in some popular songs that after being repeatedly listened to hundreds of times are permanently ingrained in the psyches of impressionable young people. And consider the hours of screen tim...