Alternative Media is different than your everyday mainstream media outlets. There is no official definition for Alternative Media is there is a possibility for it to change every day. After spending some time researching Alternative Media, I have learned that one term that follows the topic everywhere is "non-corporate." Alternative Media outlets do not care about making money, they rather get each view heard.
With Alternative Media not being a part of a large association or company, this can make it much tougher for certain voices to be heard. I immediately thought back to a recent blog about the Antiwar website, which is a perfect example of Alternative Media, a non-corporate website with important and passionate voices.
There are many pros and cons to Alternative Media. Starting with a pro, like what we witnessed after viewing the Antiwar website, writers are very passionate about whatever topic they are writing about. With this, it can lead to more factual posts or stories as these writers will push to get the truth out. Of course, this is not 100% true with all forms of Alternative Media though. When one goes to a news outlet that is not part of the mainstream media, that person usually knows something about the topic they are viewing, the reader will expect the full truth.
There is always an opposite to a positive, one downside within Alternative Media can be the spread of incorrect information. Alternative Media can be biased at some points, these writers are very passionate that they may exaggerate a story just to try to get a point across. Alternative Media outlets do not have the top-tier technology and resources that mainstream media has so the outlet will not appear as professional as mainstream media which people are used to, this can create fact-checking issues.
Alternative Media affects society with every new story that hits the internet. Imagine you read an article from an Alternative Media website, and are completely fascinated by the story, and agree with every word 100%. That piece of alternative media just changed a person view viewpoint and that person can spread their thoughts to friends or family and possibly have an effect on them. Social Media is an example of Alternative Media as well. In today's day, almost everyone is on at least one social media platform. The issue with this is that there is no credibility to what information gets put out. Misinformation on apps like X (Twitter) can be spread like wildfire.
Different segments of society are impacted by Alternative Media in many ways. People become very passionate about their lives, they argue whether something is right or wrong and stick with their beliefs deeply. Both political parties become affected by the use of Alternative Media, republicans will pay attention to others who have the same beliefs as them, same goes for the democratic party. Depending on how accurate the alternative media is, each party will use what they learn on the internet in defense of the opposite party.
People have very strong opinions on whether being gay is acceptable in our society. Those who are gay will turn to alternative media and use that community as a way to escape from whatever mainstream media says about the topic, the same goes for straight people who do not agree with gay marriage. Old people versus young people definitely are affected by Alternative Media. I feel that older generations are more likely to turn to the mainstream media and access news there, while younger generations are seeing a lot more different voices with the use of social media. This can shape the way our world changes as younger generations become older. Alternative Media will affect my family and me the same way, my parents do not pay attention to any other forms of media except mainstream media while my sister and I spend hours of our days on social media.
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