Print Media: Choosing Sensationalism Over Accuracy?

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Print Media: Choosing Sensationalism Over Accuracy?

There are so many universal subjects in this world, but there is one that everybody can relate to: the prospect of finding love with someone. With the media being a great influence on what society believes to be true, many of the popular gender-based media are choosing sensationalism over accuracy to get the attention of potential readers. Almost all of these magazines have articles about dating and marriage, spouting out inaccurate information and non-professional advice to impressionable readers. This not only creates various problems for those who are seeking a mate, but in the long run the damage can prevent people from finding true and loving relationships. However, if people are successful enough to find a mate, this doesn’t always mean the couple will be strong enough to work through their problems. And if the couple has children in the future, and this child sees it’s parents arguing about simple matters, will the child have a negative idea about marriage? As a magazine major, I have a tendency to sit around and read a lot of magazines in my spare time. While some of my favorite magazines are for the female audience, such as COSMOPOLITAN and GLAMOUR, I also like to read articles from such men's magazines as MAXIM and PLAYBOY. I have this habit of always comparing the types of articles being published in certain types of magazines, especially if the articles are about relationships. I'm always curious to find out just what kind of advice is being given this month on the art of dating. As I compare both types of magazines, there are three major questions I have to ask: why are these articles so popular among the targeted audience, are these articles used just to sell t...

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..., then where is that code of ethics that journalists are supposed to know? I became a journalist in the first place to open up people’s minds about new ideas and things that are going on in the world. I understand that everyone wants a fun article to read once in a while, but when the article is downright useless, then there is a problem. I notice that most of the magazines with these articles are gender-based and popular among the 18-34 year-old age market. These articles can also be perceived as somewhat condescending to the reader because if these are what sell, then this tells me that most Americans only want to be entertained and not informed. There is also one final thought that I have on this topic: should the media be held responsible if a reader takes the contents of an article so seriously that negative results will be produced as a result of the article?

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