In today’s post-pandemic world, there is hardly a superpower as powerful and dominant as the mainstream media. Through television programmes, newspaper articles, radio shows, and popular literature, the media sets the tone of today’s society and influences almost every thought, opinion and action we have or take. Today’s media controls and dictates the past, present and future. As one wise fictional man said, “With great power comes great responsibility.” In recent times, mainstream media has unfortunately been woefully negligent when it comes to reporting on important issues. Latest research and major breakthroughs in medical developments often go unreported or understated because of capitalist interests and political agendas of the rich and powerful. This article delves deeper into the possible impact of media coverage of cancer treatments.
What role does the media play?
There is a lot of empirical research that backs the claim that the media we consume today directly influences what we think and do on a regular basis. The most prominent example is the Magic Bullet Theory which states that mass media takes aim and “shoots” messages at their passive and impressionable audience. In layman’s terms this means that when majority is exposed to the same kind of information they are likely to believe it to be gospel and act according to that information.
During the second world war, the media played a vital role in the United States and Germany to influence people’s minds. Germany’s Hitler used the film industry to propagate Nazi propaganda and they thus produced movies and pamphlets highlighting Nazi achievements while downcutting the Jews. This made a significant impact on German minds. Today propaganda is deeply embedded in all literature, media and art we see. The most prominent and popular examples include Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe and Marvel’s Captain America.
One of every 2 men and 1 of every 3 women will be diagnosed as having cancer in their lifetime, and approximately half of all patients with cancer will die of their illness or of related complications. Annually, 555,500 Americans are expected to die of cancer, and as the population ages, these rates are expected to rise significantly. These figures have given cancer a prominent place in news reporting.
It is unknown, however, whether the content of cancer reporting reflects the outcomes that patients with cancer are likely to experience. For example, cancer news coverage may provide an unrealistic view if reports emphasize survival rather than mortality, cures rather than treatment failure and adverse events, and aggressive treatment rather than palliative alternatives.
Moreover in an annual report the Institute of Medicine stressed upon the fact that mass media is critical to health communication across the cancer continuum. The tendency of the news to report on aggressive cancer treatments and survival but not on alternatives is also noteworthy given that unrealistic information may mislead the public about the trade-offs between attempts at heroic cures and hospice care. Several studies have suggested that end-of-life information may help patients with cancer develop realistic expectations for end-of-life medical care and improve outcomes. News coverage may also influence patients' treatment decisions and expectations because patients' informational needs are often not met by their cancer care providers, who may avoid end-of-life discussions.
New developments in cancer treatment and cures are made everyday. If the mainstream media is too focused on a singular approach and portrayal of this malady then it’s doing more harm than good. There is a need for significant shift in media’s approach to portray this issue with the sensitivity and simplicity it deserves. This might actually save lives.
Sources:
Comentários