Immigration is seen by many as a large issue with Society, except this is not true. Media Propaganda through a few choice words and images have a profound effect on the human mind. Social scientists have been studying the effect of marketing and how advertisers can convince people to buy a certain product for decades. The same ideas can essentially be used to convince the public to vote a way, or think in a manner which suits the person telling that story.
There is a reason why newspapers such as The Sun, The Daily Express, and The Daily Mail advertise their articles in such a way as “don’t miss out on the story”, because that is all they are, stories.
Journalistic Integrity Lost
Recently, The Sun has been attacking refugees and saying how they aren’t children. There are several issues with their attacks though, firstly, their ideal of what refugee children should look like doesn’t necessarily fit reality and they seemingly forget that war forces individuals to grow up very quickly. Secondly, a few choice photographs can paint a picture completely different from reality, if you take a picture of those who look older and claim that they all are like this, that will then tarnish everyone like that. This manner of journalism is dangerous, it creates this space that allows for bigotry, xenophobia and racism to fester. It gives a voice to unsavoury thoughts and ideas and places them within the mainstream and it can lead to eventual radicalisation.
Core issues such as housing, education, unemployment and NHS can continually be underfunded and not tackled if the public believes immigration is the cause. Harsh austerity measures can be justified, and more tax breaks for big business can be created if immigration is seen to the issue. The fundamental issues of society can all be explained away through immigration, and it is this use that is severely damaging for society.
How can a society integrate when it is attacking itself, how can society have a real say in government policy when they are split down the middle? UKIP have done more damage than economic; they have caused a divide that is difficult to heal within the nation. As a society, we are split down the middle.
Helping Others Means Abandoning Our Own?
Lastly, The Sun attacked refugees and the likes of Lily Allen and Gary Lineker for showing sympathy and empathy for the individuals that resided in the Calais jungle. Why can’t we try and help everyone? We seem to have this old-fashioned ideal of women and children first, but what happens if it is the women and the youngest children who are the ones that have died trying to escape, or killed because a bomb landed on them. Why must we just help the children? Why can’t we help everyone, and the argument of helping our own first is ignorant. You can help others whilst helping our own, why does it have to be one or the other?
