Manuel H. Romero

Mass Communication

01-13-13

My Media Autobiography

Anyone who has spent time knowing me will know that I spend some time reading. In fact, one of my favorite places to go in my free time is the library. With that in mind it would make sense to start with the medium that has a great impact on my life: books. Since I was little, I remember going to the library where I read books for children. I read mainly for entertainment although I would have to read for education in school as well. As I grew up, I had to read books in school that seemed to go promote immorality. This sometimes made me uncomfortable, but I had to read them in order to performed well in school. Now as I young adult those challenges remain, but now I feel more solidified because I have read about Christian writers that have lived a godly life and whose example I can follow. As a Christian, the Bible has been the most important books that have shaped my life.

Throughout my whole life, reading books has been something that I have been interested with. Reading has helped my education improve, my knowledge expand, and it has helped me shape the way I see myself and the world. There are many things that I like about books, for example, books help me gain access of knowledge that I would not have been able to know otherwise. There are of course some downsides to books, sometimes you have to borrow them and are responsible for turning them in. Also, for some people there might be less material produced in their language. Other times books serve as a means to indoctrinate people to various extremes and violence.

When it comes to newspapers, I must confess that I do not regularly read newspapers, but I did write for one. What I like about newspapers is that various topics can be covered, that we are able to express our opinions, and that it helps us be aware. The downside to newspapers is that there could be misinformation, inaccuracies, and biases in news writing. Similarly, when it comes to magazines, this medium has not had an enormous impact in my life. Magazines usually cover different topics, it is affordable, and accessible, you can even subscribe to them if you are interested. The downside of magazines is that some promote immorality and other pressure people to look a certain way.

When it comes to the radio as a medium, I would listen to it for music and Christian programming. What I like about the radio is that you can listen to various stations, it is accessible in cars, but it can't be that reliable sometimes because when you get too far you lose signal. The only recordings that I am familiar with is audio recordings. Audio recordings are useful to capture speeches, record responses to questions in an interview, or record music.

While I do not go to the movies often, I know that they are a common medium. They can reach various audiences since they have many different genres of movies, for example, the movies that I do watch are usually movies based on persons or books that I like. Somethings that I like about movies are that they have various genres, some are about topics that I am interested in , and some are genuinely funny. However, some movies have poor content, stereotypes, and some glorify violence and immorality. Television and the internet are common mediums which I happen to use regularly. Usually I watch TV to see the news, watch comedy programs, or Christian programs. What I like about television is that it is accessible, it keeps us updated, it serves to inform the audience, and has various viewpoints. On the other hand, sometimes there is poor content (violent/immoral), biases, and stereotypes. I also use the internet for a lot of reasons, mainly to for school related purposes, to find out information, to watch Christian TV shows, and listen to music. In addition to those things, the internet helps me be connected to people we would lose contact with. What I like about the internet is that a lot of material is accessible, for example, some books are online so I can read them by accessing the internet, also I can ask teachers questions through email and see videos online. What I do not like is that there are sometimes annoying ads in the web pages.

The media from my own country is very similar to the media here. However, maybe it is less accessible in some places. The news from my country has various viewpoints, there are also plenty of newspapers in circulation, and books are obviously used for education. There are also some movies that are both reruns and original from our country.

Currently, I have never had a job in the field of journalism, but I would consider one. So far I am leaning towards a journalism mayor, but that could change. I am not so sure to which campus I will transfer to.