As technology has evolved, so has the idea of media sources. Whether it is social media or the news or even something people hear down the street, people are now more aware of what is happening around them. The concept of media has taken over the perception of different phenomenons that are taking place in everyday life.

While the media is developing, the minds of humans are adapting. As a society, individuals think of violence as something that people have gotten used to. They see it all the time because of the exposure from different media outlets. The media as a whole is supposed to inform the public about events that the community needs to be aware of, but because society is so aware of the destructiveness within itself, people tend to think that tragic events are mainstream—just like the daily feed seen on Twitter and Instagram pages . According to Arline Kaplan of Psychiatric Times, “…the number of violent crimes has been falling, but the public’s perception is that violence has increased.” Everyone’s perception has changed based on what they see in the media.

Different forms of media are developing as well. There is filmmaking, video games, and television shows, and as each one continues to grow, so does the effect it has on the minds of everyone who has access to these sources. For example, during the shooting at Columbine High School, two teenagers came to school with weapons and killed twelve of their classmates. Kaplan also states after further research into the shooting, “.. their lives centered around violent video games.” Games like “Call of Duty”, “Fortnite”, “Assassins Creed”, “Battlefield”, and more are influencing young minds. Furthermore, Psychiatric Times includes a statement explaining how the majority of mass killings have been by people who are mentally ill, yet still have the background of playing violent video games. They have the capacity to understand what one person can be capable of.

Movies have been making a huge impact on people as well. Recently, Susanne Bier’s Birdbox has become the origin of challenges. In the movie, the characters are forced to wear blindfolds to avoid something dangerous that is always following them. Because this film became so popular, people actually started doing what is called the “Birdbox Challenge,” where one performs daily tasks blindfolded. According to the Washington Post, there was a teenager in Utah participating in the Birdbox Challenge who crashed her car while driving blindfolded. There have been videos going viral on Youtube of people performing crazy stunts blindfolded which can obviously lead to terrifying results, such as what happened to the girl from Utah.

Media has a way of influencing people and the actions they take. Everyday people are surrounded by dangerous things and know about almost everything because they see it through hundreds of different screens every minute. People think the world has gone crazy by watching the news and seeing what is going on around them. Tragic events are what people need to be aware of, but there are ways to keep people from getting out of control from the types of things they see. The media has become so impactful to everyone who has access to its sources and it is only going to continue to develop and grow into something even bigger.