Media Desensitization

[thedeathburger]

So I was in French class the other day (I'm a freshman in high school)

And we were watching a history of France
And one of the parts was this guy who had tried to fly
He basically climbed up the Eifel Tower with a giant cloth,
And tried to glide
Not surprisingly,
He fell, and hit the ground,
Causing a hole a foot and a half deep

Now thats not why I'm posting.
The thing is is that it showed footage of him doing this
Of him climbing
Of him falling
And of him dying
Everyone in the class kinda had the ":\" look on their face
Except the kid behind me
Who burst out laughing

I know the kid pretty well
And he's not a bad person
I think he's just seen it a million times in slapstick movies
And this was no different to him

The thing about this is, is that i've seen this a bunch of times
Are we really desensitized to the media?
Is there any difference to us between seeing Leonidas yelling "This is Sparta" and kicking a person into a hole, and seeing someone fall to their death

I don't know

I just found it interesting

What do you guys think?

[Nakor]

We are, though on the grand scale I'm not sure if that's really a bad thing. I'm not saying it's particularly good either... just that I'm not sure exactly how much it matters. After all, most people who react that neutrally seeing something on TV would not react so neutrally when it happens in person; we're not desensitized to violence and wrongdoing, it's just that we know that the media focuses on these things, and we expect to see that on the news now.

Laughing at it is a bit callous and inappropriate to be sure, but if something that terrible happened with the person who laughed present, I'd be surprised if he didn't react very differently.

I'm no psychologist, but I wonder if it isn't the fear of it that's gone. We know it's coming so we're not really surprised or shocked any more. Here's a good example though: When something that bad happens on a LIVE broadcast, something that wasn't planned or expected, isn't our reaction different? The desensitization may be more related to our expectation of seeing it, which means that when we aren't expecting something like that, we're just as sensitive to it as ever.

In other words, it's possible that we're not desensitized to violence at all... we're just expecting and ready for it when watching certain programs such as the news.

[cobracommander]

well, we are desensitized. but it is helpful. i mean, people die ALL THE TIME! people are dying while i'm typing this and dying while you're reading it. People are dying ordinary deaths and people are dying horrific deaths. Children are being slowly starved in people's basements. and how could we deal with the gravity of that if we weren't desensitized. While it could be argued that the reason that people are doing such awful things could be tied to our desensitization, these things would still happen without our current media. Part of the reason stories about werewolves and vampires and such was created, is to explain things like rapings and brutal muders. Because people simply couldn't accept that one human being could do something so awful to another. But its just how it is. People are messed up. Our vast intelligence is our gift and our curse. It can really mess with us.

[americanarchon]

It doesn't seem realistic that we could be desensitized that much. His body would be so grotesque that even horror movie fans would cringe. People who play violent video games will likely still get PTSD if they are in dire situations. I just can't see that emerging

[cobracommander]

Mar 4, 2010 6:44:16 GMT -5 americanarchon said:

It doesn't seem realistic that we could be desensitized that much. His body would be so grotesque that even horror movie fans would cringe. People who play violent video games will likely still get PTSD if they are in dire situations. I just can't see that emerging

well i believe his point is that, as long as its on a screen, no one really cares. Even if it did really happen. I personally could easily watch a real video of a man being hacked to pieces and probably hardly flinch. But if i saw it in real life i'd probably throw up and/or pass out

[grover]

big red X to the post above me, i actually did pass out in health class just from seeing a cow's heart, yet I don't react at all to those sorts of movies and find them boring infact.

heres another facet of media desensitization: sexuality

in the 1920s I think it was, the exposure of women's ankles was arousing for men. now, not nearly as much if at all, it takes more.

do you guys think thats a good or bad thing?

[americanarchon]

In that case, imagine a few years in the future, with all the female exposure now ;D

[zAkAtAk]

We are generally more desensitized than our parents. When our parents were kids, they didn't have nearly, if any, explicit content in their music, TV, movies, etc... If it was somewhat explicit, it wasn't the same type of explicit that we experience.

Some kids grow around these medias much more closely and it become routine for them to see it. If you had never seen a drop of blood before, and then one day you scrape your knee, you are going to feel very indifferent about it. However, if you are a kid and you have diabetes and you have to inject yourself with insulin everyday, it's just part of your daily routine. It's become part of your accepted living style.

Also, in response to the first post, you would be surprised how some people react to certain situations. Not everyone comes from the same background as you. Some families are poor. Some families have 2 parents. Some families have had deaths. Some families have had diseases throughout their history. Some people when they don't know how to react, will react with laughter or indifference for the most part. A good way to make yourself comfortable with something new or something that disturbs you is to laugh it off, make it funny, that way it takes away the seriousness of the situation. It might seem disrespectful to you, and it might be depending on the situation, but that's just how our brain reacts sometimes.

[JudsonRadio]

Personally, I would much rather be desensitized, than be ignorant to reality. Even if it means being aware of, and familiar with, the atrocities of the world.

With knowledge and understanding of the tragedies and hardships in life, I think that we have more opportunity (and responsibility, I might add) to correct them.

Can I also say that we should not let the way we react depend on media, movies and the like. Rather, wouldn't it be better to evaluate what we see and experience consciously and deliberately?

[Cortney]

Not everyone is desensitized. Personally, just reading about that video made me cringe and feel pretty bad for the guy.

On a whole, though, I agree with you: reality is lost when it comes to TV. People see commercials of the starving children in Africa all the time and don't think twice. However, if one of their own children scrapes a knee, they're in hysterics. We just don't relate as well, I suppose.

[uselessTies]

Violence in media is nothing new. People went to the Colosseum to watch others kill animals for entertainment. It wasn't just an image on a screen but something actually happening in front of them. In the past, most family's would hunt for their own food, fully aware that what they were eating was alive not more than a few days ago. And it was common for a couple of your siblings to die at a young age. There are many pictures of public lynchings where everyone is smiling at the camera while a guy hangs in a tree. And the bible is pretty violent as well.

Death use to be just a natural part of life, where as today it's taboo. I wouldn't say we are desensitized. I would say that people in society wish to believe that they are more sophisticated than the past. Humanity has always had a fascination with death and it seems like the less we have of it in our daily lives, the more we crave it in media.