Whenever some people hear of shocking instances of brutality or perversity, they hold the media responsible: “The media is feeding people’s minds with such images. That’s why people are doing such things.”

While their analysis has some validity, it sees things only one way. While the media affects the mind, it also expresses the mind. After all, the media is produced by people who are essentially like you and me.  The media just expresses the mind multiplied, magnified and magnetized. Let’s see how. 

Multiplied: The media pools together the imagination of many people — and gives expression to that collective creativity. Everyone has lust, but the media depicts the most lurid fantasies of multiple people. 

Magnified: What might be present in one corner of our mind, the media presents it in full-screen before us. Not only that, the media depicts in multi-color what our mind may depict in black-and-white. 

Magnetized: Just as a magnet attracts iron filings, the media is designed to be like a magnet to captivate us. Most media depictions are made using scientific studies into human psychology about how the mind can be manipulated most effectively. 

We can’t immediately control what the media depicts, but we can begin by controlling our mind. The Bhagavad-gita (06.05) reminds us that the mind can be both our enemy and our friend — and urges us to take responsibility to elevate ourselves with the mind and not degrade ourselves. How can we make the mind our friend? By not exposing it to sensually agitating media and exposing it to spiritually uplifting media. Thereby, our mind will become purified and it will express itself by creating pure and purifying content in the outer media. 

Thus, instead of blaming the media, if we focus on improving our mind, we can contribute toward creating a better media and a better world.

 

Think it over:

  • How does the media express the mind?
  • How is the media the mind multiplied, magnified and magnetized? 
  • What can we do to create a better media? 

 

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06.05 One must deliver himself with the help of his mind, and not degrade himself. The mind is the friend of the conditioned soul, and his enemy as well.

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