Our campus seems to have become a center of political discourse. Prominent figures from the left and right, like Hasan Piker and Ben Shapiro, recently visited our campus.
We like to believe these events will start important political discussions. However, to what extent have these discussions actually led to substantive solutions? The widespread growth of independent news sources and the use of social media as a news-gathering medium have risked turning politics into entertainment — valuing outrage over discussion.
Many will credit the distrust of mainstream media as the reason why our generation is seeking alternative news sources. During his event, Piker cited the mistrust of mainstream media as a central reason for his popularity among younger generations.
“Mainstream outlets in general have really dropped the ball,” Piker said. “They have existed in this system that is so out of step with the needs of the masses for far too long.”
Ironically, a conservative speaker from Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire, Mat Nuclear, echoed a similar sentiment at a UT event last week.
“There’s obviously been a heightened distrust of the mainstream media, especially leftist mainstream media, because of a lot of biases that occur, … and people are trusting independent journalists and media more,” Nuclear said.
Fascinatingly, speakers on opposite sides of the aisle agree that the biases of mainstream media have distanced them from younger generations. This social disconnect has driven many of Gen Z toward alternative sources they believe to be more authentic. This transition has also been magnified by social media, giving everyday people a platform to present their takes on current events.
“When we moved from the analog to the digital age and the age of social media, it opened up the floodgates for all sorts of people to participate in different ways, so we have people who consider themselves citizen journalists … (and) influencers who read other people’s reporting and then comment on it,” said Mary Angela Bock, professor of journalism and media.
This rise in independent journalism comes with serious risks, such as the concerns that come with prioritizing engagement over substance.
“The algorithms are designed to keep us engaged,” Bock said. “When the algorithm serves you something that makes you angry, then you stay … arguing with strangers on the internet.”
Outrage is favored over rationality. Individuals are more likely to be shown content that fosters emotion rather than videos that break down the more technical aspects of a topic. When questioned on his strict opposition to the left, Shapiro mentioned how his content is usually presented.
“The reality is that pretty much all of the videos of me online, the titles are more provocative than the actual content,” Shapiro said. “If I have a long conversation with somebody on the left, it can be perfectly decent … and then the headline will be ‘Ben Shapiro Destroys’, and that’s always the takeaway.”
The favorability of controversial content does not even need to be intentional by the creator, meaning the most controversial parts of relatively tame discussions can be clipped for maximum viewership.
Podcaster Myron Gaines faced backlash at his UT visit where he advocated that “the Cornell seven are innocent.” In response, Jim Davis made a statement, acknowledging student concerns but standing by free speech. However, Gaines is not participating in the discussion of ideas, but instead taking the most controversial position he can to maximize viewership.
While the issue of outrage content is certainly one to be concerned about, it’s further magnified when the accuracy of these sources is called into question. Mainstream media must endure a rigorous process of authenticating the information they publish, but independent sources are so decentralized that they are not forced to undergo the same authentication.
“Look for a corrections column on your news source because an organization that (admits they) made a factual mistake here and wants to correct it, those are the folks that I want to work with,” Bock said.
Furthermore, most independent creators share commentary on the news rather than a pure reporting of the facts, which makes it difficult to differentiate opinion from fact.
“Far fewer people (are) doing the reporting work that we need, gathering the facts and doing the hard part,” Bock said. “Everybody wants to give an opinion.”
The best step students can take to stay properly informed is to do the fact-finding themselves. Take the time to look over a candidate’s official policies or watch a committee hearing. By connecting with the facts directly, students can cut out the middleman and develop their own interpretations before consulting sources of commentary. Of course, this method of staying up to date is much more tedious and boring, but maybe that’s what politics should be.
Stark is a chemical engineering sophomore from Orange County, California.
