Rachel Reyes
Frankenbush – 3
AP Government
25 January 2016
Paper #1
Over the past thirty years, media has become more accessible, advanced, and useful for people around the world. Due to the rise in the types of media outlets and availability to information, the public is more engaged and knowledgeable in political affairs. This rise in public engagement and knowledge through the widespread availability of information has reinvented the way government and politics are handled and effected by the people. Media today is used as a persuasive device to sway the public’s support and strengthen their own beliefs.
Media outlets have changed significantly within the past thirty years alone, barely recognizable from America’s first newspaper, Publick
…show more content…
Because no one single person owns the internet, the public is free to read, write, and share anything they want on their computers. The government and any politician can easily interact and get feedback from the public because of the large accessibility of online sites to people around the nation and world. This innovation has made the public more politically engaged and knowledgeable, shifting more power into the public hands by actively responding to and improving government responsiveness, and increasing accountability. Social media has increased the polarization between the political parties by following those who are similarly aligned, rather than those with differing views, as well as increasing voter turnout by a large margin. The internet allows a larger view of social and political views by taking out a middleman that regulates the content; unlike print and other electronic media sources, the internet is free for the people to express their opinions and share it with like-minded people without the government or corporations getting in the way, allowing a new political freedom to the people. The internet has forced the government and politics to modernize themselves to roll with the effects of the people while struggling to take back some control to regulate the information that is