Critical Thinking: Does Someone Need To Be Mindful If They Pay Attention To The Mainstream Media?

For many people around the world, paying attention to the mainstream media is part of life. It is then not something that they need to think about doing; it is merely something that they do.

Most, if not all, of these people, will have probably been this way since they were very small. Their caregivers would have most likely done the same thing, which is why they behave in the same way.

A Big Difference

But while this something that has been the case for many generations, what is different now is that it is easier than ever before to stay connected to this source of information. It is no longer necessary for someone to sit down in front of a TV, listen to the radio or to pick up a paper.

The only thing that they need to do is to pick up their Smartphone and touch the screen a few times. Through doing this, they will be able to find out about what is taking place in the world.

In The Know

Therefore, with a minimal amount of effort, someone can be highly informed. When it comes to the kind of information, in general, that is available at their fingertips, their ancestors would have likely found it hard to imagine a life like this.

However, although this has given someone the chance to find out about what is going on, it has also opened them up to a lot of fear-based information. To be exposed to this a few times a day is enough but to be exposed to it throughout the day is a lot to handle.

Worn Down

After being exposed to this source of information, someone may find that they feel fearful and anxious. They could stay in this state for a few minutes or a few hours, or it could go on for even longer.

Then again, through constantly viewing this source of information, one could more or less always be on edge. They are then going to have an idea of what is going on, yet their mental and emotional health will suffer.

No Better Off

One will be finding out about what is wrong in the world and this will be undermining them. This information clearly won’t serve them; it will just take their energy away and make it hard for them to function.

To use an analogy: it will be as if they have a loved one who is ill in bed and they will have ended up getting into bed with them. This won’t help them and it certainly won’t help their loved one. Quite simply, one won’t be in the place that they need to be in - strong and together - to make a difference in the world.

The Other Extreme

If this is not what takes place after someone has been exposed to this information, it could be because they are emotionally shut down. What they view will have very little, if any, effect on them, but they are not going to be in a much better position.

Through being shut down and out of touch with their own emotions, it could mean that they will also be passive and indifferent to what is going on. Like the person above, then, they won’t be in a good place and able to make a difference in the world.

Stepping Back

If someone pays a lot of attention to this source and it is having a negative effect on their mental and emotional wellbeing, it will be essential for them to change their behaviour. What they are currently doing is not serving them and it is not serving their fellow human beings, either.

It wouldn’t be right to say that this source of information if there to inform them of what is taking place in the world. The reason for this is that this source has a narrative and it typically only covers the things that are in alignment with that narrative.

The Biggest Show on Earth

In other words, the mainstream media is a performance and one that has been going on for many, many years. What makes this hard to see is that so many media sources say the same thing and so many people buy into, and thereby, feed into, what this source comes out with.

When someone is full of fear and their mind has been programmed to see the world in a certain way, it is going to be more or less impossible for them to see the mainstream media for what it actually is and to think for themselves. Their body won’t be in chains but their mind will have been enchained thanks to what they have allowed into it over the years.

A New Beginning

If one does change their behaviour, and no longer pays as much attention to his source or phases it out altogether, it is likely to do their mental and emotional health a world of good. Will they end up being ignorant of what is going on in the world if they phase it out completely? Yes, but only of the world that the mainstream media has created and feeds every day.

There are other ways for one to find out about what is going on, without them needing to be plugged into a source that wants them to live in fear and to control their mind. One of the best ways for them to change the world will be for them to no longer feed into the reality that the mainstream media works overtime to keep in place.

Conclusion

What this illustrates is how important it is for someone to be aware of where they place their attention. Their attention can be used to make their life and the world better, or it can be used to make their life and the world worse.
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In each moment of their life, they have a choice to make. Without this awareness, however, it won’t even occur to them that they have a choice to make in each moment of their life.