Clicks Likes & Shares

In effort to keep abreast of many of the nonsense activities in the year 2016, I'm just going to relay the latest events and let readers make heads or tails of it themselves. March is known for many things like St. Patrick's Day and this year we get Easter. I'm a sports enthusiast, so the term March Madness come to mind. It's slogan that captures the NCAA Basketball tournament where they're so many Cinderella Stories that anything can happen. On that note, let's compare the latest Political results. It seems that the incredible momentum of a Donald J. Trump has taken him from a host of a Reality T.V. show to the nomination of the Republican Party. In other news Nancy Reagan passed away. In Idaho a man shot a Pastor six times then boarded a plane to Washington D.C.where he was arrested for throwing paper over the White House fence. In the entertainment capitol of the world, Las Vegas, Two MMA world champions were both defeated by way of technical knockout, so all in all March is getting off to a pretty good start. I don't know where to begin, so let me mention my condolences to the Reagan family as the matriarch of their family has past and she will be missed. I remember a simpler time like it was yesterday when Ronald Reagan was president. the eighties were a peculiar time in which societies standards seem to balance on the pinnacle of absurd with science fiction hit movies like Back to the Future and down to earth progressive movements like the removal of the Berlin Wall separating East Germany from West Germany. You know that is a perfect place to begin because it captures the national mentality that we understood what communism was and how it was different from socialism. The division of the Eastern bloc between East and West was no longer viable to a world that embraced mass communication and advancement in science & technology. Media became the new liberating power which broke down deficiencies in knowledge among people. This tool in information sharing become the staple in social justice as anytime a major injustice reared it's ugly head a light could be shined directly on it in order to perpetuate good will towards all people. Fast forward some 36 years and today the media is considered drastically biased depending on your source of information. We are in the computer age now where mobile devices rule the world. The long outstanding history of journalism has been replaced by the masses with the ability to capture and edit live events and stream them instantly to your friends. This has brought forth a movement in mass communication to embody the spirit of rebellion & protest. We first saw this a few years ago in the middle east in a phenomenon known as the Arab Spring. Since then we have had Occupy Wall Street and various other social media events that have gone viral across America with validity measured in, "views," "clicks," "Likes" and "Shares." Cable television is on the brink of being replaced by internet view-able content. Even this blog post I'm writing right now will be shared by friends. With all that said, I don't expect people to take my words as fact because it is my opinion, but that's exactly the point. The media today is from our own point of view and it's a new perspective of journalism. My ramblings are added to a sea of social consciousness. I don't expect to persuade with my words, but add it to the growing wrath of voices that call for drastic action to be considered to change a mundane world. You see in this vast digital age, many people get swarmed with viral videos and that is the apex of social outcry. You see one thing about instant gratification is that appeals towards our emotions and not a lot of thought goes into it. It's used to be put in front our methodical thought before rationally putting together a strategy to be mindful in judgment. The term Viral comes because Viral isn't thought provoking. It's knee jerk reaction to things that shock us. We share what Donald Trump says because it's outrageous. He is the master of this phenomenon. Take his reality T.V. show for instance. He highlights each episode by firing someone at the end. The catch phrase, "Your fired!" is synonymous with his persona not only is it popular, but it represents and underlying skepticism of American politics. It's his entertainment genuis that makes him so popular. So what does this say about America? The growing animosity in politics began when party activity began to appear to be reality T.V. Americans have been grappling with the influence of millions of dollars flowing into the political system. Mr. Trump grew in popularity because he kept offering to upset the status quo. Can you see the similarity between the 80's and now? Ronald Reagan did the same thing in the eighties by entering into the height of the Republican party where the same absurdity elected him to be the governor of California. Later, he was elected as the President and since has become the standard bearer of the party. The voter today is not your average kitchen table conversationalist who is discussing choices over dinner. The voter is consuming Youtube videos and takes a second to click "Like," when they see something that speaks to them. I work in technology and it's all about "clicks," "Likes" and "Shares." The world stage is a sea of internet trolls and media corporations converting clicks, nano-second activity, into a tool to change the landscape of the American political spectrum. This is the engine that is reshaping politics. Obama brought this technology arsenal to his campaign in 2008 and again in 2012. Trump is perfecting it with media outrage. The more outrageous the better. This is the new standard because it promotes web traffic and keeps his campaign in the limelight. It's just a bit of a shame that it's being used to covet the highest office in the land.