Privacy

 Privacy is something that I think is very important and take very seriously as well as so many others do. Throughout the growth of social media and the government making and using more and more technology our privacy is slowly decreasing. These TedTalks tell us about the different issues that are occurring and how we now need to be more careful with the information we share with others and online. Problems in more recent years have risen as now the government can track us using our phone, our contacts, credit and debit cards when making purchases, and so much more.

Over the past years with new technology and websites not only can the government but also just regular people can access peoples personal information with the just a few clicks of a button. They have websites where you can find peoples phone numbers, addresses, criminal records, and so much more. This some people may consider an extreme invasion of privacy especially if they don't want someone to know this information. 

This is something that I find concerning because I like to live a private life and don't think anyone but myself and who I choose to tell needs to know everything about me. I think the government plays a big role in this because they are the main people who have access to everyone's information and can use it any way that they desire. Along with that people could sell others information now and it could result in criminal activity which should not be condoned but the government continues to allow these websites to stay up. I think we are at the point where the government needs to put these websites to an end in order to protect people's privacy as well as the lives of American citizens.

Also with this lack of privacy like I said with criminal activity there is a higher possibility of blackmail or hacking. These are things that could cost people their relationships or even their lives. We normally see these things happen in movies or television shows and think they could never happen to us, but the reality is with this lack of privacy in today's world the chances of that are just increasing everyday. This makes me worry for my family and friends, especially the one who are consistently posting their lives online, because that gives people even more information about them. This could cause for multiple different things to happen to them all because we can not solve the main issue being people are not receiving the privacy that they should.

The main thing now is not how we can fix this issue but how we can prevent this from getting worse I think. Since we already have this technology and these websites allowing us to find out people's personal information there is not much we can do except take down the websites although the government will still have access to them. I think we need to pass new laws ensuring that people's privacy will be protected at all levels and only make an exception if they are involved in a serious crime.

Thank You For Smoking

 Thank You for Smoking is a film that talks about the tobacco industry and a man who doesn't try to say how unhealthy cigarettes are but instead thinks it should be up to the people whether or not they want to smoke it. This is something that we can apply to the real world today because of the new fame of vaping, people now know that it is bad but still choose to do it anyway. Although there has been a crackdown on it and now certain things are not allowed and people are not allowed to do it in certain places, people still continue to find a way around it. This is an example in the real world that relates to the movie showing no matter how much you can say it is unhealthy people will find a way to validate it and continue doing it.

In the film Nick continues to face pressure from anti smoking advocates who threaten to put certain things on cigarette boxes in order to deter people from smoking. He also experiences troubles from a reporter who chooses to betray him publishing personal details of his work along with how he works. He eventually gets kidnapped after receiving death threats from an extremist group. This group chose to cover him in nicotine patches to torture him but he ends up surviving due to his tolerance build up he has from consistently smoking in the past. After this happened he had to stop smoking which could raise the question of why stop smoking if it is as addictive as they advertise it to be.

Nick has a son as well in the film and throughout the process is teaching him a lesson about being right. Nick thinks that being right is not necessarily proving that you are right, but although that the person you are arguing with is wrong. This movie also shows how aware Nick is that smoking is bad for you, yet he still will still continue to defend it because it is his way of making money. Nick begins to have an internal conflict because he has a son who looks up to him and he has to now think about the example that he is setting for him. 

At the end of the film Nick doesn't think differently about his past decisions although he does choose to quit his job and move on to a new one. From this new job he chooses to teach his son about the importance of arguing. He does this by telling him how he need to spin things and that you can still win and that you just have to prove that your opponent is wrong. Overall this film is not exactly about smoking but instead it is about how spin thing can affect what a person believes. Along with that the movie shows how you argue something can be important and decide if you win, as well as if you are confident in your beliefs it can lead others to believe it as well.

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 The History of the television:

The first electronic television was created back in 1927 by Philo T. Farnsworth. It looks a lot more different now than it did back then. Now they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, as well as they now have options for multiple channels as well as different streaming services and people can now use them to play video games. The television had made a big impact then and still does to this day, with providing people with news, a space to watch their favorite television shows, as well as providing entertainment by allowing people to watch their favorite sports teams.

Before they had the television people had to rely on listening to the radio to find out any information they needed and to provide entertainment. This was something that had changed technology and peoples lives forever. Firstly it allowed for people all over to be able to watch the same thing at the same time. This was important because then everyone was getting the same information and ensured there were no discrepancies in the information that people were getting. Secondly the television replaced the radio as the main source of entertainment. This is because people could actually see what they are hearing about. It helped to keep them engaged for a longer time and help them enjoy the experience more than they could from just listening.

Economically the television made a huge impact for companies across the country. This gave companies a platform where they could produce commercials with actual visuals and show their product and how it works. This was a major breakthrough for them because they could bring in more buyers allowing for their sales to go up just because people could see the actual product and that it could benefit them. Politically this greatly helped candidates expand their campaign and get their opinions out more. They were able to broadcast their debates on television so people who may have not been able to attend could still see what was going on. This was important because people sometimes think seeing people's body language can help them decide who they are as a person.

Technologically the electronic television had a lot more benefits than the mechanical television. Firstly the electronic television had a smaller design than the mechanical. This was helpful to some people because they may not have had the space in their house to have a mechanical television or it may not have looked the way they wanted to, but had to make the exception because they still wanted it. Along with that it was also more reliable, faster, and provided clearer images. This was important because then people would not have to wait longer to view the program they wanted to. Also since the images were clearer people would have a better idea of what they were watching and helped them understand better what was going on.

8 Values of Free Expression

 The value that I think resonates with me the most is Individual Self-Fulfillment.  This one is about how "Free speech enables individuals to express themselves and thereby create their own identity — and, in the process perhaps, find kindred spirits. Freedom of speech thus becomes an aspect of human dignity, human agency and autonomy". This means that people are allowed to freely express their ideas and feelings without consequences most of the time. This is something that I think is very important because without being able to speak feely people would have to hold there feelings in and not be able to share with the public and media how they feel. This has also become a very big topic ion the news as conversation about politics has risen along with more people being involved on social media and news outlets speaking out. This is also important to me because I like to share how I feel and be able to freely post and repost what I agree and or disagree with.

I also rely on social media and different news outlets like Fox News to find out what is going on involving politics. Without having freedom of speech it may affect news outlets and especially different social media platforms, because they will be unsure of what they can say and post without having legal issues in the future. If people did not have freedom of speech I fear that we would not be as well informed as we are today since the government could control what can and cannot be said. While we do have certain laws in place to keep people from saying certain things like defamation, we can still receive accurate information. One example of this is when someone posts something defaming someones character it is considered defamation, even though they are using their right of freedom of speech they are not necessarily posting something that is true and it is also hurting someone else in the process.

Another theory that resonates with me and is similar to the one above is "Promote Innovation". This is about "A community in which free speech is valued and protected is likely to be a more energized, creative, interesting society as its citizens actively fulfill themselves in many diverse and interesting ways". This mean that if people can freely express their ideas then they have more of an opportunity to create new thing and come up with more ideas. I think this is important because we then have more of an opportunity to create new products and improve on old whens when people can bounce ideas off of one another. If we were not able to do this then we may not have been as innovative as we are today. It would also give other countries the ability to have more technological advantages, which could set us back and put us in a lower position than we are today. We would also have to rely on other countries more than we already do to get different goods making it harder for us to trade.

Top Five News Sources

 

1. Tik Tok: Tik Tok is a social media platform where people can post almost whatever they want and people can also view, like, respond, or share it. This is also a platform that news companies have accounts on and they typically post local and national news. This is one of my favorite ways to get my news because it is not long videos that they post and therefore I do not need to have a long attention span to pay full attention to it.

2. Bleacher Report: Bleacher Report is a sports news app where you can find any and all information you need to about your favorite or rivals sports team. I like this app specifically to find out about sports news because when you open it up you get the big and breaking news going on in the sports world. Along with that it will show you different odds on games if you choose to sports bet and there is also a sport where you can talk to other sports fans during the games.

3. Fox News: Fox News channel is my favorite source to get local news when I am at home. One reason for this is because they typically align with my views so most of the time I am enjoying what I am hearing. Along with that I think they tend to cover my local news very well and also nearby in Philadelphia, this is because they talk about what is going on and can give specific details.

4. Instagram: Instagram is another social media platform that I like to use to get my news from. I think this is an easy way to get information because lots of political leaders, like our president, have instagram accounts that they frequently post on. I finding out my political information here because watching it on the news can get boring or you may not get all the facts. Although when looking at it on this platform you can hear from the political leaders themselves so no information is skewed.

5. ESPN: ESPN is also another sports news source I like to use. ESPN has a few television stations so this platform can make it easier especially when i'm not looking to have to read about it. Along with that they also have some pregame shows that I can watch before a game happens to find out what players are injured, who is projected to win, and so much more.