815 Wk1 Reply

BY DAY 5

Respond by Day 5 to at least two colleagues in one or more of the following ways:

• Provide additional resources or information regarding death and dying in the media.
• Suggest evidence that supports or refutes your colleague’s argument.
• Offer alternative viewpoints and insights.
• Ask for clarification.

 

CHALANDRA

Death and dying are both topics that makes many people uncomfortable. Over time, it has been depicted in media, literature, art, and culture as a form of human expression. The depiction of these topics frequently reflects the beliefs, attitudes, and feelings of many individuals. Three assumptions surrounding death and dying are that it happens suddenly, it’s the end of existence, and the lack of emotional impact is has.

The media always portray death as a tragedy that comes abruptly and unexpectedly. While this is true in certain circumstances, the media often focuses on exaggerated accounts of accidents, murders, or unexpected fatal accidents (Chen et al. 2022). Characters in action or thriller movies often die quickly. While this can be enjoyable for audiences, it ignores the reality of the dying process. We all know that death sometimes occur because of long-term illnesses or old age, this however may not be as visually appealing or attention-grabbing for the media.

Another belief in the media is that death is the end of a person’s existence. This viewpoint frequently overlooks conversations regarding various cultural and religious beliefs about the afterlife or the continuation of existence. Many cultures believe in the afterlife therefore, the media’s presentation of death as a final chapter can add fear and anxiety surrounding the subject (Toscani et al. 2003).

Lastly, the lack of emotional support portrayed by media emphasizes that one quickly moves on from a death of a loved one, minimizing the grieving process. In reality, when you lose someone close to you, you can become deeply emotional, and the grieving process can last for a significant amount of time (Parkes 1998). Losing someone is not an easy task, grief is a very individual and complex experience. The media’s overview of grief can lead to misunderstandings about how people cope with loss and create unrealistic expectations for mourners.

The reason these assumptions exist are because limited exposure of death in real life. Death is not a common topic of conversation in many societies, and people often have limited exposure to death. The media becomes the main source of information and influences how people view death (Chen et al. 2022). Entertainment purposes of death and dying are often dramatized to create compelling stories. It is used primarily for entertainment and storytelling purposes only. Cultural and historical beliefs both shape how it is depicted in the media. For example, some cultures have traditional stories on how they view death.

Two societal benefits are increased awareness and empathy. When the media depicts death and dying, it can bring awareness to more informed conversations about end-of-life care (Sinclair 2011). A topic that we have discussed in this course. Also, displaying empathy through the media can evoke empathy towards its viewers. These images can humanize one’s experience of facing death or the loss of a loved one. The emotional connection can lead to increased support for people experiencing grief.

Two societal deficits are misinformation and fear, and overexposure. Media depictions of death and dying can sometimes cause misinformation of certain aspects that leads to fear and anxiety. This can result in people making informed decisions about their own life, developing unnecessary fears about death. Overexposure may cause some people to become numb to real life issues surrounding death. The desensitization can have consequences in terms of empathy and understanding for loss.

 

 

References:

Chen, X., Liu, T., Li, P., Wei, W., & Chao, M. (2022). The Relationship Between Media Involvement and Death Anxiety of Self-Quarantined People in the COVID-19 Outbreak in China: The Mediating Roles of Empathy and Sympathy. Omega, 85(4), 974–989. https://doi.org/10.1177/0030222820960283Links to an external site.

Parkes C. M. (1998). Bereavement in adult life. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 316(7134), 856–859. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.316.7134.856Links to an external site.

Sinclair S. (2011). Impact of death and dying on the personal lives and practices of palliative and hospice care professionals. CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l’Associationmedicalecanadienne, 183(2), 180–187. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.100511

Toscani, F., Borreani, C., Boeri, P. et al. Life at the end of life: beliefs about individual life after death and “good death” models – a qualitative study. Health Qual Life Outcomes 1, 65 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-1-65Links to an external site.

Walter T. (2003). Historical and cultural variants on the good death. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 327(7408), 218–220. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.327.7408.218

 

JEFFERSON

Death and Dying in the Media

We may see that the media affect our understanding of death, shape how we perceive and manage death, both individually and collectively, affect the formation of social relations established and maintained around death, and influence the construction of individual and collective identities in the face of death. Some may intensely fear death, while others may see it as destiny. Social, cultural, religious, and spiritual factors will shape these differing attitudes. Also, these factors affect an individual when responding to and coping with the prospect of dying in the ways that they do. How other people or groups respond to dying, death, and loss influences us. The meaning of illness, dying, and death in different cultures can affect how a person manages the experience. In addition, in some cultures, death is conceived to involve different conditions, including sleep, illness, and reaching a certain age. In contrast, in other cultures, death is said to occur only when there is a total cessation of life.

Death is a constant presence on social media, and the assumptions still exist because social media spread what we might think of as a natural death, that an unnatural death can be distinguished from it. People can be influenced by media reports showing deaths and the fact that media portrayals can often reinforce the erroneous notion that there are no other options available (Sinyor et al., 2021). Dying is a lingering and more realistic process (Andersson, 2019). Death in the media is eye-catching and should appear in a dramatic form. It is the unusual death we mostly encounter in the media, not the more common long dying process.

Being able to distinguish between natural and unnatural death can be influenced how other people or groups respond to dying and death. It gives society an open and honest discussion about death and dying to ensure that someone’s wishes for the end of life are known and respected. However, many people may feel emotional and fearful because the portrayal of death in the media is often abbreviated, unrealistic, and distorted. The media also influences our perception of death and leads to overestimating the incidence of some causes of mortality.

 

References

Andersson, Y. (2019). Blogs and the Art of Dying: Blogging With, and About, Severe Cancer in Late Modern Swedish Society. Omega: Journal of Death & Dying, 79(4), 394–413. https://doi.org/10.1177/0030222817719806

Sinyor, M., Kiss, A., Williams, M., Zaheer, R., Pirkis, J., Heisel, M. J., Schaffer, A., Redelmeier, D. A., Cheung, A. H., &Niederkrotenthaler, T. (2021). Changes in suicide reporting quality and deaths in Ontario following publication of national media guidelines. Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention, 42(5), 378–385. https://doi.org/10.1027/0227-5910/a000737