Gun Control Essay: Media Bias and Propaganda on Gun Control

Introduction: Gun Control as a Worldwide Issue

Gun violence is and has been an unavoidable occurrence over the past few years in many parts of the world. The public has witnessed massive attacks that have left everyone grief-stricken, leading to the outpouring of debates about gun control. However, this debate has been hindered by bias and propaganda in the media on gun control.

The Role of Media in Gun Control Debates

With such attacks leading the country to chaos, media plays its part in influencing people to form their opinions. With each attack, the debate over gun ownership and control is taking new directions. Along with traditional forms of media, this also includes social media platforms, and many TV shows also have begun to make unnecessary propaganda. Many blogs that write about gun control debate for and against the possession of guns, yet many provide one-sided stories and facts. Since the media wants to create sensational news, it tends to highlight events that could sometimes be a distortion of reality.

Bias in Media Reporting: Coverage of Selective Information 

A large part of the media is biased. The reporting on gun usage is selective. On a number of occasions, citizens possessing guns have thwarted the public shooting from continuing or taking place entirely. This fact has not seen the light of the day, barring its mention in a few news organizations. In January 2002, for example, the shooting at Appalachian School of Law garnered a lot of attention, but not the fact that two students carrying guns managed to stop the firing. Such incidents prove that possessing a gun has proven a useful defense mechanism. Selective reporting by the media is actually endangering people’s lives (Lott, 2004).

Conclusion

The importance of gun control concerns the care and safety of the issuance of these arms, and not the restriction of the usage of guns for self defense. Since every right comes with responsibility, a stringent background verification process before issuing guns would be a better solution to this debate.

References

1. Lott, J. R., Jr. (2004, September). Media Bias Against Guns. Retrieved from https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/media-bias-against-guns/.
2. Van Zandt, D. (2017, July). The Truth About Guns. Retrieved from https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-truth-about-guns/.
3. West, G. (2018, February). Gun Rights vs. Gun Control.
Retrieved from https://www.opensecrets.org/news/issues/guns.