When Media Teaches Us: Power, Education, and the Making of a Truly Educated Person
A Cultural Studies Reflection on Media Literacy, Cultural Power, and Critical Thinking
Introduction
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In the contemporary world, media is not simply something we watch or read for entertainment. It has become an inescapable part of our everyday life. We wake up with notifications, use Google to search for information, watch YouTube videos to understand difficult topics, scroll through Instagram and other social-media platforms, and receive news through our phones. In this environment, media constantly participates in the way we understand society, culture, identity, education, and even ourselves. The assigned discussion of Cultural Studies, media, power, and the “truly educated person” encourages us to look beyond media as a source of information and examine how it creates meanings and influences our understanding of the world.
“We live inside media the way fish live inside water — so completely surrounded by it that we rarely stop to ask what it is doing to us.”
Cultural Studies teaches us that media is connected with power. What we see in newspapers, films, advertisements, television programmes, YouTube videos, and social media is not always a completely neutral reflection of reality. Decisions about what should be shown, what should be ignored, which voices should be heard, and how an issue should be presented can influence public understanding. Therefore, education in the modern world cannot mean only collecting information or earning degrees. A truly educated person must also learn how to question information, understand representation, recognize hidden assumptions, and think independently.
As an M.A. English student, I experience this relationship between media and education in my everyday academic life. Digital media has made it easier for me to understand literary texts, find scholarly material, watch explanations, and explore ideas beyond the classroom. At the same time, it has taught me that not everything available online should be accepted immediately. My own experience has gradually made me understand that being educated today means learning how to read not only books but also the media through which we encounter the world.
Media and Power in Shaping Modern Culture
Media and power are closely connected because media has the ability to decide which ideas become visible and which remain less visible. In Cultural Studies, this becomes an important question: Who has the power to represent reality, and whose version of reality becomes accepted as normal?
News channels, newspapers, films, advertisements, social-media platforms, and digital creators all participate in the production of meaning. They select particular images, words, headlines, stories, and perspectives. Even when a media report provides factual information, the way that information is selected and presented can influence how audiences understand it.
For example, consider two headlines about the same event. One headline may describe a person as a “young entrepreneur,” while another may describe the same person primarily through a negative incident. The basic event may remain the same, but the language encourages audiences to notice different aspects of the person. This shows that representation is not simply about showing reality; it is also about framing reality.
The assigned discussion also connects media with larger structures of economic and social power. Noam Chomsky and Edward S. Herman, in Manufacturing Consent, examine how powerful institutions and economic interests can influence the production and circulation of news. Their discussion demonstrates that media operates within larger structures rather than existing completely outside them.
- 1. Media Ownership & Profit Orientation: Corporate conglomerates prioritize shareholder value and commercial stability over objective reporting.
- 2. Advertising as Primary Revenue: Content is shaped to ensure audience attention can be neatly packaged and sold to commercial sponsors.
- 3. Elite Sourcing: Over-reliance on official sources (government spokespersons, police, corporations) gives institutional elites the authority to define the news agenda.
- 4. Flak & Enforcers: Critical perspectives are suppressed through legal threats, public pressure, withdrawal of advertising, and institutional blowback.
- 5. The Common Enemy: Binary scapegoats are manufactured to redirect collective fear and justify dominant ideological consensus.
This does not mean that every journalist, filmmaker, teacher, or content creator intentionally manipulates audiences. Rather, Cultural Studies encourages us to examine the structures within which media is produced. Asking “Who created this message?”, “Who benefits from this representation?”, and “Which voices are missing?” can reveal dimensions of power that are not immediately visible.
Today, algorithms add another important dimension. When I search for a literary topic or watch a particular kind of educational video, digital platforms often recommend similar content. This can be useful because it saves time and helps me discover related material. However, it can also mean that I repeatedly encounter similar interpretations. Therefore, media power today is not only about traditional newspapers or television. It also exists through digital platforms, recommendation systems, popularity, and visibility.
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Representation, Cultural Identity, and Marginalized Voices
One of the most important concerns of Cultural Studies is representation. Media does not merely reflect culture; it also helps construct ideas about culture and identity. The way communities are represented can influence how society understands them and how members of those communities understand themselves.
This becomes particularly important for marginalized groups. Women, minorities, rural communities, working-class people, linguistic groups, and other communities can experience limited or stereotypical representation in many forms of popular media. When the same stereotype is repeated again and again, audiences may begin to see it as a natural truth.
For example, advertisements have sometimes presented women mainly through domestic roles, beauty, or family responsibilities. Similarly, films and television programmes can create simplified images of particular communities. Such representations may appear harmless when viewed individually, but repeated patterns can influence cultural attitudes.
Cinema provides another useful example. Films such as Kaala and Geeli Pucchi can be studied as texts that bring questions of caste, class, identity, gender, labour, and social inequality into representation. Such examples show that cinema does not merely entertain us; it can also make us think about whose experiences receive attention and how social identities are constructed.
At the same time, media can challenge dominant representations. Independent filmmakers, social-media creators, documentary makers, writers, and ordinary users can use digital platforms to share experiences that may not receive sufficient attention in mainstream media. Social media has therefore created opportunities for people to represent themselves rather than depending entirely on powerful institutions to represent them.
“Media is a space of both power and resistance. The same media environment that can reproduce stereotypes can also question them.”
For me, this is especially interesting as a literature student because literature itself teaches us that representation is never completely simple. When we study a novel, poem, film, or drama, we often ask whose perspective is presented and whose perspective is absent. Cultural Studies applies a similar method to contemporary media. Whether I am watching a film, reading a news story, or viewing an Instagram post, I can ask: Whose story is being told? How is it being told? What assumptions are present?
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Critical Media Literacy as a Part of Education
In the past, being educated was often associated with reading books, remembering information, passing examinations, and obtaining qualifications. These things remain important, but the digital age has added another essential skill: media literacy.
A media-literate person does not simply consume information. They examine it critically. They understand that different sources may have different purposes and perspectives. They check evidence, compare sources, recognize misleading headlines, and distinguish between fact, interpretation, advertisement, and opinion.
Media and information literacy is particularly important because information moves extremely quickly in the digital world. A person can encounter hundreds of posts, videos, headlines, and opinions in a single day. The ability to evaluate this information is therefore an important part of modern education.
My own academic experience has made this idea very clear to me. As an M.A. English student, I frequently use YouTube and Google when I am studying literature or preparing assignments. If I find a difficult literary theory or an unfamiliar author, I may watch an explanatory video first. Sometimes a five- or ten-minute video makes a complicated concept much easier to understand. Digital media therefore supports my education in a very practical way.
However, I have also realized that an online explanation is not necessarily the final authority. Sometimes a short video gives a simplified interpretation of a novel, poem, or theory. If I accept that interpretation without reading the original text or consulting reliable academic material, my understanding can become limited. Two different videos may also explain the same topic differently.
Because of this, I have gradually developed the habit of comparing information. For an academic assignment, I may begin with a general Google search, then look for the original text, university resources, scholarly articles, or reliable educational websites. I also try to understand whether a source is presenting evidence or simply giving a personal opinion.
This experience has taught me that digital convenience and critical thinking must work together. Technology can help me learn, but it cannot replace my responsibility as a learner.
What Does It Mean to Be a “Truly Educated Person”?
The idea of a “truly educated person” becomes particularly meaningful in a media-saturated society. A person may have several degrees and still accept every social-media claim without questioning it. Education, therefore, cannot be measured only through certificates or examination results.
A truly educated person should possess curiosity, independence, critical thinking, creativity, intellectual freedom, and cultural awareness. Such a person does not immediately accept every message simply because it is popular or repeatedly shared.
The Critical Inquiries of an Educated Mind
These questions are especially important today because media is constantly competing for our attention. A dramatic headline may attract more attention than a careful explanation. A short video may be easier to consume than a long academic article. A popular opinion may receive thousands of likes even when it has weak evidence. Therefore, education should not only teach us what to think, but also how to think.
My Reflection: Learning to Read Beyond the Screen
My understanding of media literacy has developed through my own experience as an M.A. English student. Much of my academic work now involves digital resources. I use online platforms to search for literary criticism, understand difficult concepts, watch lectures, explore authors, and find material for assignments. In many ways, the internet has become an additional learning space beyond my classroom.
For example, when I am studying a difficult literary text, I may first watch a YouTube explanation because it gives me a quick introduction. If the explanation is useful, I then return to the original text and try to understand the ideas myself. For assignments, I may also search for scholarly articles and educational resources. This process has shown me the difference between using media as a learning tool and allowing media to think for me.
I have also noticed how easily repeated information can appear true. When the same interpretation or claim appears in several videos or social-media posts, it can create a feeling of familiarity. Earlier, I sometimes assumed that repeated information must be reliable. Gradually, I realized that repetition is not the same thing as evidence.
Short-form content has made this even more noticeable. A short video can explain a literary theory in a few seconds, but a complicated theory cannot always be fully understood through a simplified explanation. For example, a literary concept may have different interpretations depending on the critic, historical context, or primary text. If I depend only on short videos, I may remember a simplified definition but miss the deeper debate.
This has changed the way I approach digital information. I now try to ask whether the source is reliable, whether the information is supported by evidence, and whether another perspective exists. I have learned that being critical does not mean rejecting everything online. It means using online information intelligently.
My experience with social media has also made me more aware of representation. Sometimes a particular image of success, education, lifestyle, or culture appears repeatedly. When we see these images every day, they can begin to feel normal. Cultural Studies has helped me understand that these ideas are also shaped by media and cultural practices.
For instance, as a student, I sometimes come across highly polished study routines, academic lifestyles, or productivity videos online. They can be motivating, but they can also create the impression that there is only one correct way to be a successful student. By thinking critically about such content, I have learned that social media usually presents selected moments rather than the complete reality of someone's life. Therefore, my idea of education has expanded. Earlier, I might have understood education mainly through books, teachers, examinations, and degrees. Now I understand that education also involves learning how to navigate the enormous amount of information surrounding us.
Media, Education, and Cultural Awareness
The relationship between media and education is not necessarily negative. Media can become a powerful educational resource when used critically. Online lectures, digital libraries, academic databases, documentaries, educational videos, podcasts, and open-access resources can make knowledge more accessible.
For an English literature student, digital media provides opportunities to hear different interpretations of texts, discover performances and adaptations, access criticism, and communicate with wider academic communities. It can bring literature outside the physical classroom.
At the same time, education must teach students how to navigate this environment responsibly. Students should not simply learn how to search for information; they should learn how to evaluate information. This is why media literacy is an important part of modern education. A student who can critically evaluate a source is better prepared to participate thoughtfully in cultural and social life. Such a student understands that knowledge is not simply something to collect but something to examine.
The truly educated person, therefore, is not separated from popular culture or digital media. Instead, they engage with these forms of culture while maintaining the ability to question them. They can enjoy a film without accepting every representation in it. They can use social media without believing every claim they encounter. They can watch educational videos while still returning to books and reliable sources.
Conclusion
Media and power are deeply connected in shaping modern culture. Through ownership, representation, selection, framing, advertising, algorithms, and patterns of visibility, media can influence the ways in which people understand society and culture. Cultural Studies helps us recognize that media is not simply a transparent window through which we see reality. It is also a space where meanings are produced, challenged, negotiated, and sometimes resisted.
Media representation is particularly important for marginalized communities because repeated representations can influence cultural attitudes and social identities. At the same time, digital media can provide opportunities for alternative voices and counter-representations. Thus, media can operate as both a means of maintaining existing power and a space for challenging it.
My experience as an M.A. English student has shown me both sides of digital media. It has helped me understand difficult literary concepts, discover academic resources, and expand my learning beyond the classroom. But it has also taught me that convenience can sometimes lead to dependence on simplified explanations. Therefore, I have learned to question, compare, verify, and return to original and reliable sources.
For me, a truly educated person in the media-saturated world is not the person who knows everything, but the person who knows how to question what they encounter. Such a person can recognize stereotypes, examine representations, identify different perspectives, evaluate sources, and make independent judgments.
Final Insight: Ultimately, education should teach us not merely how to read words, but how to read the world. In an age where media surrounds us every day, the ability to read that world critically may be one of the most important forms of education.
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