The Media and the role of Public Figures

Topic #1 The Media, the Role of Public Figures, and the Importance of Influence. 

    

   Following our discussion this week, it is certain that in observing a particular issue, there is a host of secondary or inexplicit problems that many may overlook. Our concern for this week focused on the role of highlighting individuals who have made a considerable contribution to society. In reference to the question, I proposed, the mainstream media and television programming typically feature individuals who are famous for the sake of their family name or become idolized simply because of their social or economic status. 
Conversely, news coverage about humanitarian work or philanthropic efforts has to be sought after. The interest for such work is usually by people who are concerned about a particular cause, or are a part of associated networks in which information is often available. 

         The main question for this week, is whom do you consider an influential leader, and what attributes about this person do you admire? Also regarding Human Rights, who's work do you consider notable, and how has this person inspired you to further the cause of Human Rights improvement?

          

Lucas Lopes started a conversation

 (tuesday, september 22 2015 9:16 pm)

Being a political scientist myself, I believe I have a certain tendency to glorify political leaders; therefore it should not come as a surprise that the person I consider an influential leader is a politician. Nevertheless, I consider former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt one of the most influential leaders in the world, even though he is no longer alive. Perhaps the greatest quality I admire about him was his ability to calm and soothe people during one of the most turbulent and despairing moments in US history (his weekly fireside chats in which he began by addressing the American people as “my friends”). His struggle to pass the minimum wage in 1938 is remarkable and unprecedented in American history. He creates jobs for those unemployed through the Tennessee Valley Association and National Labor Relations Board. His legacy burns brightly up to this day.

With regards to a Human Right's Activist, I highly admire and value the work of Elie Wiesel in protecting and fighting for all minorities around the world. Despite surviving the Holocaust, he saw his father die right before the Buchenwald concentration camp was liberated by the Allies; he lost his mother and his younger sister to the Holocaust as well; and yet, despite all these adversities and misfortunes life through at him, he carried on living and made a name for himself. Elie Wiesel is the true embodiment of “will to live”. His book “Night” in which he recollects about his years in the Buchenwald concentration camp is not only vivid and frightening, but it also makes us question how humanity could have led such atrocities happen in the 20th century. A Nobel Price Peace Winner in 19787 and president of the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity, Wiesel reminds us (and I quote part of his Nobel prize speech): “when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Whenever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion or political views, that place must-at that moment-become the center of the universe”.

Pauline Elmore started a conversation

 (tuesday, september 22 2015 11:40 pm)

When you even just mention the word "leader" Martin Luther King is always the first person to usually pop up in my mind. But, there are also instances when others do as well. Learning about Malala and getting to hear a brief snippet of her story on Ellen was necessary because what I believe should be taken away from Malala's story is that publicity should not drive philanthropy, activism or any types of positive gestures just for the sake of having a good name. Yes, many social movements use publicity as a way to get their voices heard, involve the uninvolved and simply make masses aware of issues that negatively impact the functioning of society. Malala, being one who wishes to change gender inequality and promote the right to education, seemed very humble and genuine with her words and those are the leaders that I admire most. Nelson Mandela also represented another important element of what I admired about any human rights activist. His courage is what attracted me most to his contributions to the world. I constantly wonder if I could be locked away in prison for so long and still have the strength to continue my efforts to change the politics of a nation around me. As he became South Africa's first black president, I could only imagine what type of victory this was not only for the people of South Africa, but all over the world. It truly is the humility and courage of leaders as well as other elements that attract my attention to what each individual is doing to impact the world and its well-being.