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The Lorian
The Real Media Bias by CONOR J. KELLY staff writer
In this era of political division, tribalism and deafening pettiness, it is hard to see the bigger picture, especially when discussing the media. The media, which is an often vilified and hated institution, is something that we just can’t seem to ignore. One can’t go two seconds in American politics without somebody lambasting a source as biased for being too liberal or conservative, all the while the true destruction of journalistic integrity is happening right under their noses, unseen and unopposed, corporate interest. Most of the media is consolidated to just six companies, with media moguls in control of what gets covered, not intrepid on the ground reporters as investigative reporting is less desired by said moguls (Lutz, Business Insider). Even in the age of the internet, this consolidation is becoming ever more important as the wide web provides a vast array of opportunities for contemporary media sources to expand into. In 2016, the media conglomerate, Group Nine Media, took control of four media companies and received a $100 million investment from Discovery Communications through internet sources like Seeker, NowThis, The Dodo and Thrilllist (McAlone, Business Insider). This consolidation of media companies and the interest in online media sources can only mean one thing, the independent internet is the next target for media consolidation. Vice, which
was worth $4 billion in 2017 and is now valued at $5.7 billion has been building up funds for gathering shares in the bustling digital industry for years now, intending to expand as wide as it can much like many other media conglomerates have planned to do (McAlone, Business Insider). The massive opportunity for these companies to expand is too much to resist and as such, these media companies will do everything they can to ensure that expansion takes place. When Sinclair Broadcasting Group attempted to merge with
the Tribune Media, it set off a panic storm across the U.S. as the media conglomerate could have direct access to nearly 45 percent of all television channels in the United States if the merger had passed through the FCC, but thankfully it didn’t (Friedman, Media Post). The FCC currently restricts media consolidation to 35 percent of all television channels in the U.S., but while the internet has expanded, the rules about consolidation only have not and with that, comes the problem. With various print and TV sources struggling for ad revenue, online media is flourishing in that regard and they have the largest share of the American
populace. About 68 percent of Americans say they get their news from social media and as such, the online world is a perfect target for media conglomerates to eat up (Masta and Shearer, Pew Research Center on Journalism and Media). If they do, the internet and TV will both beholden to large scale companies who don’t have to reveal themselves to their captive audiences and hiding behind their local or online brands. With this, the media would become far less informative and more entertainment. They would then begin appealing to the people rather than telling them what they need to hear. Investigative journalists will be considered to just be a waste of resources, effectively rendering objective journalism in media, at least electronically, nonexistent. In the past, media outlets and news organizations appealed to people through their objectivity and were incentivized to maintain that objectivity through competition with other companies, but with increased consolidation, that may no longer be necessary to turn a profit. While newspapers like the Denver Post still perform their watchdog duties as reporters even in the face of dwindling staff, they can’t keep it up for long. The only way media is going to matter to the American people, the only way we are to remain informed citizens, is to strengthen the anti-trust laws that protected our television and news organizations for so many years.
‘Two and A Half Men’: by TYLER FAHEY staff writer
A Fantastic Sitcom
One of the best TV shows of my lifetime is probably “Two and a Half Men”. Chuck Lorre is a great producer and a fantastic director. “Two and a Half Men”, was a show on CBS from 2003-2015 and at one time one actor on the show, Charlie Sheen, was the highest paid actor on television, making over one million dollars a show. The show is about two men, Charlie Harper and Allen Harper, both brothers, and Allen’s son, Jake Harper. Allen Harper was married to his wife Judith before she kicked him out and divorced him, eventually he and Jake move in with Charlie. Allen Harper is a chiropractor and Charlie is a successful musician who writes jingles for commercials and television shows. One thing to note about Charlie is that he has problems with women and is kind of a womanizer. Charlie always has great luck in his life. He has a lot of money, a beach house, a Mercedes, and women flock to him. In Allen’s life, he is always getting into bad luck and never gets a break. He loses two wives throughout the show, is abused by his ex-wife Judith, get’s injured, beat up, and gets into trouble with the law, all by accident. Jake is Allen’s only child and he isn’t the most sophisticated boy. He isn’t great at school and struggles with his mother. Judith
Harper is Allen’s first wife and she takes advantage of him quite a lot. She makes him pay for everything involving Jake when he has no money. Charlie helps when Allen is in trouble and so does his mother Evelyn. Evelyn is a successful realtor in Malibu and shares a lot of characteristics with Charlie, but also is able to set boundaries and knows when not to do things. Evelyn also is hated by Charlie and Allen. Charlie especially hates her because she “killed” his father emotionally and mentally, and is a pathological narcissist. Evelyn, in later seasons, becomes the grandmother of Allen’s daughter, Jenney. Evelyn also has problems of her own in relationships like Charlie and Allen, but compensates for it by having money and great social skills. The final main character everyone should know about is Berta, Charlies housekeeper. She’s hilarious, sarcastic, honest, and someone who you could have a lot of fun around. She does a lot of things for Charlie, specifically dry cleaning, laundry, maintaining the beach house, and getting groceries. She loves making fun of Allen and Charlie and calls Allen “Zippy”. She doesn’t like cleaning up for Charlie’s house-guests and girlfriends and doesn’t like being
called a “maid”. Charlie calls her family and so does Allen. I love this show and I think it was one of the best shows in the history of television. When fellow Iowan Ashton Kutcher came in to play Charlie after Charlie Sheen had some mental health issues, Kutcher ruined the whole show. It wasn’t funny anymore and it was dull. When Charlie Sheen was on the show, I could binge-watch for hours, days, months on the show. Charlie Sheen was fired from CBS and “Two and a Half Men” for making derogatory comments about the producer and director Chuck Lorre in 2011. After 2011, the show just “ended”. I refused to watch it after they killed Charlie off the show and to me, it was the end. You have to like satire, comedy and unconventional things to watch this show. You have to have a personality and a sense of humor to get into it. I’ve introduced it to a lot of people including my friend, and he loves it. I would recommend it to anyone who has a sense of
May 9, 2019
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A Gut Feeling by KRISTIN HIRSCH staff writer
Depression is a highly prevalent disorder in the United States, with approximately 16 million people experiencing at least one major depressive episode in a given year. This disorder is associated with memory problems, blunted emotions, negative worldviews,w social withdrawal, and many other symptoms. Some people have treatment-resistant depression, which doesn’t get better with the medicine on the market today. Since depression can be a debilitating disorder, it’s important that we have enough different treatment options for everyone to have the opportunity to recover from depression. The bacteria in our gut, collectively known as gut microbiota, have been shown to regulate many functions in our bodies, including brain function and mental health. Because of this, changing the health of our gut microbiota could be an effective way to treat mental disorders such as depression. Understanding how gut microbiota influence mental health may allow us to develop treatments that would prevent or treat depression, and doing so will help improve the overall life satisfaction of countless people. The gut microbiota and the brain communicate through the microbiota-gutbrain axis, and what happens in one area likely relates to what happens in the other. Gut microbiota can alter brain function and mental health using neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers which tell the nervous system how to function. When gut microbiota are out of balance, they cannot communicate properly with the brain, and mental health issues are more likely to arise. Surprisingly, depression can be caused by using certain medications. Antibiotics, for example, may help us ward off conditions such as urinary tract infections and strep throat, but they also destroy the good bacteria in our gut that keep us healthy. Because they kill helpful gut bacteria, antibiotics cause microbiota dysfunction and increase our chances of other complications, such as depression. Several studies have found that there is a positive correlation between antibiotic doses and higher depression risk, meaning that the more antibiotics you take, the greater risk you have of developing depression. This effect can last for up to ten years after taking antibiotics, so it is best to use antibiotics sparingly, especially if there is a history of mental illness in your family. Another common yet unavoidable issue, which negatively impacts our health, is stress. While some stress is necessary for us to perform well in high-pressure situations, chronic stress can be detrimental to our health. When our stress response system is activated for too long, it becomes fatigued and stops functioning properly. This leaves us susceptible to immune system complications, and since gut microbiota are related to both our immune system and our brain functioning, a weakened immune system can lead to a depressed mind. One way to improve dysregulated gut microbiota is to use probiotics, or live beneficial bacteria, and prebiotics, or nondigestible fiber which promotes growth of healthy gut bacteria. In chronically stressed people, prebiotics have reduced extended stress response activation, improved gut microbiota dysregulation, and influenced people to view life more positively. Some probiotics have had similar effects. One strain decreased people’s stress levels and improved their memory, another improved people’s ability to have emotional responses, and a final probiotic strain improved depressive symptoms and gastrointestinal problems in people with irritable bowel syndrome and depression. Although more research is required before we fully understand the relationship between gut microbiota and depression, improving our gut microbiota health may be a safer and more effective way to treat mental illnesses. A healthy gut can properly communicate with our brains to keep us functioning at our best, and it seems that we may be headed in the right direction to create treatment options for those with treatment-resistant depression.
