Sitting in your car with your foot twitching against the accelerator, waiting at an intersection for the signal to turn green, what do you see when you look around? Your gaze flits from one direction to the other, a billboard advertising the new ‘pre-spring’ lawn collection, a genre of clothing you did not know existed until two seconds ago but which tempts you nevertheless, all the while your radio blares out the newest jingle in the middle of a news announcement about a bombing, leaving you to contemplate your deep-seated loyalties to a label of tea. Of course, if you are lucky, you would not need to exert yourself at all, for the newly installed 100-feet-long screen will have you, and the rest of the crowd, staring with eyes ajar like a zombie at the celebrities prancing around with a bottle or a cellphone.
This intersection, where we surrender our minds to the tug and pull of hundreds of different attractions, has essentially become a metaphor for our lives. Whether it is the school bell halting the class discussion, the adverts interrupting our favourite programme, or the latest gossip about a Bollywood heroine in the middle of our news bulletin, our attention moves from one thing to the next with remarkable prowess. However, it is when delving deeper into the profundities of a matter is required that it becomes apparent that our attention span as a society has shrunk to a mere few seconds, minutes at most. In our daily conversations, it is rare that an issue is dwelt upon for long without the allusion to a scandal or conspiracy, and similarly the media struggles to keep us engaged by framing the latest news in the most provocative and sensationalised manner.
Such a superficial way of perceiving has become perpetuated within our society, most clearly apparent in the mainstream media. While we look to the media to enlighten us about core issues that matter, the media looks for what will excite us. While sometimes the two categories overlap, more often than not they do not. Every single day, from one headline to the next, our empathies are ripped apart from one tragedy to another. In our country particularly, politicians have become equivalent to the reality television stars of the west and we are enticed with every new political gossip about who is trashing whom. Often, talk shows turn into brawls with anchors gaining popularity for their ability to expertly manoeuvre a discussion into a dramatic confrontation.
But there is a dire need to discern that what mainstream media is disinclined to tell us is the ubiquitous truth, something we too are reluctant to hear. To focus on the scandalised errors of a few, assigning blame and moving on is much easier than opening our eyes to the systemic failings in society that we are individually a part of every day. Such a realisation does not fit our current way of existence, in which we have relinquished the pursuit of wisdom in favour of being fed new information in whichever form it reaches us.
We have a natural draw towards matters of power, fame and disaster. But we are also gripped by a deep sense of helplessness when the news bombards us with death and destruction every single day. Consequently, we become desensitised, clinging to the belief that tragedy is an inevitable part of the world, completely beyond our control. This idea manifests itself in misplaced responses to misfortunes, for example where deaths are dubbed as martyrdom. Even worse is when we use the numbers of a death toll to adjust our response, pitting the value of 100 deaths against 10. While it helps us feel that things are not as bad as they could be, it also blinds us to the value of every single life.
What, then, is the solution? Yes, we can and we should implore the government to stop the public space from becoming overshadowed by an inescapable set of pop-up screens or news channels to stop creating unnecessary sensationalism in the blind pursuit of ratings. Notwithstanding the slim chances of being heard, that will not ultimately solve the underlying issue. We need to realise that sometimes change must emanate from individuals. Demanding and being granted a change in policy can only get us so far if the societal attitude is not conducive.
What we truly need is a pause, perhaps, in the midst of the hustle that characterises life in this day and age, with the cognizance that the crucial individual responsibility of searching for the truth cannot be left to any external source — the media and politicians — or any other external influence. While these elements provide us with valuable information, the wisdom needed to discern right from wrong must come from within us. To shield ourselves from the overwhelming lure of the distractions that fall our way, we need to assign some moments of mindfulness to ourselves. And go back to what the generations before us recall as thehrao or stasis.
While the media with its sensationalism is capable of making us furious and raging, it cannot make us patient. A core virtue for our society at this point in time, because the monumental societal changes we dream of, from the elimination of intolerance to the recognition of human freedoms, require a struggle that is long, arduous and often harrowing. There is a need to realise that such change is a true possibility. If we continue to fall for every shortcut to change we are duped to believe in, we risk falling further and further away from our final goals.
The writer is an Assistant Editor Daily Times