A growing trend in several countries is that people report feeling less secure than ever, despite the fact that instances of major crimes are on the decline. The root causes for this unfortunate phenomenon isare fear-mongering by big media, alonside the spillover effect of global conflicts. To ameliorate this situation, governments must introduce policies to deincentivize fear-mongering in the media and communities should arrange group activities to heighten the sense of neighbourly affection.
Firstly, fear-mongering, which is becoming increasingly rampant in every form of electronic media, is making people anxious over non-existent threats. Social media companies and news channels profit if they are able to retain people’s attention. Since people react strongly to hate-crimes and inter-cultural conflicts, media companies are incentivized to flood people’s feeds with such stories. Repeated exposure to violent crimes and hate speech will skew a person’s perception and convince them of some impending danger, even though the data might say otherwise. In addition, global conflicts are rapidly escalating, and due to extensive media coverage, the fear and distrust is seeping into communities that aren’t even related to said conflicts.
The primary solution to this grave issue must come from the government: governments must take a strong stance against fear-mongering and penalise companies for making a profit out of spreading negative emotions. Governments can provide alternate methods for media companies to earn revenue, thus reducing the incentive of fear-mongering. Furthermore, they can target and shutdown pages that promote hate against any specific culture or minority. Secondly, communities might contribute by arranging potlucks, barbeques and other socializing events. These provide a chance for people to mix with individuals from different cultural and religious backgrounds and allows them to frame global issues in a local context. A Harvard university study has shown that the majority of Americans who went out of their way to socialize with blacks and Muslims realized that their prejudices against these groups were unfounded.
In conclusion, fear-mongering by the media and escalating global conflicts are making people afraid and mistrustful. Such issues can only be dealt with on a countrywide scale and require active government participation, especially in restricting hatespeech in the media, while individuals can contribute by socializing more and questioning their preconceptions against different cultures.