Nathaniels Final

        For the final essay I would like to talk further about the Public Affairs Conference that was held at MSU about a month ago.  I attended the talk on violence and the media and how is has and will affect our culture and the world as a whole.  It is obviously a complaint of the media that our news and similar programming is unnecessarily violent and the constant repetition of news stories is damaging to young adults.  I felt that I should provide an introduction for the setting of my essay.  
        I understand Globalization to be the process of becoming more aware of the world around you.  This last semester, we have done a great deal of contemplating what "globalization" actually is and what it means for Americans.  I believe that as the world becomes more global in business that Americans will need to become more aware of the world around them.  As Americans, we tend to think of the world as our playground, and I believe that a large part of this is due to the fact that we have done a fairly decent job of self-sustaining.  However, much of the products that we use from day today are now being manufactured outside of our borders, therefore causing our dependency on the countries where our make-ups, soaps, and cars are made.  In a way, I believe that our capitalistic society has somewhat influenced this recent push in globalization.  I could be wrong.  
        In all honesty, I have never really understood what the Universities stance on Public Affairs actually is, but I will provide it here for the sake of the essay so that we may be able to have a better understanding.  The Missouri State University Public Affairs Statement: "To develop educated persons while achieving five goals: democratizing society, incubating new ideas, imagining Missouri's future, making Missouri's future, and modeling ethical and effective behavior."  In summation, the public affairs mission is basically one that promotes educated individuals making a positive difference in a growing world.  As a public university, Missouri State University desires that its students make a positive influence in the world.  
        One of the topics discussed at the public affairs talk was the idea of how responsible is the media to the American society and the world for the kinds of messaged that it sends.  The argument was brought on by the discussion of the panel on whether or not the media has an ethical responsibility to the global society for what they print and the images they show on television.  From a business standpoint, the media is a obviously for making a profit, and without advertising revenue the media would be unable to pay the huge broadcasting costs.  Most often, the media conglomerates are concerned first and foremost about rating.  Ratings are important to the broadcaster because a higher rating means that the broadcaster can charge the maximum amount for advertising.  Now, the problem with this is that the media is more concerned with earning viewers than unbiased reporting of the facts.  More and more the media has begun to lean away from an unbiased report to an opinionated account.  
        I see the correlation between ratings and advertising to be the cause of unethical action in the media industry.  We all know that its costs money to be in business, but this does not give one the excuse to become greedy.  I see this as being more of a balance issue.  There is nothing wrong with giving your audience what they want and having return viewers, however it is important to consider at what cost.  I believe that the media as a whole should be held accountable for the kinds of things that they print and broadcast over the airwaves.  After all, the airwaves belong to us all.  
        So what is my stance on all of this?  How does this type of a thing apply to my life?  Well, I would have to say that that is a pretty easy question to answer.  It's difficult to think of how something like public affairs and ethics would not affect someone's life.
        I plan to pursue a career in Marketing and believe it or not, there is a great deal of ethical situations to consider.  As an educated individual, I believe that it is one's responsibility to practice ethical behavior in everything that one does.  I believe that it is the mission of any university to develop individual's cognitive abilities and to instill lifelong values.  On top of a well-rounded education, it is important for students to be able to practice their skills in a globalized world.  For example, it is important for students to understand the basics of math, science, and sentence structure.  However, none of these have the ability to impact the world unless a student has the ability to live a balanced life.  It is important that with a well-rounded education one practices ethical and effective behavior to his or her peers.  I believe that it is important that Missouri State University recognizes that its duty is to not just turn out the future leaders of the world, but future leaders of the world who practice ethical and effective behavior.