In the current world, the issue of immigration is an important topic because there is an increase in a number of people seeking asylum from all over the world since there is increasing instability in places like the Middle East. As the world tries to deal with the problem that affects them in a great way, there is the need to evaluate how the media portrays the refugees and how they affect the way the refugees are viewed. Immigration in the US has helped bring the much-needed expertise in the country. Both skilled and unskilled labor has increased, and this has in a great way boosted the economic growth of the country. On the other hand, the increase in immigrants puts pressure on the various resources in the country such that the citizens of the company fails to benefit fully from the resources in their country. Some of them feel threatened that the wages they receive may reduce as more cheap labor enter in the US. In the year 1965, US has to amend its constitution because of the pressure from the international world as well as the local citizens (Hondagneu-Sotelo, 2008). There was a quota that indicated the number of people who were allowed into the country, if individuals came from the developing Africa and Asia. This was changed by this act because there was arguments that it was in a great way discriminating immigrants depending on the country one came from. Before, the law favored people from the western countries such as Europe, and the law thus allowed more people from Mexico to migrate to the US. There is a need to evaluate how media portrayal of immigrants influences the personal view of immigrants.
The media usually use some words just for the sake of influencing the number of viewers and listeners that they attract. The way the media evaluates events in the society in a great way influence the view of the people in the society. An example was in Canada where the immigrants were viewed as individuals would-would bring some dangerous diseases to the country. This led to a great resistance from the society who wanted that the immigrants are not allowed in the country (Blinder & Jeannet, 2014).
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In the recent immigration crisis from the Middle East, the media has used the word illegal to describe the immigrants in the country. This makes the locals scared because of the immigration because they think that the immigrants do not follow the due procedures in order to get settled. The locals do not support such immigrants, and this is why the politicians may be under pressure to come up with policies that do not support the settlement of the immigrants. The use of words by the media is thus a very important factor in influencing the view by the locals about the immigrants.
The media has also closely linked the terrorist activities and other crimes to the immigrants in the society. Whenever there is criminal acts, the media magnify any crime that is committed by an immigrant. While there may so many other crimes that the locals engage in, the ones that are given priority in various media are those that are committed by the media. Whenever there are terrorist activities, the media try to link the individuals involved to the fact that they are immigrants. This is regardless of the fact that the individuals may have been born in the US but their parents may have been immigrants. This creates the view that all immigrants in the society are criminals and more specifically, are terrorists. This creates hatred for the immigrants, and this leads to tension in the society (Blinder & Jeannet, 2014).
In some cases, the media analyze the possible effects of the immigrants, emphasizing so much on the negative side. They also portray the image that the immigrants are in very large numbers such that there may be a great burden by the society. While they do not show how the immigrants are benefiting the society, they concentrate more on negative effects, and this influences the thinking of the locals in the society. The view that becomes common is that the immigrants are a burden to the society and are likely to cause job loss for the citizens in the country or even wage decline (Clark, 2013).
In conclusion, the media in a great way influence the way people view immigrants in the society depending on the discussions they make, their point of view as well as the words that they use. Many discussions showing how the immigrants are illegal and can affect job market in a great way ignores the fact that there are various benefits that are associated with the immigrants. The media can thus improve the way individuals view immigrants and encourage better relations between immigrants and locals by ensuring that they balance their discussion about the effects the immigrants with the benefits they bring as well as the fact that they are individuals who are escaping the troubles in their country hence are left with no option rather than seek help from the other countries. A better portrayal of the immigrants can lead to better relations with the locals hence better coexistence.
References
Blinder S., & Jeannet A. (2014). Numbers and waves: the effects of media portrayals of immigrants on public opinion in Britain | Oxford Martin School. Retrieved from http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/opinion/view/258
Clark L. (2013). Study: media dehumanizes immigrants, creates false crises | WIRED UK. Retrieved from http://www.wired.co.uk/article/media-dehumanising-immigrants
Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). God's heart has no borders: How religious activists are working for immigrant rights . Berkeley: University of California Press.
