Blog Post #6

Antiwar Voices 

The subject of war is often covered in silence, a topic we tend to hide from and prefer not to think about. Mainstream media tends to focus on narratives of global and national conflicts, with the ideology of permitting and promoting war, yet the perspective of peace is never heard. Exploring independent news outlets such as The American Conservative, remain unnoticed in the mainstream news. I am a person who has never heard of these websites until today. These websites and countless other independent peace activists dive into the same war-related subjects but with a shared commitment to promote tranquility and seeking resolutions. 

I had never seen any source of peace advertised on social media or any major news networks. However, with the current Israel-Hamas war, platforms like TikTok and Instagram, typically glorify this tragedy by exposing graphic images and sparking online debates that get off the point. This could just be a consequence of social media or the government's desire to intervene for personal gain. The government possibly does not want people to know about anti-war initiatives sites since they profit off of war. 

It is evident the government will not encourage news channels or social media platforms to encourage topics that will go against their ideology and agenda. These platforms benefit more when associated with the controversies of politics, especially when the audience/ potential voters can favor a political party. Especially as a marketing student, the more viewers these media platforms get, the higher the ratings and the more profit is generated. 

    Additionally, if we do not factor in the intervention of government and mainstream media, these anti-war websites are also very difficult to navigate. The website of Antiwar is especially difficult to navigate as all of the headlines are mashed together, in the same font and color. The color scheme incorporates red, white, black, and blue, making it challenging to distinguish crucial headlines. This lack of differentiation could potentially deter readers as it diminishes the readability and visual appeal of the content.

I believe that all opinions should be accessible and prominently displayed to create an educated and informed society. This openness enables us to form our own well-informed perspectives on challenging topics. After conducting extensive research on Google, I've discovered numerous well-organized and articulate anti-war and pro-peace websites and organizations. Personally, Peace Action is an organization that I just learned about, and they oppose wars and advocate for reduced military spending through public education to influence policy.