Do you consider yourself a media maker? Perhaps a better way to put it would be: Are you a content creator? You don’t have to be a social media “influencer” to be a content creator. In today’s digital society where social media interactions might be the norm, especially for the younger generations, many of us who might have never considered ourselves “media makers” or “content creators” in the past find ourselves in that position. Often, we make media to communicate with family and friends. Other times we create content as part of our work or ministry experience.
We might not be Steven Spielberg, Taylor Swift, Khaby Lame or Charli D’Amelio when it comes to content creation, but most of us are media makers of some sort, even if it’s only using text messaging for communication, posting photos of your parish’s liturgical space decorated for Christmas, or taking video of your child’s reaction to getting a puppy on Christmas morning and sharing it on family chat.
As followers of Jesus Christ, we are responsible for making sure that what we put out into the digital world reflects what we believe and the values we hold as Christians. If your Christmas wish list (or your kids’) contains media-making technology, here are some things to keep in mind as you make media.
Actor and filmmaker, Jon Favreau once said, “I don’t think I’m egotistical as much as I’m taking responsibility for what I’m putting out there.” How do we take responsibility for what we “put out there”? Even more importantly, how do we teach our teens and littles ones to take responsibility for what they put out there (when it is age-appropriate to do so)?
Our first responsibility as media makers is to value human dignity. As content creators, it’s easy to get so focused on creating that we can forget that there are people on the other end of our communication who deserve our consideration and respect. If we’re creating for social media, we may even find ourselves interacting, via the comments section, with people espousing beliefs or opinions very different from our own. Our responsibility to be kind and respectful extends to all, even those who may not give us the same courtesy.
In a recent pastoral letter by the Canadian Catholic Bishops entitled, “Let Your Speech Always Be Gracious,” on the topic of social media, they say, “It is important that there always be an alignment between the truth we are trying to share and how we go about sharing it. We will not come to know a God of love through any communication that is not itself loving.”
Another responsibility we have as creators is to be curious and seek greater perspective. Any media creation has a purpose. We want to say A, B or C to our audience in an attractive and attention-getting way. However, have we considered X, Y and Z?
It is our responsibility to do our research and consider how others may receive our message. Do our media creations, as complex or as simple as they may be, reflect who we are as disciples of Jesus? Who will benefit from my message? Who may be harmed by it? Are there voices I’m favoring? Whose voices am I choosing to ignore? It’s up to us to responsibly answer these questions as best we can as we create.
Lastly, taking responsibility for what we “put out there” means we must always seek to serve the common good of all in whatever media we create. Of course, our media making may only be communicating to Grandma and Grandpa that the grandkids sat on Santa’s lap through sharing of photos via the family text messaging thread, but many of our communications reach beyond ourselves or our families into the community around us. Do we seek the good of everyone when we create?
Why is this important? Because by taking responsibility when we create content, we provide an example for others to do the same, especially the young.
The Canadian bishops put it well in the pastoral letter quoted above. They say, “Our expectation is that our own Catholic institutions and media outlets will hold themselves to the highest standard in assuring that their online posting adheres to the greatest degree of accuracy and truthfulness possible, while also prioritizing Christian charity and human dignity. Others will model what they see us doing, and we want to demonstrate great virtue in this regard.”
As individuals, we hold ourselves to the same high standard, exercising the virtue of responsibility in our media creations, following the call of Christian discipleship.
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