I’m still trying to decide how I want to define the word “media” before I can even begin to start on my media response piece–I guess I need to get on that!

My first mental response was media=TV, newspaper, magazines and other such stuff. The dictionary has a lot of definitions for the word. This is the first one:

And then I thought of Social Media. That’s a big one these days.

As an artist I use the word media as the plural of medium–the materials I use to make art.

But since our overall theme for this round is “community” I think the first definition including all the news media and social media are the ones that most directly affect our communities. Media, in these contexts, seems such a loaded word these days, bringing up, frankly, a lot of negative thoughts and reactions in me, so I am looking for a positive side of the word. Instead of the ugly “fake news” I wonder if I can focus on the ideal of a free press, the power of information, the magic of instant communication. In a time of quarantine, when we are physically separate, social media can create connection and understanding.

What does the word media make you think of?