Youth News: You Say Potato; The Influence of the Media

STEPHEN LENAHAN, GB Youth Board

Published: October 21, 2004

Am I strong enough? Good looking? Smart enough? Does my clothing make me appealing to the ladies? Is my car the fastest? Should I be wearing pink now because all the other guys are doing it?

These are all questions that could and probably are running through the minds of us guys on a daily basis. I know for myself that these questions have haunted me in the past and probably will again, but why?

The media is why. It has become such a powerful tool of Satan that if we aren’t focused on God then we let these little questions penetrate our thoughts and, before we know it, these little questions can become big obsessions. Then we start trying to be the suave guy in town instead of the saintly guy in town.

We are constantly caught up in the rat race trying to be the top dog in our schools, jobs and sometimes even our youth groups. The fact is as guys we want to be the hero or the head honcho in all situations. This feeling may be natural to guys, but are we truly being men of God anymore? Are we still the heroes?

This summer I was a Young Apostle at the Steubenville Atlanta conference and it was totally awesome. Perhaps the reason it rocked so much was not because of the theme song, although it was perfect, but because for the first time I met a group of guys and ladies that respected each other. We kept each other in check all week and we learned what it means to truly live in a culture of life. For once in my high school life the conversation with a group of guys was not about how to “get with” a girl but how to get her closer to Christ.

Constantly on television or in movies we are seeing violence, greed, gluttony and the mistreatment of women. Sadly this is nothing new in our society, but I believe we as young men have let it come this far. If we are supposed to be the hero in all situations then we have truly failed when it comes to the majority of situations concerning the media. It almost feels like MTV has formed all of our ideologies about life. It’s as if, if we don’t look like the typical male from the latest “Real World” cast then we obviously aren’t trying hard enough.

For another example of how our generation of guys is choosing to act, look at the latest MTV show, “Laguna Beach,” the reality show that follows eight wealthy high school teenagers through their daily lives. The majority of the males on the show are close to our age and they are all sharing the girls and acting like this type of behavior is acceptable.

I believe that this invasion by the media is part of what Pope John Paul II calls the culture of death. As guys we should not only be angry with how these shows and movies expect us to treat women, but we should also be offended at the destruction of the culture of life for which we should all be striving. It is time to stand up against these atrocities that the media is infiltrating our minds with and reclaim what it is to truly be the hero in our communities again.

The next time you hear your buddies talking “locker room talk” why not stop it and be the hero? The next time you see a lady, why not open the door for her and be the hero? The next time you want to buy the coolest new pink T-shirt, why not spend the money buying your little sister an ice cream cone and be the hero?

And the next time you start to think you’re not good looking enough, remember God made you in His image and He is the ultimate hero!

Stephen Lenahan is a senior at Our Lady of Mercy High School, Fairburn, and attends Holy Trinity Church, Peachtree City.

‘YOU SAY POTATO’ is a new segment in which two writers, usually one male and one female, express their opinions on a particular subject.