talk

By: Catherine Marie Cuello

If equality benefits everyone, even those in the upper class, then why do we not work towards improving basic living standards? Today’s media has a responsibility to promote consciousness about this issue in an increasingly-interconnected world. Reality television, the gossip trade and other similarly low-brow forms of entertainment have sabotaged attention spans and created meaningless issues to distract public concern. But what if this trend could be turned around, and used for the greater good? For example, why not use the power of celebrity to inspire, motivate and encourage people to get involved?

This is where we come in - holding almost quasi ‘consciousness advocate’ degrees. Our goal should be to constantly reach out and entertain with inspiring messages, challenging change in people’s daily lives.

More than 10% of the U.S. population today is Hispanic, the largest ethnic minority in the United States. In many cases these immigrants have come here to escape poverty and oppression in their home countries, and have been forced to find better living standards elsewhere. Thus, it is our responsibility—as educated citizens, as Hispanics and simply as human beings—to represent our people wherever we are, however we can. Advertising campaigns based on culture and values—run on a dynamic combination of media, entertainment and politics—is needed to revive people’s moral spirits.

The example of Yele Haiti is proof of this. Wyclef Jean’s campaign was exceptional and conceived of in a matter of minutes to address the desperate needs facing Haiti after a devastating earthquake. But the success of this effort was only possible because of Yele’s millions of supporters, fostered by the mainstream media. When has Haiti—the poorest country in the hemisphere—ever been so prominent in the world’s spotlight? So many of the most memorable and successful advertising campaigns over the past decade have been devoted to addressing such important humanitarian and social issues, and notable brands such as MTV, VH1 and Pepsi have begun to launch shows that combine ‘entertainment with humanitarian action’. We have slowly begun to realize that— just as distance no longer determines who our neighbors are—paying the price for equality shows not just heart, but also smart.

Thus a proper understanding of what is going on in the world could transform the political, economic and social arenas, as well as change the quality of our daily lives. As voters, we have lost the sense that we can make a difference collectively, choosing instead to make decisions that would simply serve us as individuals. Our generation has a responsibility to educate future leaders and inspire others to take action. Advertising and marketing, the world’s most influential industries, have a responsibility also. If one could master the art of promoting consciousness through various media platforms, the results could be overwhelming. When we see that campaigns like Voto Latino are able to get 38,625 Latinos to vote, we realize that with some hard work and a little bit of faith, nothing is impossible.