Students expressed concerns over the country’s polarizing political divide, the effect of media bias on the legitimacy of news and the state of democracy in the United States as the election approaches.
Being an American during the coronavirus pandemic and election season brings a lot of tension, said Michael Waters, a sophomore from Oregon majoring in political science. He said even in a “normal” election season, politics can be divisive. “The circumstances surrounding this election are polarizing … people who would otherwise be fairly neutral during the [presidential] election.”
Beyond the “practical concerns like voting and economics,” Waters said there are more nuanced issues at the root of the election. He said the coronavirus pandemic has not made democracy more difficult in and of itself, but it has “exacerbated the existing cultural divide that exists between different ethnicities and economic classes.”
Waters said it is important to address this election’s logistical elements, but said solutions need to take everyone into account and the underlying tensions the country is facing.
Stephen A. Gomez Perez, a junior from Mexico majoring in political science and intercultural peacebuilding, said he is worried about the democracy of the United States. “I honestly feel like its democracy is in a bit of peril at the moment. It actually reminds me a lot of what Mexico is at the moment.”
Kinzel Todd Batac, a senior from the Philippines majoring in political science, said he is skeptical of media objectivity as the presidential election nears. He said the media is biased and reports news subjectively depending on which party they align with. “There is no legitimacy in what they are broadcasting because it is subject to whoever they align with.”
Batac said this divide in the media and the government has made the coronavirus pandemic worse in the United States.
Media bias is also an issue Waters said needs to be addressed. He said people need to look at the role the media plays in their lives and how they consume it. “A lot of mainstream news outlets have huge biases, which isn’t great by itself. But it wouldn’t be as bad if more people consumed media that challenged their own biases.”
Waters said, ideally, the media would positively influence democracy because it would encourage a “free flow” of ideas and information. “That flow is restricted when people do not want to [listen to] stuff they disagree with.”
Batac said President Trump managed the people well during civil unrest as Black Lives Matters protests took place around the country. He also said Trump has made positive steps to preserve the American economy and has not backed down to fake news.
However, Perez said he is concerned with how the Trump administration has operated recently with tactics that intimidate people and silence minorities.