Exposure vs Understanding - Supreme Court of the United States

-
    


If you have done any scrolling on social media platforms recently, I can almost guarantee that you have come across something relating to the supreme court. This system of the American government has been headlining local news articles, trending on Twitter, being the hot topic for social media activists on Instagram, and flooding the for-you page on tik tok. Almost every American citizen is exposed to the major decisions made by the supreme court through social media. Platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, etc. allow users, specifically American citizens to be exposed to the decisions made by the SCOTUS. Social media allows major political decisions made by the Supreme Court to get a tremendous amount of exposure. 

Recently, as I am sure you are aware, the Supreme Court of the United States overturned the decision made in the Roe vs. Wade case. This decision got a large amount of coverage through news outlets, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Tik Tok, and other platforms. Social media allowed everyone to exercise their first amendment rights and express their opinion about the decision reached by the court. Here are some social media posts I have seen about this case. 
     





Social media provides users instant exposure to the decisions made by the supreme court as well as other political headliners. Users become aware of what's happening, but the real question is does social media allow users to actually understand how the supreme court reaches its decisions? Through a survey conducted by the University of Pennsylvania's Public Policy Center, it was found that 1 in 5 Americans think that a 5-4 supreme justice vote is sent back to congress for reconsideration. This survey shows that a good amount of Americans do not even know how the judicial branch of government functions. 

With all of this exposure and access to relevant facts, information, and news about the American government, people are still oblivious to the way that it functions. Again, touching on the Roe vs. Wade case a tremendous amount of exposure was brought to the supreme court, but there was not much understanding. 

The public knowledge of the supreme court is entirely influenced by social media. Although it is good that people are staying aware, I personally think that social media sways viewers' opinions through biased posts. There is no way that anyone is able to fully comprehend a specific Supreme Court case from a series of Instagram graphics, or a 15-second Tik Tok video. I think that social media has morphed people to look for information quickly and form an opinion based on the facts that look presentable and appealing to them.  

From the first meeting of the supreme court in 1790 to now in 2022, these Justices have played an important role in the U.S. government. The court works to balance out the Legislative and Executive branches of government through checks and balances. The judicial branch of the American government interprets the law through the constitution. All nine justices serve our country backed by the expression "equal justice under law". A common misconception people have about the supreme court is that their decisions are influenced by the majority opinion like elections are, but that is simply not true. The duty of each justice is to use the constitution to interpret whether or not an issue is constitutional. 

Now, I am not stating my opinion on this matter here, but the supreme court did not make abortion illegal as many people are saying. They made it so each state could decide if they wanted to legalize abortion independently. The court determined that abortion was not a protected right through the constitution therefore they determined that they should leave it up to the state. They interpreted the constitution and made a decision through that document. 

Understanding the supreme court would include the knowledge that the supreme court's duty is not to make laws but to interpret the constitution. It would be knowing that the judicial system plays an important role in our government system through checks and balances, and having no term limit on members of the supreme court is important to keep the other branches of government in check. 

Ultimately, I think that understanding the government and having exposure to the issues of the government are commonly confused because of the influence that social media has on the political views of today's voters. 
Sources: 
- https://www.annenbergpublicpolicycenter.org/americans-know-surprisingly-little-about-their-government-survey-finds/
    

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hazel Scott

-
Image
Recently in class, we watched a video reflecting on the life of Hazel Scott. She was an African American singer and pianist. With the peak of her career being in the prime-time of racial segregation in America, not only was Hazel Scott a talented musician but was also a prominent civil rights activist. Hazel Scott paved the way for African Americans in the entertainment industry and in Hollywood.  Hazel Scott started her career after attending Julliard through her broadway primer in the 1938 musical Sing out the News.   After that, she landed a gig performing at a club. By the 1940s Hazel Scott was a known household name. She traveled the country playing for audiences, but Hazel Scott had one condition. She would not play in front of a segregated audience.  Considering the time in America a segregated audience would not be uncommon. This was during the almost five-decade-long period after Plessy v. Ferguson that legalized segregation in America. So Hazel Scott demanding h...
Read more

Reaction Post Brown v Board of Education

-
Image
Today in class my peers presented their findings based on the position they took on the case Brown v. Board of education. Although we know how the court ruled in this case it was interesting listening to different arguments relating to this case. Each side took different stances in this case and presented arguments that strayed from the traditional arguments of this case.  One argument I found particularly interesting was the religious argument in favor of education segregation. Often times moderately to extreme religious people argue in favor of racial segregation. More moderate practitioners argue against cross-racial marriage and reproduction. But more extreme practitioners argue against mixing races in general. Therefore this argument is formed.  I found this argument quite intreating because I have seen religious people make this argument before. With biblical examples on the table, I just find it interesting that some people actually believe in this. Relating this to the...
Read more