WELCOME TO DIRA MAR NOTES!
This is Dira. Here I will be sharing my thoughts and views on pop culture (entertainment), lifestyle influenced by customs, culture, the government, business, finance, technology, and much more.
I’m an adult human female, interested in innovation, grew up catholic on humanistic values, loved sci-fi and action movies growing up, interested in foreign films, and series. A great supporter of science, common sense, and facts and I’m multilingual.
HOW IT ALL STARTED…
I have been inspired by many who have been sharing their standpoints on significant changes in society and culture. So I decided to create my own space to share my views on topics I think are interesting other than science fiction. What I’m missing from the current discord on social media these days is the constant misunderstandings and misinterpretations of statements. Mainly because there is no space for a proper explanation because you have a limit in characters.
The principle of contributing something constructive to the conversation rather than destructive is not the standard anymore. What is supposed to be the “official” information is written with an obviously biased perspective.
In some cases, the “journalist” is in favor of one side of the covered issue. As a consequence, the reporting will make that side look as good as possible without further questioning or analyzing the sources. Sometimes sources are not even used. the article turns into an opinion piece that seeks to influence the masses in favor of a particular individual organization or movement.
I never thought we would come to a point where journalists are treated as criminals. Specifically, independent journalism has become the last breed of the profession. Mainstream journalists have become opinion speakers sitting behind a desk, rooting for their sponsors, rather than being on the field investigating organizations and politicians.
PAYING ATTENTION…
We have come to a point where a lot of energy is invested in topics that are there to distract from the main issues. This distraction is often pushed by the mainstream media. People are spending hours arguing online using limited text to discuss complex topics which normally need more than an x amount of words to be able to explain what they mean. It is very easy to misunderstand a sentence or a few words which constantly happens online.
Even how information is published has changed to a limited amount of words per article usually between 300 to 600 words to report on a topic. People have been conditioned to have a short attention span and basically regarded as unable to follow a long article.
I’ve also seen how because of the limitations put on the length of the articles there is not much effort put in finding multiple sources. Usually, they never read all the information, and even sometimes make a wrong interpretation. Sometimes they even forget to mention their sources. And it is sad to see people take these at face value, and broadcast them as factual.
LOSING TRUST…
It’s no wonder that most people don’t trust the mainstream media. but it’s a problem the media created by being biased and non-transparent. They assisted in building the industry of “Fake News” where unscrupulous people take advantage of spreading fake news. to combat, this independent media rose countering the fake news from the mainstream media and bad actors.
It’s not only them but everyone from all walks of life that have a different opinion or refuse to participate in what most are doing online. This mob mobilization to bully and cancel people is horrible to see. And when the attacked put their defense mode on then they are somehow wrong for defending themselves. Aren’t the ones that attacked first guilty of making the first offense?
This also happens with pop culture including movies, tv, and music. We see how brutally they are attacked online hoping they will fail and disappear. Their videos are being flagged, their publications and social media posts are suppressed by algorithms that prevent them to move up the list of search results unless you follow them on multiple platforms you wouldn’t be able to know when they have new content.
SHARING VIEWS AND OPINIONS…
Seeing all this happening motivates me to share my views in some way as long as I can. I make notes on paper on topics I’m interested in and perform some initial research to form my opinion. Yes, I actually like to make notes on paper 🙂
I will do my best to present my views rationally using common sense and always look critically at the sources that present the corporate media narrative and share my views based on life experiences, and sources. Hopefully, it will contribute to stimulating the curiosity of readers to find out more about the topics.
Change the way information is consumed. Always go beyond what is presented to you:
- Who is reporting it?
- When did it happen?
- When was it reported?
- What kind of information is it based on?
- How was it reported?
- To Whom is it for?
- What is the objective? What is it about?
- What are the sources?
THE EXPERIENCE SO FAR…
In 2016 I started learning about blogging and was encouraged to write down my thoughts. As English is not my native language it has been challenging and exciting at the same time. I learned with great pride to make sure that every time a point of view is shared, it has some value to the reader. I learned to do the same for comments on other content creators’ works. I believe that the best comments are those that give some added value to the content sharing opinions with constructive criticisms or valuable information for the content creator, otherwise, why bother?
Here I will share my views and opinions on topics that are interesting to me. These will be probably different from others but I believe being able to understand each other’s point of view beyond a limited amount of words, and respectfully disagree is quite needed in these times. People are quick to agree with the majority and are less likely to question more than what is presented.
SOME RULES…
So why do we have “rules” here?
Without a common and shared understanding of what we consider acceptable behavior, online communities eventually degrade into spam, unconstructive criticism, incoherent comments, insults, etc. I know from experience from my first blog, reviews were necessary because I got a lot of spam comments and direct promotion of other people’s content.
They don’t even take the courtesy to write anything coherent. This has a negative impact on those who do want to have a civil conversation to discuss disagreements and offer constructive criticism. To try and avoid that, we’ve developed some guidelines for behavior.
You can’t avoid receiving them but you can choose not to publish them. The platform is not a public square like Youtube where comments are instantly published, they will be scanned first before publication. It’s like a home or a private business.
We want a fair space for civil conversation and expressions of love for those things we enjoy the most.
BE AS GOOD AS YOU CAN…
Here are the main rules of conduct of Dira Mar Notes:
1. Share Opinions. Stay on Topic
Make your case and then move on. I’ve learned there is a place and time to discuss topics.
2. Know your Stuff
If you want to make an intellectual argument for your point of view, fine, just make sure it’s accurate and correct yourself if it’s not. If you’re going to use history or economics to support your argument please make sure it’s accurate and just not a copy-paste from Wikipedia.
3. Everyone makes Mistakes
If you make a mistake. Own it. If you hurt someone unintentionally. Apologize. If someone apologizes to you. Accept it and move on.
4. Don’t Get Personal
We’re all here because we share a common interest in the topics I present but we all have different points of view. Sometimes we misunderstand each other because we don’t see the whole picture of where the other person is coming from and we tend to make it personal very quickly.
5. Respect Each Other
Be a good online citizen and treat everyone with respect and kindness. Treat them as you would like to be treated regardless of nationality, perceptions, or political beliefs. Disagreements are normal. Be open to agreeing to disagree and please respect others as you wish to be respected.
HOW CAN I HELP YOU?
Whether it’s about feedback, collaboration, ideas, or specific questions, feel free to contact me at info@diramarnotes.com
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Thanks for Visiting!
Hope you have a great day 🙂
Dira, founder of DiraMarNotes.com