The Media vs. SCOTUS's Abortion Decision

     On June 4th, 2022 the Supreme Court of the United States overturned the 1973 ruling on Roe v. Wade which declared that the constitutional right to abortion, upheld for nearly a half century, no longer exists. To our readers, I expect this not to be a surprise thanks to social media and the coverage of this groundbreaking decision by the major news outlets. This decision, while directly influencing millions of Americans, is especially profound in regards to new media and the way that our society communicates digitally. For those who remember, in early May of 2022, the internet was buzzing about rumors that there was a leaked document which was a draft of an initial majority opinion to overturn the historical case. This document was first published on Politico, a major political news site, but the shockwaves of this event were felt all over social media. That being said, social media’s existence has only made informational leaks like this to be a norm, or has it? Information gets “leaked” every hour online. Whether it's something as trivial as spilling a secret in an instagram story to something as impactful as a Supreme Court draft decision.This leak of a highly anticipated court opinion, unprecedented in modern history, set off a political firestorm in Washington and protests across the country. Democrats denounced the leaked draft decision as "the greatest restriction of rights in over 50 years" and vowed to pass legislation to protect abortion rights. Republicans cheered the reported opinion written by conservative Justice Samuel Alito while accusing the “radical left” of "bullying” Supreme Court justices. In a city where the executive and legislative branches of government routinely leak information to the press, the Supreme Court has long enjoyed a reputation as one of a handful of relatively leak-free institutions. Even in the sports world, trade rumors and player beefs have become part of our cultural atmosphere. What was so different about this? Why did the entire internet explode when this information got “leaked”? Some could very reasonably argue that America’s online reaction came as a result of shock and either extreme joy or extreme terror. A point could also be made that the country exploded because America’s battlegrounds are no longer on land, but they are online.

    Now, we fast forward a month, and what happens? The Supreme Court officially overturns Roe v Wade in what has officially become one of the most historical and far-reaching decisions of recent memory. Personally, the news was broken to me as I opened the Instagram app. The first picture was something related to the NBA draft, but that's not what caught my eye. As I was looking at the NBA Draft graphic, I couldn’t help but notice the bright orange circles that surrounded the profile pictures of people who I haven’t spoken to in years. Being someone of curious nature, I pressed on the first one and the floodgates opened. Countless many were posting to their Instagram stories to express their feelings and opinions about the decision, and as the day went on I began to find myself in a sort of bind. I did not particularly want to post something about the recent controversy but I felt that I needed to post something or else I would’ve been labeled as someone that I am not. Nonetheless, this is a dilemma that many Americans find themselves in everyday. All the more reason to be thankful that our society has minor inconveniences like these while there is a war going on, but I digress. New media has established itself as an immovable force in the political, social and economic sphere purely because of its ability to give EVERYONE a voice. It is very easy to be swayed one way or another just because your favorite athlete posts that they are glad the decision happened and America is headed in the right direction, or a hot and rising musician posts a video of themselves in tears crying about how bad our country has become. As I conclude I just want to reiterate how important it is to educate yourself independently from an unbiased news source and if you feel the need to share, understand the multiple agendas that exist in support of and against your opinions.