Syrian refugees have been fleeing the country since the war first broke out. Some of these refugees only have one choice and that is to leave by boat. These refugees must brave crossing the Mediterranean Sea in a dinghy overflowing with people. Syrian refugees have only one hope; the power of the media. The media has the ability to let the world know about the struggles these people are facing and the impossible odds they have had to overcome. Social media and online articles are just a few of the types of media that have been used to help bring the hardships of these refugees to light.
Social media has been one of the biggest helps to the Syrian refugees. It has acted as a translator, a guide and a way to get people’s personal stories across the world. Brandon, the creator of a popular Facebook page called Humans of New York, has been collection the tales of the refugees’ expeditions and posting them to his page to get devoted fans involved. Social media is one of the fastest ways to get the younger generations engaged into what is going in the world around them. Some people are uneducated with what is going on in Syria and who if affects, Brandon use social media to show the people that are being affected by the war and to spread awareness. In the age of Technology volunteers like Brandon must use social media sites to spread the news to younger generations. Brandon wants the world to know about “one of the largest population movements in modern history” (Mosbergen, 2015). It is important to use media to portray the refugees in Greece in a positive way for media has the power to manipulate ones thoughts negatively if desired.
Syrian Refugees In Greece
The Many Uses of Social Media
Social media is not only used to bring awareness to the cause but also used as a tool to translate. There are refugees coming into Greece who speak many different languages so one Canadian volunteer had the idea to use Facebook and seek out people to help translate phrases. This was a great success, “within hours of posting to Facebook, Richards had her translations” (Baluja, 2015).She had people translate helpful saying into Farsi, Urdu, Dari and Arabic so as soon as refugees came to shore they would be greeted in a familiar tongue. Social media played a key role in the success of this idea. Not only did it inform others f what was going on but it brought people closer to the situation, they were given the gift of knowing they helped someone who has nothing.
Social media is also used as a way for the refugees to communicate with each other and pass along important information. By using smartphone these Syrians are able to use GPS to follow paths that refugees before them have recommended and stay in contact with people they know. One of the key uses for the social media sites the refugees are using is for “weather forecasts, wind patterns and how to avoid being conned out of our money by smugglers.” (Hendawi, 2015). By using these sites the refugees are able to understand the struggles they have yet to face.
Other Forms of Media
There are hundreds of online articles all about the Syrian Refugee crisis and they are all trying to be the article that is read first. To do this they are using the tragedy that is the Syrian refugee crisis and turning it into some thrilling read for people a thousand miles away. One Tyler Jump’s “The Girl in the Pink Coat” uses the support of an actor to try and gain attention form. The refugee crisis is already a huge deal but the media sticks famous people in to try and get as much publicity as possible. The fear one man had for his daughters life was turned into, “Masuma, bundled in a pink coat with a white face mask, looked as though she were unconscious, her arms limp at her sides and her eyes closed. Fearing the worst as he held her in his arms, Mandy [Patinkin] breathed a sigh of relief after feeling her hand gently squeeze his finger.” (Jump, 2015). The focus was moved from the father of the girl to the actor holding her. The only good that comes from this is the attention that the actor brings with him results in more awareness for the situation.
Reporters have been all over the Grecian Islands in order to bring the story to people but in the case of those vacationing in Greece the story came to them first hand. After refugees landed on a popular beach for vacationers the media took the chance to show how much close this crisis really is to everyone. The media uses this as a way to show the harsh differences in between vacationers and those fleeing or their lives, “For tourists, the trip between Bodrum, Turkey, and Kos is a 20-minute, $30 ferry jaunt. For refugees, it’s a two-hour, $1,500-or-more death-defying journey.” (Gormley, 2015). The media has to show the hard truth in order for people to take action and help those in need.
