What Makes Media Good?
In seeking out good media, Latter-Day Saints often have a mental moral checklist; this is to say that we look for what is absent (sex, harsh profanity, glorified and sadistic violence, etc.). While this is important, we may not focus enough on what is present in the films and TV shows we watch. A film can be inoffensive without uplifting the soul. This is the cinematic equivalent of cotton candy: not really bad for you, but not very filling either. While cotton candy is fine as a snack, something more substantial is often needed to nourish the body. Similarly, while some acceptable media serves as a fine diversion, truly good media is media of substance which, to paraphrase Elder Ballard, uplifts, entertains, and accurately depicts the consequences of moral choices. A more positive emphasis in our media choices may lead us to more actively seek out not only what is clean, but also what is virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy (Article of Faith #13). A reader who disagreed
