How does the media and its subjective perception affect the way this incident was handled?

I refer to the article entitled “Singapore swimmers in hot water” (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/268154/1/.html).
The media is a medium that is used to pass information to people. However, exactly how accurate is a piece of information released by the media? As far as I know, the media is a powerful tool, but also a powerfully scary one. It can meddle with our emotions and views, simply just by restricting what we know, and making us believe what they want us to believe.

Addressing the issue, the reporter who snapped a shot of the young Singaporean swimmers smiling during the disqualification of the American team obviously wanted to get these swimmers in trouble, and succeeded in doing so. When people see that picture of the Singaporean swimmers smiling, they believe whatever is reported. After all, “Seeing is believing”, right? Most people wouldn’t consider the hidden agenda behind it. That was how matters blew up.

People became furious with the Singaporean swimmers, and naturally, ill feelings were harbored towards the country, Singapore, as a whole. The matter seemed personal, making it look like the Singaporeans had no respect for their fellow sportsmen as they were mocking them. That was why the Singapore authorities had to step in the clear up this matter. It wasn’t just about the 2 Singaporean swimmers anymore as the reputation of Singapore was at stake. Therefore, Singapore had to face the hassle of arguing that false accusations were made against their swimmers. Powerful people in big organizations like the Singapore Sports Council and Singapore Swimming Association had to step in to clear up this misunderstanding.

If it weren’t for the media and its subjective perception, the matter would not have escalated to such a point. If you think about it, the matter was nothing worth reporting about. The shot of the reactions of the 2 swimmers just happened to portray their emotions wrongly, and the media used that to play with our perception. Therefore, a mountain was made out of a molehill, and this affected the way the incident was handled.