Does the media determine what is important to most people?

It does seem to be that way. There is some degree of fact in your question.

Some Examples:

I remember years ago when I watched "60 Minutes" I noticed that when they interviewed high profile people, the camera was always in the person's faces, so close you could count the pores on their nose. They never panned out so you could see the body language or the background or proximity of the interviewer. It demonstrated a lack of perspective, both literally and figuratively, that they seemed compelled to maintain. I don't know if they still do that, I don't watch "60 Minutes" much any more.

More recently, Diane Sawyer was "honored" by North Korea to visit them with cameras. I watched the whole episode and the only type of questions the North Koreans she interviewed were asked were those designed to elicit anti-American slogans and Propaganda. If she did ask other types of questions, they ended up on the cutting room floor. Ms. Sawyer was not only determining what was important for us to know about the North Koreans, she was giving us her version of who North Koreans are. I would have liked to have had her ask questions such as "Do you have any brothers or sisters?", "Do you like any sports?", "What are your favorite foods?", etc. I wanted to know more about the people, I already knew they hated Americans.

Most recently, I have issues with what is being "reported" on health care reform. In at least the last two years, I have heard only one in passing, a news media spokesman (reporter?) say that what is being referred to as health care reform is really the out of control health insurance industry. Even legislators don't seem to know that there is a difference, or if they are aware that the two are not the same thing, the media is not letting us know. They (legislators and media) have made a major boondoggle over the issue of government involvement in health coverage, citing scary problems with the Canadian or British systems and how they would never be able to implement such as system here. What about the German or Swiss or Japanese systems. They have government managed or legislated systems which replaced entrenched, vested interests. I've never heard the media mention them or find out how they did it.

Sorry, that last one kind of got away from me. Anyway, I thought you could use some grounds to support the position.