Is it really freedom of thought when our family, the media, our social status, our religious believes, our country influence the way we think?
*our, instead of are, sorry
Well, first you must ask yourself, if there really is freedom of thought? The answer you may find is that there is no such thing as freedom of thought. Freedom in-fact is more of an ideology than a reality. We may have been brought to believe -through propaganda-that it is real, but in actuality it exist more in our mind that in the physical world. This is because everything you believe is influenced by individuals, your socio economic status and yes even the media. Except that the media is sometimes trusted more than people you know in person. This may be because the media reports its stories, by using expressive language and images, in such a way that they seem plausible.
In the end, no one is really free. What keeps up the farse is that we believe we are free. The truth about this is that it is both harmful (impedes what truly being an individual: unique) and protective (prevents others that are not in your collective, from harming you).
And yes where you live, your race, your religion can have great effects on how you think.
For example the bitter old lady that is constantly mean. The only reason she is bitter is because of the influence others have had on her life. The way you are treated or raised or both besides the media has such power over what you think, which influences who you are. That is if there is a who, anyway.