I think that the media does affect the way in which people see and go about their own relationships these days. This is only natural, with the rise of so many love-based soap operas being produced all around the world. These shows primarily deal with relationship problems of some kind – be it just ordinary friendship, boyfriend/girlfriend relationship troubles among teenagers, marriage problems, an over-working partner, the cheating husband… you name it, you got it.
A lot of people get drawn to these shows (and sometimes even addicted in a way… it’s like you can’t miss any single episode or it will drive you crazy) because the so called “adventures” and daily-life perturbations of these characters seem so much more exciting. They are often a relief from the monotony of a “normal” person’s life… as usually people tend to follow some kind of a routine (be it with their school, college or work).
However, the actions of soap opera characters are often unpredictable, making them so much more exciting; and despite that they are also often realistic-enough to keep the people’s attention and interest.

Many individuals rely on their favorite character’s actions and opinions, and apply them to real-life scenarios too (forgetting that their “hero” is just a made-up character of a tv show). It’s like, if you have a problem with your boyfriend do what –insert character here- said.

People learn how to solve and face their relationships problems through these shows (not always with a positive effect).
The same thing applies not just to tv but also magazines. People read these magazines in order to get various relationship aids. This is because in today’s world most people want to take a break from the monotony of their own lives – reading a “light” magazine or watching their favorite tv program is often a lot less straining than actually reading a book (which would usually have been written by some boring expert).

The problem with this is, that these shows often give a fake view on reality. They show that “true love” always wins, where in fact, that’s often unfortunately not the case.