Think of the press as a great keyboard on which the government can play. – Joseph Goebbels
Goebbels words ring true today: our mainstream media is largely defined by the wishes of the government.
The sheer size of government contributes to the press’s dependence on them as a primary source of information in the newsgathering process.
Many of Chomsky loyal followers subscribe to the view that corporate influence on media consciousness is the primary agent of corruption.
While it is no secret that media operations must ultimately meet their bottom line (sans PBS and NPR), this largely affects the sales and advertising end of the media outfit. The news room and editorial board pay little, if any attention to these details. Their focus is on content; which continues to be molded and defined first and foremost by government sources.
When the leftists decry the shortcomings of our contemporary media, they always try to find a way to fault free markets, private property, etc……These private outfits are not hiding the truth from the public. The media is being inhibited from the truth in Iraq and other foreign policy follies by government. It is our government that is so bold to make no secret of their intentions throughout the world. They have been more than upfront about their campaigns to redefine the world, and the press has acted accordingly in allowing them to slant truths with viewpoints that are conducive to their positions.
We cannot convince the left of this reality. They are convinced that the media has been hijacked by a corporate confluence hell bent on national domination. They have been blinded by their enamoration with their precious federal programs and socialist ideals. In truth, the Goebbels quote paints a much more accurate picture of the relationship that has ALWAYS existed between press and government (and thus defined our view of the country).
Instead, the left sees PBS, NPR, and other government funding for the arts as paramount in this supposed defense against the corporatization of the media. This of course plays right into the hands of politicians who will happily authorize funding into these areas, and in return be granted greater control over an institution that is vital to the health of a republic.
The left seems more preoccupied with maintaining a press that is in the good graces of government, just for the sake of preserving things that are miniscule in comparison to the on-going, never-ending war on terrorism.
Having all but abandoned their criticism of the war in Iraq, the left has refocused their criticisms on those who dare give favorable coverage to the President’s plans to privatize Social Security. This has been a disappointment for those of us who were beginning to believe the left’s criticism of the President’s Wilsonian foreign policy was in fact genuine.
There is apparently no way for the left to see the media’s primary ‘shortcomings’ as being tied to government. Even after the media gave it’s blessing for the government to go through with a fraudulent attack of Iraq. They still refuse to see the media as being historically government-friendly. Furthermore, they find a way to twist the media’s coverage of the Iraqi quagmire as being the result of these Michael Moore-esque corporate villains. Ari Fleischer and the government mouth pieces that were never questioned (while still mocked as being Pro-Bush rather than Pro-Truth), have taken a back seat to these Darth Vader CEO’s as the culprits in the press’s mistakes in believing the same old government justifications for war.
End of rant.
