6 major companies now control 90% of the media outlets with roughly 232 media executives controlling the information diet of 277 million Americans. (Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/these-6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america-2012-6)
The implications of that are staggering when you contemplate the ramifications of those numbers. Is it a real surprise when you flip channels and see all the commentators using the exact same terms and words to describe what is going on in the world. It's that way because they are reading off the same script that has been written to shape public opinion, In all reality , the free press no longer exists and has been replaced by a massive media propaganda machine designed to social engineer the mass populace. This is a dangerous situation as most people pay absolutely no attention to the manipulation going on around them. The medias job now is to shape public opinion rather than report on the news of the world. This was on full display in the last presidential election cycle as the media tried to install Hillary Clinton as the president of the USA. In the early days of the campaign the media helped to tear down good potential candidates on the Republican side and helped build up Trump , figuring he would be an easy target to take out in the general election. Then after the primary's were over they turned the focus on tearing down Trump and building up Hillary.
There was a mind set in the media that Hillary had already won going into election night in November. Polls had been manipulated and rigged so they reported Hillary to be the projected winner. This was meant to discourage voters from voting for Trump by projecting it as a futile effort. The media was sure that Hillary had the election in the bag , it was blatantly obvious of that in the early hours of the election by their demeanor. Then the unthinkable happened, the plan did not work as expected. It was obvious by the expressions and change in demeanor of the reporters that things were not going per script midway through the evening. The plan to install Hillary had backfired and Trump was now looking like the projected winner. The demeanor of the reporters changed to a visibly shaken state and then media went silent around 12 am EST as it tried to regroup and desperately wait for a last minute manipulation that would make Hillary win but it didn't happen. After that the media went into full blown shock for the next day that morphed into anti Trump mode.
Four and eight years before , President Obama was given a free pass and a long honeymoon period by the press. Actually they gave that to him for the bulk of his presidency even as he put up the most opaque wall from the press after promising to be the most transparent president ever , the press still gave him a pass. Now though the media was out for blood and was encouraging the left from day one to not accept the outcome of the election. Basically from the very start of the final election results there has been an ongoing manipulation by the media to effect the mindset of the populous against Trump. I am not going to try and defend Trump or his action in office as its off point on this subject. While I don't think the media is giving him a fair shot , it is also fair to say that Trump can be his own worst enemy at times. In my opinion America had no good options in the last election and a lot of the blame for that boils down to media manipulation of the political process. I have to admit that I enjoyed seeing the shocked expressions on the face of the media stooges when they realized that things had back fired and blew up in their faces. They had made the fatal mistake of believing their own hype and thinking that they controlled the American people. Fortunately enough people were not buying what they were selling and were thinking for themselves.
Will that always be the case though? The media does have a lot of stroke when it comes to swaying people minds. Propaganda is used by all governments and power bases. Unfortunately no populous under a governmental system is immune to it as it is present across the globe. Its just more blatant in some countries over others. While the propaganda machine is more masked in the USA it is still present. In countries like North Korea, the loyalty to the state and the anti American propaganda machine is obvious. In America however the propaganda machine is so glossed up many people take it for granted and don't even recognize it for what it is. In the USA and most of the developed world we are inundated with propaganda. We just call it advertising but its still a form of propaganda. We also have the a spin on the traditional propaganda machine as Oligarchs who own the media guide the masses in the direction they want to lead them. These are the same Oligarchs who back politicians and play chess with companies and power bases.
Often these days people get their news off of the headlines and just assume that what is emblazoned in bold letters is true but the actual facts are hidden deep in the article. The media will spend paragraphs telling you how and what to think but will only spend a few lines letting you know the actual facts of the situation. When this happens you are not reading the news , you are reading a propaganda piece.
Propaganda is a tool used to unite and divide. It is the medium of group think that pits one group against the other. Its used for social engineering which is not always a bad thing but it certainly can be. The biggest factor to counteracting propaganda is an educated and freethinking populous. Blind loyalties by any group is a dangerous thing and when that group is fueled by propaganda it can be very dangerous. Propaganda has been used throughout the history of civilization. It's the whisper in the streets going around at its smallest form to high profile glossy campaigns that rally whole nations and ideology's at it's greatest.
Paul Joseph Goebbels who was Hitler's Propaganda Minister in Nazi Germany had this to say....
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”
Propaganda is a dangerous tool. The consolidation of the media is sharpening that tool so that it is highly effective as it appears that the same idea is coming from many sources while in fact it is coming from the same source. Its a very short stretch from propaganda being a tool to becoming weaponized in the wrong hands. The same powers of persuasion that get you to buy one brand of diapers or soda are the same powers that get you to accept one Ideology , Theology or one of the many Ism's in the world. The best thing to do is not to believe everything you hear. Question everything and look at it with a good deal of skepticism. Just because your hearing the same thing over and over does not make it true. Often you are hearing it over and over because that is exactly what someone else wants you to believe is true.
Always think for yourself and don't rely on one type of news source or view point to shape your opinion. Your opinion should be your opinion, not just a regurgitation of the media machines view point and flavor of the day media spin. It is dangerous to live in an echo chamber. For those who don't know , that is where you are only hearing what you want to hear , you hear your own views and opinions only and never want to hear an opposing thought. Some people get mad when they hear the other voice say an opposing view point but if you aren't willing to look both ways then there is a good chance you will walk out in front of oncoming traffic. Its said there is three sides to every story... Yours ... mine ... and the truth! I have found that the truth generally lays somewhere in the middle and that it is rarely just black or white. Most often its found in the many shades of grey that there is in the world.
Just food for free thought
Until next time
Lasco X
