The Corporate Media and the Control of Information - Silence DoGood

“What is to be done?” If you’ve read any amount of political or social science material, you’ve no doubt run across those words. Vladimir Lenin began a treatise with them long before the October Revolution in order to solidify the party core to foment revolution. Nah, I’m not advocating a revolution, I think it’s on its way without my words, pro or con. But that is for the individual him or herself to decide based on what they know, what they see, and in the end, what they believe.

Many have talked about the quality of information we receive today. How it is rife and loaded with political correctness, how it is slanted and skewed to portray and lead one to draw a particular conclusion, a desirable opinion, a favorable point of view, all for the favor or benefit of the one who is providing that information or favored by them. News and information is loaded with bias and it is very difficult today to find just the facts of any situation, regardless of your personal bias, as to what the truth is. But we are inundated with news carrying a particular message, from a specific perspective, that seeks to match our own view of the world. So habitually sourcing one source for information can lend itself to a rather obtuse, irrelevant, and narrow point of view of the world, regardless of what side of the fence you happen to reside on. Fox, MSNBC, CNN, and all of the main stream networks are slaves to advertising and the dollars that are invested in them. Each of those has their own particular view to push and want you, the viewer to embrace it as well. The print media is no different. Sure the press is free. They are free to tell us about or more importantly, not tell us about, what they see fit to edit in or out of their particular medium, be it print or broadcast. And if the editor or publisher, or the director or producer is a bit too zealous with providing that information, those advertising dollars dry up.

The control of information in order to dominate is contrary to our society and any freedom you may hope to salvage in the ensuing years. But that is exactly what is happening in the United States of today. Information and situations are controlled, spun, told in half-truth, double speak, and contra-indicated in order to confuse, befuddle, twist, and in the end, influence. But that is not their job, nor, in the sense of what the framers of the Constitution had in mind with the 1st amendment, their purpose. The empowerment of the media via the Constitution was meant to allow the media to be the watchdogs of government and to inform the people of what was going on. To keep the people informed of the facts of what government is doing, going to do, or has done. The purpose of that is so that the people can make informed decisions regarding their representatives and know how they are being represented. That isn’t happening today nor has it for quite some time. From the original intent to the current end product seems to have undergone its metamorphosis shortly after the beginnings of the industrial revolution in the late 1800’s. The publishers and owners saw the kind of empire to be made with railroads, coal, steel, and all the trappings of a modern industrial society and decided that they too could apply those principles to their particular vocation and thus grow and prosper much to the detriment of the truth, the facts, or what is truly going on at any one particular point in time.

Does that mean that anything and everything should be made public? Certainly not, at least not in such a timely fashion that it would aid an enemy or thwart a truly favorable outcome for the United States. But the truth of the Kennedy assassination, the Martin Luther King assassination, Area 51, and any other governmental action or investigation that has taken place and for which the statute of limitations has expired, should be made public and not redacted. The truth, the cold hard facts of the issue is what is at stake and what the people deserve. It is often said that the people are stupid, the person is smart. In that regard, we are informing persons, not people. And if you care to notice, all of the major politicians are quite quick to foment what it is the “American People” want, expect, demand, deserve, or are looking for. Notice how often they use that word ‘people’, now that you know the context within which it is being used, since I just provided you a common maxim among those in politics and political science. And reports should not be sensationalized for the sake of entertainment. The news is not nor should it be entertaining. If you want to be entertained, watch “Survivor” or any of those shows of the same mindless ilk. News is, after all, news. Right or wrong, good or bad, mundane or sensational, it should be reported without colorful prose, fanciful words, or what anyone associated with the broadcasting of the story thinks. We don’t need to be told what we just saw in that regard. We just saw it, let it sink in. No one needs to be nostalgic about a State of the Union address or Presidential candidate debate that just ended. In the same regard, keep your so-called experts and send them packing. Apparently media outlets think that lending the word ‘expert’ to any number of commentators appearing ex post facto of a story to, again, tell us what we just saw and interpret what you just saw is somehow, empowering. No it isn’t. They are trying to influence and tell you what it is you need to think about what you just saw.

On the local level, politicians should not be allowed to enter into closed session to discuss anything other than those things which are strictly limited to closed session. And legal counsel should offer that advice as a matter of course prior to the closed session as a means of due diligence and as a precautionary measure to their client bodies’ politic. Local politicians should not be allowed to continue a policy or practice that is known to be wrong or illegal, despite what the historical premise is behind it.

And yet, knowing with relative certainty that there are those that read this blog with regularity that can bring that sort of information to the fore, refuse to do so, opting instead to be a member of the status quo and the laissez faire attitudes that comprise the conditions under which the vast majority of us now reside. On the basis of profit and as a wage slave, those same people have elected to succumb rather than do what is right.

You, me, us need quality information and all of the information concerning any issue in order to make a valid decision. The quantifiability of the decision is to the individual but the information should not influence the decision rendered. It needs to be whole, complete, unabridged, and factual in its entirety. We should expect and demand no less of the press and of government. Everywhere we look it has gotten to the point that the trust of either is dismal. It’s time we held both to a higher standard for the sake of all.