The old con of the Manufacturing Consent era of media was a phony show of bipartisanship. Legitimate opinion was depicted as a spectrum stretching all the way from “moderate” Democrats (often depicted as more correct on social issues) to “moderate” Republicans (whose views on the economy or war were often depicted as more realistic). That propaganda trick involved constantly narrowing the debate to a little slice of the Venn diagram between two established parties. Did we need to invade Iraq right away to stay safe, as Republicans contended, or should we wait until inspectors finished their work and then invade, as Democrats insisted?
The new, cleaved media landscape advances the same tiny intersection of elite opinion, except in the post-Trump era, that strip fits inside one party. Instead of appearing as props in a phony rendering of objectivity, Republicans in basically all non-Fox media have been moved off the legitimacy spectrum, and appear as foils only. Allowable opinion is now depicted stretching all the way from one brand of “moderate” Democrat to another.
h/t Mike
I had a look at the picture of Matt Taibbi “collection”. It is all the same newspaper, photoshopped and unfocused to hide the cheat. Another trick picked up from the Communists?
You’re right, all propaganda reads the same.
A photo sample of his collection is at the end of the article, before the comments.
Another example is sometimes the ‘poll’ that they will have on media websites. The latest one was regarding the proposal to let municipalities decide on banning handguns. The poll question read “Who do you think should ban handguns? Municipalities or Federal?”
Of course there was no option for “Do not ban handguns.” or “They are already effectively banned you morons.”
One thing for sure, race Trump’s (pun kinda intended) guns…Take the shooting of 6 Asian masseuses yesterday. Although the authorities have since announced that the motive was non racial after grilling the shooter, CNN is hard at work trying to pin it on Trump for having said China virus…So predictable.
Maybe while Trump stays politically active, shootings will no longer be the fault of guns…The NRA must keep the Donald going.
Wait until we find out the guy went mad because some masseuse smirked at how quick her customer’s needs were met.
Yes!!! I have noticed that with the polls too. I saw one about the vaccine recently, and like the handgun poll, it didn’t offer “I will not get the vaccine”
The Canadian media – including a good deal of the supposed “right wing” National Post – has been Sovietized as long as I can remember. Virtually ALL they seem to do is re-post/re-tweet press releases and talking points from the Liberal party and other (mostly publicly-subsidized) left-leaning “advocacy” groups, consisting of either – depending on the issue and/or who’s in power – (i) bellicose agitprop, or (ii) mental spun sugar and paeans of joy about Life in the Trudeupian Multicultural State. And lately even more so, since they’re all now collectively sucking the public teat.
Yep, they are all singing the same tunes in unison…Once in a while, one of them will slip with a news scoop all of their own and these days, those are often real news so if you hear the same lyrics when changing channels, it’s most certainly fake or a consensus propaganda message.
In a world of lies, telling the truth becomes an act of revolution.
And like Soviet media in the day, the only truth was what the media reported, despite the fact that almost everyone – the ruling class and media included – knew it was a lie. No matter how blatant or transparently false.
However today, the majority of the populace are unthinking, incurious, self righteous low information types who applaud every loss of civil liberties and destruction of the foundations of Western society. And demand more.
Lock downs “help” get more people consuming media. (propaganda)
It wasn’t enough to taint the news, now they’ve worked it in to all the suspense/action/dramas on TV,,, like all the law and police shows, medical and hospital dramas, and children’s programs.
WE are all staring in our own personal version of The PRISONER….with Patrick McGoohan….. YOU VILL watch TV ja.??
Functions with only one variable are rarely useful, like left, right lingo. You can only be something compared to something else.
If you’re a rabid collectivist intent on controlling every aspect of human behaviour, a fiscal conservative is extreme right wing.
Technically correct, but only useful when compared to another point on the plane. Leftist. Left of conservatism? OK, so what?
But given our media is both biased and dumb as a post on all matters, it make sense to them when AOC says her stupid shit.
Speaking of Sovietization, begun under Obama btw, thanks once again to RINO cowards they have the legislature in addition to POTUS, they’ve owned the FBI, CIA and DOJ since Obama at least, with their mediocacy propagandists and affluents in tow.
They now brag about their judges but unfortunately the Soviet will have to wait until they can pack SCOTUS.
But you never know as GOP naivety is off the charts with their previous disastrous filibuster calculations.
Marx complained about individualism saying it atomized us, that we’d apparently do better atomized under the state instead.
Once again he was wrong, but like covid paranoia, we all get to live with the consequences of ignorance and poor judgment.
“Republicans in basically all non-Fox media have been moved off the legitimacy spectrum, and appear as foils only. Allowable opinion is now depicted stretching all the way from one brand of “moderate” Democrat to another.”
Yes, well, the GOP did go completely insane. That has consequences.
“I didn’t leave the Democrat Party, they left me.” Ronald Reagan, formerly a life-long Democrat.
President Trump said essentially the same thing. The Democrats can’t figure out who’s a boy and who’s a girl, and you’re doubling down on the GOP being the ones going completely insane?
Shush, child (like-understanding still evident in so many ways). The grown-ups are talking.
Fox was right about Trump Russia collusion and many other things your were wrong about. So why listen to an idiot like you?
Calling a Democrat moderate is like calling you intelligent. Not the same thing at all.
Well, I am not the one still making appearances on The View, CNN, NPR, late night talk shows.
Thinking rationally, if there is no possible benefit in it for you personally, why would you even acknowledge the presence of that CBC/ABC/BBC/CNN/… “reporter”, let alone answer any question it posed.