Inkwell Institute
The College of Political Knowledge
Professor’s Classroom
Subject: Political Theory/Media/Government
Paper #25
Recently myself and a couple of my readers had a conversation on the effect of the media on political stories……how the media is being used to further an agenda and helped to create this toxic atmosphere in politics.
Mind control? Did someone say mind control? Of all the words used by political philosophers, hegemony is one of my favorites….why?…it is an ugly little word that means the domination of one element of a system over others, that is the simple little definition…basically if looked at logically and rationally…it is MIND CONTROL!
Through the various eras in American history there have been a few hegemonic controls….the community and the workplace and the idea of patriotism and finally we come to the modern era, as I call it, the present and the control that the media has over the people’s thought process.
In the past, the not so distant past, if you control the media then you control the society…it was used as a propaganda tool….and not much has changed in the years. Basically, it was first proposed by Antonio Gramsci back in the 20’s and 30’s…his thoughts on it were that the dominant class used its resources to mold the beliefs and opinions of the subordinate class. And that boys and girls is the definition of HEGEMONY.
He was accurate…look at today’s society…..the media has helped manufacturer false needs that have turned the people into addicted consumers and the media has succeeded in neutralizing criticism by making it appear that there is free debate and argument….which in turn hides the indoctrination and control that they exert over the people.
Pick a subject….Any subject……now look beneath the ‘story line’….is there an indoctrination taking place? How about from CNBC? Or for that matter, FOX News? The way that the American people talk and act…I am beginning to doubt that there is free will….and as scary as it seems…..NO RATIONAL THOUGHT!
Think I wrong, do you? Think about the media and their reporting on the economy….the markets are up and everyone sees a recovery slowly approaching…..then ask your neighbor just how life is for him…bet it does not sound as rosy as the media paints……okay then think about the federal budget debt……everything we hear from the media is how there will be cuts in entitlements and such…..does it sound like they are preparing you for the inevitable?
So if you buy into the hegemonic thing….then the media is the absolute best place for the ruling class to use its influence to mold the public to their coming fate. In essence, the dumbing down of the people to fit the agenda. For instance, the Tea Party, a populist movement, at least that is what they would have us believe, but thanks to the media it is a movement fueled by opinion not knowledge…the media is setting the stage for the political agenda of the movement….a hegemonic control…..
Merry Christmas…you are being PLAYED!
Of course we’re all being played – all the damn time! This is why I get so peeved at people’s demand for “the truth”. I simple ask, “Which truth? Your truth, or my truth, or someone else’s truth?”
Spin is all these days… so let me ask you a question: Are we actually better off being so-called “better informed”, or were we better situated in the Dark Ages when no one told us anything and we perhaps made up our own minds? The again, the original “spin doctors” – the prophets and priests of all religions – have been aound for one heck of a long time…
🙁
Personally, I like the Dark Ages…..being able to make up my own mind……but I need info to make a wise choice, at least for me, so unfortunately I need my sources and that can be a problem, at times…….so it is a sort of a conundrum…..where I do not trust most news orgs but I need them for the info I need to make a learned decision…….oh crap…it is too early! LOL
Exactly – catch 22 – and THAT is where they’ve got you every time. Like I said – your truth, his truth, my truth, their truth – it’s a lose-lose situation (like so much else in modern life (that’s life for the last 5000 years or so) 😆
I once read that Plato, I believe, said that a political philosopher has the knowledge but he must ask questions and not demand obedience….that is what I try to do….ask the questions and hopefully help people make a rational decision…..
Rational? Now you want rational too? God you can be picky! 😆
I know…I know…….I can be so damn silly sometimes….lol