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No one wants to think that they might have been taken in by propaganda. Everyone wants to think they have “done their research” and are on the righteous side of the argument.
The right likes to blame Obama for the increased proliferation of propaganda in the U.S. In 2013, Obama signed legislation that changed the U.S. Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948, also known as the Smith-Mundt Act. The amendment made it possible for some materials created by the U.S. Agency for Global Media, the nation’s foreign broadcasting agency, to be disseminated in the U.S. This Iink is an AP article that says blaming Obama is a false accusation: You can read for yourself and decide, but this article by the A.P. definitely has some spin and holes that any real Journalist would not be proud of.
The left likes to remind people that Fox News admitted that they are entertainment…not news…when Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems nearly $800 million to avert a trial in the voting machine company’s lawsuit that would have exposed how the network promoted lies about the 2020 presidential election. You can read more about that settlement HERE. Note the language used in this piece vs. the Obama piece. It’s subtle, but undeniable.
Whatever you want to believe, the fact remains that we have a propaganda problem. The two articles I posted both by the AP actually illustrate this problem when you dismantle what they cover, how they cover it, and language used. And I used the AP because I think all of us want to believe they are about as “unbiased” as it gets.
THE FACT THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE EITHER ELATED OR CRUSHED BY THIS TRUMP VICTORY IS THE RESULT OF PROPAGANDA IN THE U.S.
Things can’t be this polarized without a lot of blame being put on hyper-sensationalizing the “news”. There is no way Trump is both God and Nazi garbage. Both extremes are wrong…and that’s because of propaganda mixed with its creation: extremism.
The media as the third leg of our three-legged tripod of governance is failing us in favor of propaganda. When Reporters can’t gain access to the stories that happen in Press conferences or in the Whitehouse without first signing an agreement that they will comply with the narrative…journalism can’t do its job.
So…what to do? It’s a real pickle because of that pesky 1st amendment combined with a capitalist system that presently rewards “clicks”. I think (and history shows) that state run news is worse. State run news is the definition of propaganda. That being said,
there are undeniably problems with a capitalistic journalism system as well.
We are living those problems now.
The internet has killed “investigative journalism”.
If a Reporter actually takes the time to investigate a story, it’s no longer “news”…it’s history. People have already read half-baked accountings or seen raw videos posted to YouTube and made their own decisions (based on their agenda) long before any real facts become available. And getting someone to change their mind or admit that they were wrong after they have made up their mind based on an internet accounting….fa-get-a-bout-it!
So again…what to do?
Sadly, I think this comes down to us. I think the advantages of the 1st Amendment FAR outweigh the disadvantages of limiting free speech. So, as a result, we have to resolve ourselves to the fact that there is going to be a lot of bullshit for us to sift through. And how do you sift through different accountings in the time of “deep fakes” and “satire”, that really isn’t so much “satire” as thinly veiled lies that most people won’t recognize as a prank for clicks?
what to do
Algorithms that are written to give folks more of what they want to see on the internet are a double edge sword. On one hand, we run the risk of them giving us echo chambers and a distorted view of reality. But on the other hand, why have A.I. or Algorithms if they are not created to be “helpful”? Would we prefer they be a hinderance? For them to purposefully give us things we dislike and don’t want?
I recently posted a piece on social media by Tim Urban about 1985. When you read that piece, it becomes so clear how limited our access to information was just a 40 years ago. The range and reach of our perception was what you could experience yourself, and a few radio and T.V. Stations that you might enjoy when you weren’t working on keeping things together in a much more analog world. In a few words: we were more ignorant.
And you daily have the ability to go back to being ignorant. With some discipline, you can pretty effectively “unplug” all that information that invades your skull each day. You can get a flip phone. You can take some pills that numb things out for you. You can start by stopping reading this piece right now…
But, if you continued to this paragraph, I think you are with me in regard to preferring the noise and stress that comes with knowledge to comfortable ignorance. I think for most of us, that yearning for knowledge is hard wired…as much as it might also be detrimental to our well being.
So for the last time…what to do?
All I can tell say is what I plan to do:
- Be charitable. Hoping this needs no explanation.
- Don’t jump to conclusions quickly.
- Give myself some time to process.
- Hold my nose and consume many things I don’t want to hear, and talk to people I don’t like….with an open mind.
- Be like a Scientist (this is really hard). Make your theories and then try your hardest to find the smartest people you can to prove you wrong.
- Stop trying to be “right”. Realize that humans as a rule are mostly wrong…about everything, and that evil is always done by folks who are convinced they are in the right.
- Don’t talk to people about what you think you know from a position of trying to “convince”. Because when you are operating from this perspective, you are not open to learning. You think you already KNOW…and are righteous in your conclusions. Talk from a perspective of SHARING what you presently think makes sense…then be open to better information.
That’s a good start on how we move from the propaganda world to a better place. If we are at all successful in modifying our behaviors as outlined above, some of the media outlets that promote propaganda and disinformation will die. No need for legislation or trying to ram your morality down the throats of other people with different sensibilities by using laws. They will die because there will be no market for their hyperbole, as they are called out for being disingenuous (dare I say liars). They will lose credibility, and if we have even a tiny bit of discipline, we will stop seeing and using their advertisers and stop clicking on their content when they prove unrealiable when tested against a wide set of data points.
If we can control ourselves just a little bit, “real news” can happen in a capitalistic society, because the markets will move in that direction. A disciplined people will seek out reliable (even if boring) information. No need for force or cohersion: it will just naturally move…voluntarily…and righteously to a better place for all of us.
We have far more individual power in this modern world. With the internet, we are all far more empowered with a wide reach and circle of influence than we were before it. We are information Superhero’s, and like any superheroes worth their salt; we must learn how to use our superpowers wisely. We must work hard in that direction if we are going to thwart the villains who would use propaganda against us for their own personal gains, with the hopes of making a better world for all.
*NOTE* - I am aware that the length of this post puts me in Ted Kaczynski territory. Can you say, “Manifesto”?