How is the media controlled?

[Napolitanic Wars]

We all know it. Hannity, Levin, Rush, and EVERYONE else are told to not talk about Ron Paul or smear him using a different meme every week. It transcends different shows, different networks, leftist media, neo-con media. These people are not ill-informed or stupid; they are controlled. What shocks me is how well they are controlled. It's like a well-oiled machine.

How is this accomplished? How does the media have such tight control over the narrative? WHO controls them? It's not easy to get thousands of ego-driven journalists to whore themselves.

[LoneWolf]

Look at who owns the main media empires...figure out what they ALL have in common....It isn't hard...

[CaptUSA]

Unfortunately, it's far more sinister yet far less controlled than you think.

The media is controlled by laziness. It is much harder to gather an audience when you try to educate them than it is to gather an audience telling them what they want to hear. This creates a self-fulfilling feedback loop because once you have given your audience the same crap for so long, they'll reject it if you begin to spout the truth. It's much easier to call Paul a kook, than it is to give people a history lesson.

The sinister part arises when people who understand the truth purposefully lie to build a greater audience. (and of course to gain for their own personal benefit) Once you get a few of them doing it, everyone else jumps on board because of the laziness.

[eugenekop]

I guess Murdoch is a neocon, isn't he?

[cjm]

Mockingbird isn't the full story, but it probably plays a role.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Mockingbird



Church Committee investigations

Further details of Operation Mockingbird were revealed as a result of the Frank Church investigations (Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities) in 1975. According to the Congress report published in 1976:

"The CIA currently maintains a network of several hundred foreign individuals around the world who provide intelligence for the CIA and at times attempt to influence opinion through the use of covert propaganda. These individuals provide the CIA with direct access to a large number of newspapers and periodicals, scores of press services and news agencies, radio and television stations, commercial book publishers, and other foreign media outlets."

Church argued that misinforming the world cost American taxpayers an estimated $265 million a year.[24]

In February 1976, George H. W. Bush, the recently appointed Director of the CIA, announced a new policy: "Effective immediately, the CIA will not enter into any paid or contract relationship with any full-time or part-time news correspondent accredited by any U.S. news service, newspaper, periodical, radio or television network or station." However, he added that the CIA would continue to "welcome" the voluntary, unpaid cooperation of journalists.[25]



"voluntary, unpaid cooperation" is a chance for journalists to curry favor with the state.

[Liberty74]

There is no one person or group directly controlling the media. The media and journalists have become extremely lazy especially at the national level. Rush will play a clip of the news from the night before about a certain issue/topic. He will include a dozen or so anchors from TV. Every single one of them using the exact same language, words and phrases. The media no doubt has it's good share of highly overpaid shills simply repeating what's coming across the teleprompter (sound familiar Barack?).

During the 2008 election, 86% of media donations went to - wait for it - Democrats. This was released by the Washington Examiner. This country has been set up to believe in the criminal two party system and if anyone else dares to step in to make a third party will be vilified. This is purposely done, IMO, so each side can play off the right left paradigm while the each party slowly moves down the same path of World Government. The evidence is all there. Simply look at everything that is passed by both political parties. The system doesn't want you to think in three dimensional terms like say a Ron Paul. Such thinking keeps the powers to be from continually moving the country to the Left.

[Todd]

The media is "bred" to be this way (http://www.chomsky.info/articles/199710--.htm)

[Brian4Liberty]

More than anything, it's birds of a feather syndrome. People of the media are like minded on issues, especially when it comes to maintaining the status quo. They also mix with the power brokers of government and industry. They socialize together, they marry each other. They have organizations where they exchange ideas. Group think.