North Americans have a basic confidence in the Media at large to deliver “fact / truth”, even if they distrust certain outlets. The Media has never been perfect, but signs of deliberate manipulation have been increasing, especially during the last 8 years of the Bush administration. This alarming development undermines democracy itself, which is based on the broad assumption there is a “level field” and our institutions and leaders are “decent”, law-abiding and looking after our interests. I see at least four active factors contributing to increased Media distortion and manipulation. The fifth (passive) factor is our own apathy and inaction as media consumers.

Monopoly. The present “Free Market” encourages ever larger (and fewer) multi-national corporations, which exercise enormous, monopolistic power within their specific marke and even within national and global economies. This power is magnified in the Media sector, which directly shapes public opinion. The protestations of “Liberal Media” by the right wing in America should be laughable (but is not as many still buy into that notion), since all the owners of the major media corporations are “big business”, unlikely to tolerate threats to their interests from employees or voluntarily give up power. Corporate owners have begun openly influencing the policies of their media subsidiaries, most blatantly Rupert Murdoch’s Fox network. Subtler, but no less effective, methods may include guidelines for interviewing and presentation and the promotion of “sympathetic” personnel to key positions like network anchor or chief journalist..

Influence can be exerted on the Media by corporations which do not own media outlets. An example is Monsanto, a multi-national chemical and bio-tech conglomerate, responsible for such allegedly toxic products as Agent Orange ( Vietnam War defoliant), Bovine Growth Hormone (in your milk), and a variety of genetically modified foods (dubbed “Frankenfoods” by some). Monsanto has fought its critics through endless litigation as well as threatening to withdraw its advertising from media corporations which carry critical stories.

Most Americans do not regard their President (Executive branch) as a monopolistic corporation, but George W. Bush has made it obvious that it is. The President has money, influence and threat (taxes, surveillance, the FBI, CIA etc) way beyond any corporate CEO and George W has exercised that power to the max in USA Inc.

Technology. Innovations in communication technology has enabled media giants for the first time to broadcast their message globally and in many forms of media, giving the impression that all these seemingly “different” forms of information must add up to truth or fact. The Bush administration’s successful use of “talking points” is proof that if people hear the same message repeatedly via different media, regardless of merit or truth, it will be widely believed. The “personal screen” was introduced only 50 years ago but is now an indispensable, influential part of life – TVs, movies, computers, video games, phones etc.

Technology has also created an insatiable appetite for 24-hour “media content”. The irony is that we get so much information, it begins to blur and lose meaning. This is one of the reasons Bush has been able to ride out scandal after scandal. The “burning issues” of the day fade into distant memory the next week or at most, month. This amnesia is a manifestation of a deeper process mentioned in my blog , “Why are we so numb?” - the fact that we have become a society which recognizes Quantity but not Quality.

Psychological manipulation. Polls show that people don’t think they are really influenced by marketing but in fact they are. “Persuasion” is crafted by highly trained scientists and other professionals and delivered through many forms of media. It is a multi-billion dollar industry which is highly effective. The Republicans have taken the lead in bringing corporate persuasion methods into politics with perhaps the best known example being the “hot button” issues developed by Frank Luntz. Luntz specializes in finding words and language which will trigger target audiences emotionally, overriding the logical brain. Once you find the correct language or even word (“talking points”), you just repeat it as much as possible.
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Political correctness. Political correctness confuses an ideal with reality. Although it would be nice to think all people are equal, they are not – they have different abilities, backgrounds and cultures. This is a complex subject which deserves a separate discussion. I’ll mention just two examples of how political correctness can inadvertently lead to media distortion.

The first is the Democrats’ decision to take the “high road” and not respond to the Republican attack ads. Polls show that although people say they don’t like attack ads, they believe them (as Luntz knows). By failing to respond, they let the facts get distorted and the attacks stick - like the “swift-boating” of John Kerry, which also neatly distracted voters from Bush’s dubious war record.

Another example is the practice on TV networks of having two guests argue opposing sides of an issue. This practice suggests to the viewer (whether deliberate or not) that the issue is evenly balanced, when it might be might not be. Perhaps the greatest, recent distortion of this kind concerns Global Warming, where the overwhelming weight of scientific opinion pointed to global warming, but the public seemed to think there was still a real scientific debate going on (which is what Bush told them).

Viewer apathy. Even if there are forces at work in society, there is always a subjective component and responsibility. We individuals always have a choice and can always change the way we respond. This is perhaps our most encouraging option.

Andy James