Manufacturing Consent: The Propaganda Model and Mass Media

 

        Can the media be trusted? The answer varies depending on who you ask. Some may argue that only certain kinds of media are trustworthy while others are not, declaring that liberal and/or conservative media are reliable sources of information. However, others like Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman make a more systemic and material analysis of mass media, coining the term “Manufacturing Consent.” Namely, the media’s general lack of objectivity and rampant sensationalism is a byproduct of various different filters that news content is subjected to; this is known as the propaganda model and it greatly influences American political discourse. According to Russell and Chomsky, wealth profoundly impacts the content of mass media in five different ways:

1. The for-profit, concentrated ownership structure of mass-media firms reflects the interests of its owners, suppressing left-wing voices.

2. Advertising, the primary income source of the mass media, gives investors influence over the type of content that is put out, controlling dissent and criticism.

3. The media’s reliance on information provided by wealthy and prestigious “experts” presents state and corporate interests as objective.

4. Negative responses to a media report, i.e., “flack,” prevents the flow of information that is inconvenient for corporate and state interests.

5. The artificial manufacture of a common enemy through fear-mongering influences public opinion and serves as a mechanism of control.

Ultimately, neoliberalism and the rapid privatization of the media have turned information into a commodity, determining what is and isn’t newsworthy. Moreover, only five companies own 90% of the media, ensuring that corporate interests stay at the forefront of the information we receive. The “middle-man” in mass media firms within the 24/7 news cycle has incentivized the propagation of sensationalist nonsense in order to attract more viewers than ever before. Thus, misinformation online has become a growing phenomenon, with bigoted and anti-intellectual ideas presented as valid and “objective” political opinions. 

There are various examples of the propaganda model proposed by Chomsky and Herman in action, ranging from the media’s (and Hollywood’s) coverage of the police and military, the USSR and other “socialist” states, and the rampant, anti-poor, racist austerity rhetoric that plagues news cycles today. However, the best example of the media manufacturing our consent, at least in my lifetime, was the build-up to the invasion of Iraq post 9/11. In times of war, it isn’t uncommon for the media to present pro-war and imperialist rhetoric as an objective and popular opinion; this was certainly the case during the Bush administration as well. In 2003, Steve Rendall and Tara Broughel conducted a study that analyzed US news media prior to the invasion of Iraq. The study found that nearly two-thirds (64%) of all sources were pro-war, while “71 percent of U.S. guests favored the war.” Anti-war voices were only 10% of all sources, with 6% of non-Iraqi sources and 3% of U.S. sources. Thus, viewers were “six times as likely to see a pro-war source as one who was anti-war.” 

In retrospect, I do not think many people would be surprised regarding the irresponsible coverage and framing of the media from 2001-2003 given the false pretenses that the invasion of Iraq was carried out under. However, it does raise a valid point; until the middle-man is removed from mass media, we must consume news with a general awareness of its agenda and who owns it. Mass media plays a vital role in reproducing ruling-class politics among the masses. That is partly why, for instance, many Americans have not yet reached class consciousness; anti-labor and pro-business framing has blurred the lines between the interests of bosses and workers. Therefore, it is important for us to take initiative, to organize outside of the state and market to create organizations that allow for self-activity and subsequent political education. That is primarily why I started this blog; it is imperative that we bring awareness to the ways mass media not only influences politics but keeps the masses subservient to our “masters.”