Institutionalized Propaganda
Is it really a surprise that this article from the NYT exposes what many of us has known for a while. The media are lazy and easily manipulated much to the detriment of the American people, many of which believe everything they see on TV when it looks official. When things are not going as planned…lie and fearmonger.
The administration’s communications experts responded swiftly. Early one Friday morning, they put a group of retired military officers on one of the jets normally used by Vice President Dick Cheney and flew them to Cuba for a carefully orchestrated tour of Guantánamo.
To the public, these men are members of a familiar fraternity, presented tens of thousands of times on television and radio as “military analysts” whose long service has equipped them to give authoritative and unfettered judgments about the most pressing issues of the post-Sept. 11 world.
Hidden behind that appearance of objectivity, though, is a Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration’s wartime performance, an examination by The New York Times has found.
The effort, which began with the buildup to the Iraq war and continues to this day, has sought to exploit ideological and military allegiances, and also a powerful financial dynamic: Most of the analysts have ties to military contractors vested in the very war policies they are asked to assess on air.
Those business relationships are hardly ever disclosed to the viewers, and sometimes not even to the networks themselves. But collectively, the men on the plane and several dozen other military analysts represent more than 150 military contractors either as lobbyists, senior executives, board members or consultants.
There should have been disclosure of whom the “analysts” were financially linked to and had a vested interest in seeing conduct profitable business, even at the expense of American lives.
Disgraceful, but this whole war has been a disgrace based on lies from the beginning.
UPDATE upon reading my blathering rant again: My point is about the news media playing dumb about institutionalized propaganda, not so much the propaganda itself. The propaganda was obvious.
Before I dive into this article let me say first that the New York Times talking about the media being lazy and manipulated to the detriment of the American people is so ironic that I can scarcely comprehend.
When conservative points of view are espoused in the media there is some lazy and covert element to the media. When the New York Times runs elections for Democrats, it’s objective journalism. What a crock of shit!
E the Wise
April 28, 2008 at 1:48 pm
I suppose I’m too cynical to be surprised by this.
Hidden behind that appearance of objectivity, though, is a Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration’s wartime performance
Politicians manipulating the media to make themselves look good is underhanded but nothing new.
thompaine
April 28, 2008 at 2:09 pm
This piece is nine days old and came as part of a series of hit jobs on Bush, McCain, etc. It generated zero traction because it was written in a now drearily familiar style:
1. Dredge up a story from 2005 (the good old days when we were losing in Iraq).
2. Allege malfeasance.
3. Fail to prove anything more than a vague “when we look at it through this prism we see badness”.
4. Pretend the people they like aren’t doing the same (one presumes the military analysts who produce analyses more palatable to the NYT aren’t being used by the Antiwar types – or paid).
5. Rely on numerous unnamed sources and contradict yourself thusly:
Is it this:
Or is it this?
Don’t you just love it when some analysts say things? One suspects those analysts are now wearing out chair bottoms in the NYT Boardroom.
The collapse of the Old Gray Lady continues.
hairybeast
April 28, 2008 at 2:12 pm
I agree the NYT is a piece of shit. But even more, it’s the ethics of the situation and the media ,left and right, just being talking heads and then screaming fowl when they look stupid. They are willingly fed their talking points and aren’t practicing good journalism by digging a little deeper or knowing and not reporting then acting dumb later, which I feel is the case.
It’s the media that looks like fools…that’s my point. They are saying they were duped. Bullcrap.If any man on the street knows the government uses propaganda to sway public opinion and they act like it’s a new revelation, it just goes to show how riduculous their credibility really is. Everybody is pointing the finger at the other guy. Hilarious. Every government uses it and and always will.
It just amazes me that regular people can’t look at journalists these days when any note of respect. The news today is more like what “Entertainment Tonight” was in the 80’s.
PG berated me about using the International News reference the other day, but it’s true. The news out of country seems to be more trustworthy than our talking heads. Maybe I’m completely wrong and duped too. They are probably spewing just as much propaganda as we are, just with a more matter of fact style. Dumb American I am I probably bought it.
I just think the whole thing is ridiculous with the NYT acting shocked this took place. They knew who these guys were and who they were associated with. So why not disclose? We all know it any way, right? Even if it didn’t play into the retired guys analyzing of the war, shouldn’t the media have stated the connections and let the America people make up their own minds as to how reputable these guys are.
It just seems common sense that senior ex military would have “connections”, and they act shocked and are breaking a big secret.
Come on now…give me a break.
Drowning Creek
April 28, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Yeah, the whole reason the media seeks out retired generals is…
…BECAUSE THEY HAVE CONNECTIONS! They have expertise. They were GENERALS!
Ok so the NYTimes is just now discovering those generals have links to (gasp) the DEFENSE INDUSTRY? The MILITARY? The ADMINISTRATION?
Oh, the horror!
hairybeast
April 28, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Exactly.
Drowning Creek
April 28, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Drowning Creek we need a bad college style poem from you….
hairybeast
April 28, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Good call Beast. I betcha he’s got one in him.
thompaine
April 28, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Drowning Creek
April 28, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Thom the freepers loved your poem. It is the worst so far.
Drowning – channel that misery. Turn it to art. Give IN to the Dark Side.
hairybeast
April 28, 2008 at 3:08 pm
I hear you…
I’m working on a piece that is on a 3/4 inch Birch panel. When completed, it will be sprayed with an assortment of fine munitions from various firearms. It’s for a Hank III show. I’m going to get him to pump a few rounds into it for good measure. I’ll post pics.
Drowning Creek
April 28, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Glad to hear they liked it Beast. Deep in my heart I knew I had the soul of a godawful poet.
thompaine
April 28, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Yawn. Look at any war we have ever fought and the propaganda that was generated with it. If anything, Bush and company should be smacked for putting forth and overall poor media performance to begin with.
Dave the Infidel Sage
April 28, 2008 at 10:07 pm
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questionyourreality.wordpress.com
Peace
Tweak Jones
April 30, 2008 at 11:06 pm