FROM OUR ARCHIVES—
Systemic propaganda series
Editor’s Note: The material below was penned in 1982 and appeared in Cyrano’s Journal’s premiere issue (Fall 1982), as part of its first glossary of media and propaganda tricks whitewashing the face of capitalism. Cyrano’s Journal (CJ), was the first radical media & [western] propaganda review in the US. Most “media reviews” at the time were published by establishment-supporting J-schools around the country indifferent to systemic political issues. A regular cultural/political analysis of the media’s performance from a leftwing viewpoint was provided by Alex Cockburn. From 1973 to 1983 he was a writer with The Village Voice, originating its longstanding “Press Clips” column. Later he was offered a regular column in The Nation called “Beat the Devil”. His approach, however, remained one of exposing the grotesque falsifications of specific stories (something later done excellently by FAIR, Media Matters, Crooks & Liars, and others), than the compilation of methods and techniques of manipulation. In book and lecture form the great left pioneers of modern media criticism were Michael Parenti (Inventing Reality et al)—to whom I am deeply indebted—and, of course, Noam Chomsky and Ed Herman, who began to delve into press criticism as a result of their outspoken opposition to the perfidy and hypocrisy of US foreign policy, a long narrative of crimes and disinformation that the American media largely whitewashed, downplayed or omitted entirely. Lesser known but equally formidable critics and theoreticians such as Herbert I. Schiller (The Mind Managers), and certainly Alex Carey (Taking the Risk Out of Democracy) also made invaluable contributions. Now, with OWS rising, it’s important for new activists to see that the system they oppose has been deliberately lying and disinforming the public for a very long time, and that its manipulation resources remain as formidably pervasive as ever. What’s more, none of these techniques of deception have been retired, and chances are that systemic propaganda will increase in virulence in the years ahead as challenges to the system’s legitimacy escalate. One final point: although the data quoted depicts a situation that existed almost three decades ago, the conclusions remain perfectly valid today, and if anything, given the pervasive criminality of the financial sector, more valid than ever. —PG Read more…
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By Matt Taibbi, Rolling Stone
21 December 11
Strongly recommend this piece at the Huffington Post by Jeff Connaughton, a former aide to Senator Ted Kaufman. Jeff has long been one of the smartest guys on the Hill and is particularly strong on issues surrounding Wall Street and the regulatory system. In this piece, he takes apart the oft-stated mantra that what Wall Street firms did during and after the crisis was maybe unethical, but not illegal. He takes particular aim at Barack Obama, who tossed that line out on 60 Minutes in what I thought was one of the real low moments of his presidency. Here’s Jeff’s take:
Speaking in Kansas on December 6, [Obama] said, “Too often, we’ve seen Wall Street firms violating major anti-fraud laws because the penalties are too weak and there’s no price for being a repeat offender.” Just five days later on 60 Minutes, he said, “Some of the least ethical behavior on Wall Street wasn’t illegal.” Which is it? Have there been no prosecutions because Wall Street acted legally (albeit unethically)? Or did Wall Street repeatedly violate major anti-fraud laws (and should thus find itself in the dock)? Read more…
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By Alex Lantier and David North
In the era of the explosive development of American capitalism, which began in the aftermath of the Civil War, the great fortunes accumulated by the “robber barons” were associated with a massive growth in the industrial and social infrastructure of the United States. Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan and others were rapacious and ruthless; but they could at least claim that there was some progressive social purpose connected to their pursuit of private wealth.
Steven Schwarzman, just $4.7 Billion net worth
Recent months have seen the eruption of popular anger throughout the United States at the staggering levels of social inequality, with the Occupy Wall Street protests gathering broad popular sympathy and support.
This development, unforeseen and unscripted by the media, has left Wall Street’s “masters of the universe” wallowing not only in money, but also in self-pity. What have they done, complain these tender-hearted architects of hedge funds, collateralized debt obligations and countless other forms of financial swindling, to merit such popular disdain? The Financial Times web site reported in an article posted Wednesday that the rich are “indignant,” resentful of the “class war” rhetoric that is being heard in public protests. Read more…
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By Sylvia Allegretto, The Berkeley Blog
[With select ions from original comment thread ]
Much of the current political and popular discourse has focused on inequalities that exist in the U.S. In particular the Occupy movement has brought the huge disparities in wealth to the forefront. There are a few questions floating around about wealth. First, how skewed is the distribution? Second, it is true that the rich have gotten much richer over time? —a statement I often heard my Grandma make. Read more…
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They Don’t Shoot Rightwingers, Do They?
by BRIAN J. FOLEY
Tea Party crowd: countless layers of imbecility and confusion.
You’ve probably noticed that our government and corporate-owned media treat the Occupy Movement differently from the Tea Party.
Think back to how some Tea Partiers brought guns to their protests, where some protesters even suggested killing President Obama. They weren’t pepper-sprayed. They weren’t bashed in the head, and they weren’t even told to take their guns home.
I’m glad police didn’t stomp on the Tea Party. Even ill-informed, inane, racist protests should be permitted. The problem is that the First Amendment prohibits the government from choosing which protests it allows. Unfortunately, the government doesn’t seem to understand that. Read more…
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Exposing foreign policy lies & distortions—
Below we present two articles on the passing of Kim Jong-il and its significance for Korea and the world. —Eds
The death of Kim Jong-il
By Peter Symonds, WSWS.ORG
20 December 2011
The death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, formally announced yesterday, has produced a mind-numbing deluge of articles in the international press presenting the regime in Pyongyang as irrational and crazed—a dangerous threat to stability in North East Asia, requiring the US and its allies to put their militaries on alert.
Kim Jong-il headed an oppressive Stalinist regime that represented the interests not of the North Korean working class and peasantry, but those of a privileged bureaucratic elite. However, the chief responsibility for the perennial regional tensions lies with the aggressive policies of the US, which has repeatedly sought to destabilise North Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953. Read more…
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