He continued, “Listen, if you care about Democrats digging out of the hole that they have put themselves in now, you’ve got to ask yourself◦— what have Democrats done to so offend Americans that they only have 11 governorships, they’ve lost control of the Senate, they’ve lost control of the House, they lost 900 legislative seats over the past six years.” He concluded, “It wasn’t fake news. It was something much, much bigger.”64
His cohost Mika Brzezinski responded, “Ugh, I don’t think people are ready to hear that, Joe,” and of course, they weren’t. Liberals were sinking deeper into a depression, unable to handle the reality that Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton on election night 2016, and would soon be sworn in as our next president.
The Media Circus
While there is a significant portion of people who strive to stay informed on current events, aware of our history, and who regularly read multiple news sources or listen to talk radio to get a complete understanding of the pressing issues of our time; unfortunately we are up against a well-funded, ruthless, and massive media machine which, like an alien parasite in a science fiction film, is dead set on taking over the minds of as many people as possible.
As you most likely know because you chose to pick up and read this book, much of the general public have been so dumbed down that they’re entertained by almost anything that allows them to turn off their brain and mindlessly sit and stare at the magical moving pictures on their TV, tablet, or smartphone. Millions binge daily on what is the equivalent of junk food for the mind.
The fact that Maury Povich has done virtually the same show conducting DNA tests to find out who the father is of some trailer trash tramp’s baby five days a week for 20 years shows the low level of standards the average TV viewer has. You’d think shows like Maury Povich and Jerry Springer would be a novelty for a season or two, but they have both been on the air for over 20 years!
We have become a society filled with mindless mass media-consuming morons who can’t distinguish between fantasy and reality anymore. Famed media analyst Neil Postman explains in his historic work Amusing Ourselves To Death that a drastic shift took place when Americans began getting their news from television instead of from newspapers, magazines and books. He noted, “under the governance of the printing press, discourse in America was different from what it is now◦— generally coherent, serious and rational… [but] under the governance of television, it has become shriveled and absurd.”65 Part of the reason for this is that the very nature of the television business is to get people to watch by any means necessary.
Postman points out that, “we are urged by newscasters to ‘join them tomorrow.’ What for? One would think that several minutes of murder and mayhem would suffice as material for a month of sleepless nights. We accept the newscaster’s invitation because we know that the ‘news’ is not to be taken seriously, that it is all in fun, so to say. Everything about a news show tells us this◦— the good looks and amiability of the cast, their pleasant banter, the exciting music that opens and closes the show, the vivid film footage, the attractive commercials◦— all these and more suggest that what we have just seen is no cause for weeping.”66
Even most supposed “hard news” networks today are primarily just entertainment outlets pretending to report on actual news. This becomes obvious every time a celebrity dies or an NFL player gets involved in a scandal since it’s always the lead story on the evening news at all the major networks. When pop star Justin Bieber was arrested for a DUI, MSNBC interrupted a live interview with a congresswoman who was talking about the National Security Agency illegally spying on Americans to cover the “breaking news” about Bieber’s arrest.67 This is far from an isolated incident, and is instead, sadly the norm. The same media frenzy occurred when Paris Hilton was arrested for a DUI. CNN and other news networks aired live footage being shot from helicopters which followed her car down the freeway as she drove to the courthouse.68
The “news” is now mainly infotainment◦— entertainment made to look like information. The Learning Channel (now called TLC) went from airing educational programming in the 1980s and 90s to now just showing trashy reality shows like Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and 19 Kids and Counting. The History Channel, which once consisted solely of documentaries about◦— well◦— history, slowly changed into a personality driven “reality show” network as well.69
But television is more than just infotainment. It’s not really hyperbole to say that television to a large extent controls the world. Television introduces new words, dances, styles of dress, behaviors, attitudes, and cultural norms which are instantly absorbed and mimicked by millions. For example, shows like Will and Grace and Modern Family have been heralded by the gay community for shifting cultural attitudes towards gay people.70 And in the 1980s The Cosby Show and Diff’rent Strokes changed the way millions of Americans viewed black people and interracial families.71
In the 1990s Seinfeld brought a few different terms into the lexicon such as, “Yada yada yada,” “re-gifting,” and “shrinkage;” ESPN announcer Stuart Scott’s famous “boo-yah” is used by countless people as a celebratory cheer; and when Donald Trump’s Apprentice first hit the airwaves everyone began telling others “you’re fired!” The list goes on and on. The effects of television on our culture is immeasurable and since television is a tool, it can be used for either good or bad, and the more powerful a tool (or weapon) is◦— the greater potential for abuse, and the more devastating the effects can be if placed in the wrong hands.
A classic example of how easily large numbers of people can be manipulated by the power of the media is when H.G. Wells broadcast War of the Worlds on his Mystery Theater radio show in 1938, causing many who were listening to panic, thinking it was a news broadcast about an actual alien invasion.72 The incident is a common case study in mass media classes at universities used to demonstrate the amazing power of this seemingly magical medium. While many may think society has evolved from such ignorance in the information age, assuming people would no longer be tricked into believing that a science fiction show was a news broadcast, the fact is, many people are just as gullible, if not more so today.
After the Discovery Channel aired a fictional show in 2012 titled Mermaids: The Body Found which appeared to be a “documentary” about scientists discovering a mermaid body, social media exploded with tweets and posts about how “mermaids are real” from people who thought one was actually discovered.73 Despite a disclaimer at the beginning of the show saying it was fiction, and the cheesy ‘scientists’ clearly being actors along with poor quality computer generated graphics of the “mermaid,” countless people actually believed that a mermaid body had been found.74
Other supposed “documentaries” about wildlife on Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel have also been faked or staged scenes using animals in zoos which are presented as if they’ve been captured on video in the wild.75