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NorthernGent -> RE: Rupert Murdoch's planned takeover of the Wall Street Journal (6/30/2007 6:05:35 AM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Lordandmaster
Those of us who take the time to find independent reports of current events aren't fooled by any of this bullshit, but most people have neither the time nor the inclination to do so. What exactly are we as a society going to do about this? Are we just going to sit back and let corporations tranform the news into insidious propaganda? We object mightily when governments do it, but why are we so reluctant to object when it's a private corporation?
If the US is anything like Britain, the news was transformed a good 20 to 25 years ago. Not just the news, but communication media in general. Turn on the television and rampant consumerism is justified at every turn; whether it be a sit-com, the news, adverts etc. I can't remember an advert being aired which said something along the lines of "stop and think about how much you consume and the consequences", or a sit-com where the characters didn't conform to designer-label wearing, wine snobs with aspirations of a stately home and a ferrari.
I don't know what he earns in the US, but in Britain he paid no net tax on £2.3 billion profit between 1987 and 1997. Yeah, he's all free trade and neo-liberalism - providing the deck is stacked in his favour.
The only people who can do something about it are the people who sold their souls to big-business and in the process allowed this to happen in the first place - politicians. They have the power to rein in the likes of Murdoch. They'll be taking a risk due to the potential social and political costs, but Brown has already made noises that he's prepared to take him on by referring him to the competitions commission. It's a long shot because there are many more where Murdoch comes from, but it's a start.
Personally, I think most people have dreams and aspirations which extend beyond money, but are increasingly programmed to consume anything in their path and are starved of an alternative view. When a Canadian group funded an advert around checking consumption, they were told by all of the US television companies that they do not screen advertisements that are inconsistent with US business interests. That's some obstacle blocking the path to providing an alternative view for society. I suppose these television companies are businesses and have business aims first and foremost - what do they care about social responsibility?, in their world people exist to be bought and sold.
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