Media Monopolists

(Click title above.)

Rat Racing Media Monopolists:

Few families still converse at church, dinner tables, or anywhere else concerning important issues about spiritual, political, social, cultural, artistic, or moral ideals.

Rather, the mass education and political indoctrination of American youth and voters has been turned over to global business media owners and advertisers, aided by hired and trained allies in academia, entertainment, virtual reality, and journalism.

Result: Traditional families are being re-fitted and sub-divided into ICU's (individual consumption units) and debt slaves (much like Matrix "batteries").

I doubt a media "Fairness Doctrine" could slow or reverse such process. After all, the same monopolists who control media would simply influence the politicians and judges who would decide fairness issues. Indeed, a "Fairness Doctrine" would likely become doublespeak for excusing unfairness. Indeed, I doubt monopolists are conditioned to want "fairness."

Rather, in many respects, media monopolists pretend to oppose one another. In reality, they themselves are conditioned to engage with an emerging, unholy alliance, bent on keeping the hoi polloi confused, divided, race-baited, and volatile --- all the better to keep us running and turning the grindhouse water (rat) wheel.

The media that may help individuals retain a grasp on freedom and dignity seems to be the Internet --- assuming it does not accelerate its devolution towards erasing all speech that is "hateful" (i.e., opposed to monopolists).

For preserving freedom and dignity, there are some things thoughtful "Red Asses" could do, in respect of laws, protests, and examples.

Some "No-Brainer" Moderate Examples:

1a) Reform the Federal Reserve;
1) Protect American borders, defend America;
2) Fight for a line item veto against corrupt legislative earmarks;
3) Promote tax incentives for developing alternative energy sources;
4) Promote free trade that is fair;
5) Stop tolerating politicians' race-baiting games of victim-mongering;
6) Promote a progressive consumption tax;
7) Regulate or bust up monopolies;
8) Promote family values that are fundamental to sustaining civilization;
9) Agree to manage a sustainable population (environmental stewardship would therewith become much simpler);
10) Forcibly rehabilitate dangerous public addicts;

11) Banish Ivy League fleece artists from governmental "service;"
12) And restore and respect a general notion of spirituality and/or morality.

Congressmen, long ago, should have enacted commensurate measures, but, being reduced to status as handmaidens to lobbyists and monopolists, have been grossly and corruptly derelict in failing to do so. Now, Responsible Moderates need to get the "Red Ass" and energetically reassert adult supervision! Otherwise, we shall fall together into the indignity of an abyss of tyranny.

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Media Monopolies:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concentration_of_media_ownership;
http://www.benbagdikian.com/;
http://www.corporations.org/media/.

In 2004, Bagdikian's revised and expanded book, The New Media Monopoly, shows that only 5 huge corporations -- Time Warner, Disney, Murdoch's News Corporation, Bertelsmann of Germany, and Viacom (formerly CBS) -- now control most of the media industry in the U.S. General Electric's NBC is a close sixth.

See also:
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Media/CommunCartel_Bagdikian.html.

* The country needs easy, inexpensive licensing of low-power, city- and neighborhood-range radio and TV stations. Japan has them and so can the United States. As it is, local communities and ordinary local businesses have been effectively excluded from the air by national broadcasters and advertisers.

* Paid political advertising should be banned from American broadcasting, as it is in most democracies. In the two months before elections, every station should be required to provide prime time hours for local and national candidates, with fifteen-minute minimums for presentations to avoid the slick sound biter without content that now dominate broadcast election campaigns.

* Teach serious media literacy in the schools, using independently created curricula. Some already are available and others are being developed. The average American child will spend more time in front of a TV set than in front of a teacher. The young are targets for slick materialism. They need to know how this important element in their lives operates and how it can be analyzed.

See also http://filmtv.eserver.org/media-monopoly.txt.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_Noriega
Re --- Surrender of Manuel Noriega:
“The troops guarding it instead used psychological warfare, attempting to force the defeated ruler out by using the continuous noise from a low flying helicopter and playing hard rock music and The Howard Stern Show outside the residence.
The Vatican complained to President Bush because of this and U.S. troops stopped the noise.”