...are the same corrosive forces that killed the mainstream press and made it possible for legions of Both Siderist hacks to flourish on its grave. The imperative of Advertising and the terror of alienating a mass audience by even accidentally brushing up against something that is undeniably true but might make them uncomfortable.
From the introduction to Serling's book, Patterns (excerpted here):
One of the edicts that comes down from the Mount Sinai of Advertisers Row is that at no time in a political drama must a speech or character be equated with an existing political party or current political problems...
‘The Arena’ took place in 1956, and no juggling of events can alter that fact. So, on the floor of the United States Senate (at least on Studio One), I was not permitted to have my Senators discuss any current or pressing problem. To talk of tariff was to align oneself with the Republicans; to talk of labor was to suggest control by the Democrats. To say a single thing germane to the current political scene was absolutely prohibited. So on television in April 1956, several million viewers got a definitive picture of television’s concept of politics and the way government is run. They were treated to an incredible display on the floor of The United States Senate of groups of Senators shouting, gesticulating and talking in hieroglyphics about make-believe issues, using invented terminology, in a kind of prolonged, unbelievable double-talk…
In retrospect, I probably would have had a much more adult play had I made it science fiction, put it in the year 2057, and peopled the Senate with robots. This would probably have been more reasonable and no less dramatically incisive.
There is no explanation for the ongoing failure of the American media to speak plainly and clearly about the long, public descent of the Republican Party into fascism and madness other than a fear of audience reaction. A fear that not only would have Republicans making open warfare on the press (spoiler: they already do) but that the vast and cowardly Middle that believes everything is fucked because of The Extremes on Both Sides and depends on the media to feed them reassuring bromides about their moral superiority would cancel their subscriptions and changing their channels in droves.
This is a fear which, in a health democracy, would never be allowed to polluted the coverage of the collapse of the GOP by a free and fair press.
Sadly, in case you hadn't noticed, we do not live in a health democracy. We live in a corporate oligarchy where pleasing the advertisers by not driving the audience away with scary truths they do not want to hear is the Prime Directive.
4 comments:
Sort of off in the weeds but it should be noted that corporate advertising is very heavily slanted towards what's now called Social Justice. One can hardly see a web site of a corporation without seeing top line statements supporting it. Think of the NFL as a perfect example.
This must have Trump supporters furious but oddly I have never read a single complaint about this from the mighty conservative chorus. I am chalking it up to backsliding on political correctness when powerful corporations are involved. The educated Conservative is perfectly aware that corporate speak is simply pretty BS but it's been quite a feat of group think that the mouth breathers have let the sleeping dog of corporate PR in support of BLM goes mostly unmentioned or unopossed.
I would only point to corporate social influence and stances is directly related to the good PR the industry wants to pander for paying customers.
I don't see the Coal industry promoting union workers dignity?
The risk of an oil pipeline contaminating a cities sole water supply being moved down stream from the city only to threaten every smaller city. town and community below the one big city is not quite the morality I might seek from corporate oil companies.
It sounds nice that corporate has say when they endorse Social moral direction and behavior. The problem is, "We the People"
If we the people can only be considered if corporate is in agreement. it is a sad day.
GW Bush famously blurted out, "Sometimes money trumps peace". Which is another and very deep anonymous overlord speak.
Someone, maybe Jerry Springer in his intelligent aspect, said that the worst thing that ever happened to TV news was that 60 minutes turned a profit. The execs didn't know it could be done and then they wanted all of the news to follow along.
And networks using News segments as entertainment to turn a corporate profit and retaining the ability to title itself "news". has done serious damage to Americans ever since.
Wonder it the networks continue to get tax breaks, subsidies for providing news, the now entertaining news from the same government that supported non entertainment news .
Entertaining doesn't require facts or truth.
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