B
belalady
Guest
Everyone is surprised that the confrontations in the Middle East that have gone on for so long. And many, incited by propaganda, take a determined stand for one side against the other, as if they already knew who was the culprit.
There is a very discreet power that is never mentioned, however, because those that could talk about it and have the power to do so do not want to, because it is that of information and the media. One could call this real censorship. The media educate and condition adults just as teachers and professors educated us, their pupils, in schools and universities. The difference is that teachers had requirements and quality obligations for training and teaching, that one could call "job requirements", laid down by the government education authorities.
Media directors in free nations are subject to no such quality commitments. They are free to make or break people as they see fit. They are accountable to no one, and their only possible sanction is that of the market.
This type of competition encourages press organizations to try to outdo one another they are rivals, after all to be the first to show what the public will buy and thus increase their audience. The competition is fierce. The media amplify the facts as far as required, adding fuel to the flames in order to increase sales.
The people who run the media in all countries, of all religious persuasions (if they have any), and all opinions, are often members of political parties, and they are very powerful. Journalists who are holding jobs (and often well-paid), want to retain their positions, so they never question or blame their bosses. These directors prefer to keep a low profile (maybe they are shy?) and remain behind the scenes, unknown to the public. Yet they are much more powerful than those in front of the camera. For deontological purposes, they (and the journalists) claim, they will not denounce their colleagues in distant countries. What hypocrites! Do they think that the violent images they broadcast, which disturb and incite the young, who later grow up to become adults, are good for peoples state of mind? It is well known that SERIAL KILLERS, when questioned, admit that they have been influenced by horror films or violence on television inciting hatred, especially when they were young or when they are weak of mind.
That is why young people in those countries prefer to let off steam by street violence rather than in gymnasiums. They want to be 'heros' like in the pictures. Old Arafat is not much more (or less) responsible for this situation, which has not improved for decades, than Big Sharon. Whatever the ideological or religious agendas of the directors of TV stations, newspapers, or radios, the same law applies everywhere, in other countries in the region and worldwide. That is the law of profit, as the left-wing revolutionaries say, to live and to work. It is important to understand that they do not always have a choice. If the written and audiovisual press do not speak out about what interests the crowds, they lose market share, sales decrease, and bankruptcy may follow. The media focus our attention on the subjects of their choice, and the crowd follows. And the result, without my being pedantic, is the same thing that happens in electronics with components called transistors. A weak or very weak input signal becomes a strong or very strong output signal. Transistors amplify everything, as do the media without understanding or wanting to break free of the system they are drawn into.
Politicians are not aware of this. The law of the market is the same for information as it is for the sale of any other commodity. The consumer must buy here, rather than at a competing TV station, newspaper, or radio station. The press that talks the most about a gory news items will have the largest audience and therefore the biggest profits. This is what we call a VISCIOUS CIRCLE, but it is never discussed. The media show violence because they need to stand out from the competition or else lose market share (and therefore money). This leads to more incitement to violence and concerns for consumers. Because we are media consumers, arent we? Too bad for the rest of the ransacked economy in those countries, as long as the media bosses mentioned above turn a profit.
Instead of remaining silent through stupidity, laziness, or greed, we need intelligent politicians who think about how to break out of this vicious circle. All it takes is for one Palestinian to stick out his tongue at an Israeli (or vice-versa), and everyone wants all the details about this tense situation: the length of the tongue, how high the sun was when it occurred, the direction of the wind, and who knows what else. I am barely exaggerating. The news agency that gives the best coverage will have the best sales.
Because of this permanent tension they live in and have known all their lives, along with incitement to hatred, sometimes by their religion" and unpunished religious leaders, and the press, it is hardly surprising that young people are very aggressive with one another and the outside world, in a permanent state of warfare.
As long as no one makes the effort to perceive and discuss this situation (the role of the press) during negotiations, the efforts of international political leaders to help solve the conflict and calm things down (for starters) will be ridiculous failures, appalling evidence of their incompetence, making public opinion consider them to be fools.
PS: I hope I am not too politically incorrect and not to be associated with. I do not wish to harm anyone, but to contribute to a debate.
You can read those posts (I hope) :
http://www.usmessageboard.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3664
http://www.usmessageboard.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=43117#post43117
Best regards
There is a very discreet power that is never mentioned, however, because those that could talk about it and have the power to do so do not want to, because it is that of information and the media. One could call this real censorship. The media educate and condition adults just as teachers and professors educated us, their pupils, in schools and universities. The difference is that teachers had requirements and quality obligations for training and teaching, that one could call "job requirements", laid down by the government education authorities.
Media directors in free nations are subject to no such quality commitments. They are free to make or break people as they see fit. They are accountable to no one, and their only possible sanction is that of the market.
This type of competition encourages press organizations to try to outdo one another they are rivals, after all to be the first to show what the public will buy and thus increase their audience. The competition is fierce. The media amplify the facts as far as required, adding fuel to the flames in order to increase sales.
The people who run the media in all countries, of all religious persuasions (if they have any), and all opinions, are often members of political parties, and they are very powerful. Journalists who are holding jobs (and often well-paid), want to retain their positions, so they never question or blame their bosses. These directors prefer to keep a low profile (maybe they are shy?) and remain behind the scenes, unknown to the public. Yet they are much more powerful than those in front of the camera. For deontological purposes, they (and the journalists) claim, they will not denounce their colleagues in distant countries. What hypocrites! Do they think that the violent images they broadcast, which disturb and incite the young, who later grow up to become adults, are good for peoples state of mind? It is well known that SERIAL KILLERS, when questioned, admit that they have been influenced by horror films or violence on television inciting hatred, especially when they were young or when they are weak of mind.
That is why young people in those countries prefer to let off steam by street violence rather than in gymnasiums. They want to be 'heros' like in the pictures. Old Arafat is not much more (or less) responsible for this situation, which has not improved for decades, than Big Sharon. Whatever the ideological or religious agendas of the directors of TV stations, newspapers, or radios, the same law applies everywhere, in other countries in the region and worldwide. That is the law of profit, as the left-wing revolutionaries say, to live and to work. It is important to understand that they do not always have a choice. If the written and audiovisual press do not speak out about what interests the crowds, they lose market share, sales decrease, and bankruptcy may follow. The media focus our attention on the subjects of their choice, and the crowd follows. And the result, without my being pedantic, is the same thing that happens in electronics with components called transistors. A weak or very weak input signal becomes a strong or very strong output signal. Transistors amplify everything, as do the media without understanding or wanting to break free of the system they are drawn into.
Politicians are not aware of this. The law of the market is the same for information as it is for the sale of any other commodity. The consumer must buy here, rather than at a competing TV station, newspaper, or radio station. The press that talks the most about a gory news items will have the largest audience and therefore the biggest profits. This is what we call a VISCIOUS CIRCLE, but it is never discussed. The media show violence because they need to stand out from the competition or else lose market share (and therefore money). This leads to more incitement to violence and concerns for consumers. Because we are media consumers, arent we? Too bad for the rest of the ransacked economy in those countries, as long as the media bosses mentioned above turn a profit.
Instead of remaining silent through stupidity, laziness, or greed, we need intelligent politicians who think about how to break out of this vicious circle. All it takes is for one Palestinian to stick out his tongue at an Israeli (or vice-versa), and everyone wants all the details about this tense situation: the length of the tongue, how high the sun was when it occurred, the direction of the wind, and who knows what else. I am barely exaggerating. The news agency that gives the best coverage will have the best sales.
Because of this permanent tension they live in and have known all their lives, along with incitement to hatred, sometimes by their religion" and unpunished religious leaders, and the press, it is hardly surprising that young people are very aggressive with one another and the outside world, in a permanent state of warfare.
As long as no one makes the effort to perceive and discuss this situation (the role of the press) during negotiations, the efforts of international political leaders to help solve the conflict and calm things down (for starters) will be ridiculous failures, appalling evidence of their incompetence, making public opinion consider them to be fools.
PS: I hope I am not too politically incorrect and not to be associated with. I do not wish to harm anyone, but to contribute to a debate.
You can read those posts (I hope) :
http://www.usmessageboard.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3664
http://www.usmessageboard.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=43117#post43117
Best regards
