Noam Chomsky- American linguist, philosopher and political activist.  A Laureate Professor of Linguistics at the University of Arizona and an Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and is the author of more than 150 books on topics such as linguistics, war, politics, and mass media. Chomsky’s political values have changed since his childhood when he was influenced by the emphasis on political activism that was ingrained in Jewish working-class tradition. He thinks best meet human needs: liberty, community, and freedom of association.  “the father of modern linguistics”

Five filters of media:

Ownership– e.g if there are only a few companies

Part of bigger conglomerates with an end game of profit. Push for what gets them that profit that’s their interest. Chomsky is saying ‘the media is manufacturing consent look at the way it is organised’. ‘Critical journalism takes second place to the needs and interests of the corporation.’- Animation by Al Jazeera, Noam Chomsky- The Five Filters of the Mass Media Machine

Advertising

Not selling you products, they are selling advertisers a product. Advertisers are paying for audiences. Audience becomes the product.

Links with establishment (official sources) e.g. friends with the higher ups. Anyone that has power

Being friends with higher ups helps to promote your career. Risk of losing job if not.

Flack (strong criticism) – persuaded to think about something else

When the story doesn’t work in their favour they undermine and discredit journalists/media to manipulate audiences into believing them.

Uniting against a ‘common enemy’

To manufacture consent, you need an enemy — a target. That common enemy is the fifth filter. Communism. Terrorists. Immigrants. An enemy of an enemy

1.Structures of ownership

2.The role of advertising

3.Links with ‘The Establishment’

4.Diversionary tactics – ‘flack’

5.Uniting against a ‘common enemy’

AGENDA SETTING

FRAMING

MYTH MAKING

CONDITIONS OF CONSUMPTION

PUBLIC SPHERE AS REFINED BY CURRAN AND GARNHAM

<<< habermass curran and garnham

chompsky and his theory of The five filters –

(1) ownership; – large big companies who are conglomerates which their aim is to make profit as hesmond haughl say and describes the situation as a (risky Business) – the critical media is second to the larger companies who aims for profit where as the critical medias interests and needs are second place – the mass media machine by Al Jazeera

(2) advertising; – the financial role of the media is the main cause of the down fall for newspapers as the advertisements give the companies money the companies are selling us as the consumer to those companies

(3) official sources; – the media of critical thinking is the main things that will kill you or put a target on your back if your not good enough you wont be getting in

(4) flak; – the discredit of information and shifting of agenda and the diverting information

(5) marginalizing dissent – the common enemy sharing a common enemy to increase your standing with companies in order to become larger and stronger and financially better off

The author discusses the applicability of Herman’s and Chomsky’s propaganda model today. He demonstrates the validity of the propaganda model by concentrating on the bombing of Serbia in 1999.

AGENDA SETTING – when the media determines the agenda for which stories are considered important. Policy agenda setting: when both the public and media agendas influence the decisions of public policy makers

FRAMING – The process by which the media places the events and topics they report in a certain perspective or in certain ‘frames’. Through this process events are given a field of meaning within which they can be better understood

MYTH MAKING – How words and images are systematically used to communicate cultural and political meanings, in texts such as advertisements, magazines, films, or TV programs.

CONDITIONS OF CONSUMPTION – activities such as interacting with new media, reading books and magazines, watching television and film, and listening to radio. An active media consumer must have the capacity for skepticism, judgement, free thinking, questioning, and understanding.

‘Habermas argues that the development of early modern capitalism brought into being an autonomous arena of public debate.’

Where and how news is discussed about in the public

Public sphere- an area in social life where individuals come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems and through that discussion influence political action.

• the mass media has resulted in reduction of plurality (fewer voices discussing the news)
• public sphere is strengthened by new media as there is more opportunity for communication but weakens it as the quality of discussion is less and there is an impact of anonymity
• twitter is used for public debate
• people can discuss what they read on the newspaper with colleagues

 The private sphere– is the realm of family life

The watch dog- overseeing the state by revealing abuses in the exercise of state authority

• Curran and Seaton– their book helps us understand the relationship between who owns the mass media and their output
• relationship between media conglomerates and politicians
• media industries are dominated by a small number of giant conglomerates
• media industries are about profit and power
• concentrated ownership results in lack of choice
• independent diverse ownership results in more choice, creativity and diversity of products

• Livingstone and Lunt– think the needs of a citizen are in conflict with the needs of the consumer, because protection can limit freedom
• regualation of media products is hard because rules are often hard to decide
• rules include protecting the audience from harm
• regulators have to try and balance protecting people by offering them with choice
• technology has made it hard for media products to be regulated

So how does this process of ‘manipulation’ or ‘persuasion’ work?

1.Structures of ownership

• maybe there is only a certain amount of companies, pursuit of profit, media ownership. mass media corporations are big corporations. Their end game? Profit. And so it’s in their interests to push for whatever guarantees that profit. Naturally, critical journalism must take second place to the needs and interests of the corporation.

2.The role of advertising

• Media costs a lot more than consumers will ever pay. So who fills the gap? Advertisers. And what are the advertisers paying for? Audiences. And so it isn’t so much that the media are selling you a product — their output. They are also selling advertisers a product — YOU.

3.Links with ‘The Establishment’

• Journalism cannot be a check on power because the very system encourages complicity. Governments, corporations, big institutions know how to play the media game. They know how to influence the news narrative. They feed media scoops, official accounts, interviews with the ‘experts’. They make themselves crucial to the process of journalism. So, those in power and those who report on them are in bed with each other.

4.Diversionary tactics – ‘flack’

• diversion tactics, diverting people attention., trashing story’s, nonsense and undermining. hen the story is inconvenient for the powers that be, you’ll see the flak machine in action discrediting sources, trashing stories and diverting the conversation.

5.Uniting against a ‘common enemy’

To manufacture consent, you need an enemy — a target. That common enemy is the fifth filter. Communism. Terrorists. Immigrants. A common enemy, a bogeyman to fear, helps corral public opinion.

Noam Chomsky

Presents his thoughts on how the mass media works against democracy’s best interests. The corporations and investors controlling the outlets where most people get their news, he argues, selectively choose what to cover for reasons having to do with personal agendas and retaining power, rather than what’s best for readers and viewers. After discussing examples, Chomsky gives suggestions on how to be a well-informed citizen.

media setting an agenda

AGENDA SETTING

FRAMING

MYTH MAKING

CONDITIONS OF CONSUMPTION

globalisation

business over humans

patriotism

racial superiority

militarism

the fusion of entertainment and news/information

Left wing –  advocates greater social and economic equality

Right wing – certain social orders

globalisation
Business over humans
Patriotism
Racial superiority
Militarism (use of military)
the fusion of entertainment and news / information
militarism
patriotic
classism
protectionism
neoliberalism

economic globalisation

superiority

– Racism
– Racial superiority
– Class over nationality
– The use of military
– Economic globalisation
– Rich too highly taxed
– Classroom attendance compulsory
– Religion

Key word / theme / question etc	Daily Mail	The i
Views on Conservative party	p18 is the ‘Comment’ ie the editorial or voice of the paper ‘Only Starmer gains from this clueless plot’ – ie Labour will gain from Conservative divisions over Boris Johnson	Front cover ‘Johnson future turning toxic for Tories’ seems to be against Conservative / Boris Johnson
Business over humans
globalisation
Patriotism	Front page ‘Joyous Jubilee’ – supporting Royal Family	Front page ‘The new Firm’ slightly critical of Royal Family
Racial superiority
Nationalism	page 10 ‘how the nation came together’ suggest national harmony – we are all together. page 18- Britain’s outcomes compare well with the rest of the developed world
class differentiation	page 14 the prince of wales unites the UK
Militarism (use of military)	page 25- first Russian missiles in months rain down on capital as British-Ukrainian fighters face death penalty in Donetsk
Authoritarian / Libertarian	Still uses an Editorial ie the voice of one over many?	Does not have voice of editor, but an ‘Opinion Matrix’ instead ie a range of different voices and opinion – so much more freedom and plurality (=many) in voice and thought?
the fusion of entertainment and news / information	page 23- prince louis sticks his tongue out to his mother, patriotic