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Propaganda Blitz - A New Media Lens Book And An Urgent Appeal For Support
Editorial - 19 September 2018
When we started Media Lens in 2001, our guiding aspiration was that independent, web-based activism would have a profoundly positive impact on public discourse.
Hard to believe now, but we nurtured hopes that the greater honesty and compassion of thousands of non-corporate media activists would force traditional media to improve. 'Mainstream' outlets that continued to sell elite bias as objective Truth would be relentlessly exposed, become a laughing stock - they would simply have to raise their game. We even had a notion that decent, or half-decent, people working within corporate media might secretly welcome these pressures and quietly embrace change out of enlightened self-interest. Why? Because corporate executives love their children, too. As was very obvious then, and is even more obvious now, the prioritising of profit over people and planet must be reversed.
But, of course, human beings and human societies are not that reasonable and rational. It was never going to be that easy.
What has actually happened is that, as non-corporate media have increasingly exposed the limits and failings of corporate media, the latter have adopted a bunker mentality, shutting out inconvenient truths, shutting out dissent, shutting down communication with critics. When we started sending media alerts, BBC and Guardian journalists regularly responded with quite rational, reasonable responses. Now, we mostly receive stony silence, or abusive sneers.... See more
About Media Lens
Since 2001, Media Lens have been describing how mainstream newspapers and broadcasters operate as a propaganda system for the elite interests that dominate modern society. The costs of their disinformation in terms of human and animal suffering, and environmental breakdown, are incalculable. Media Lens show how news and commentary are ‘filtered’ by the media’s profit-orientation, by its dependence on advertisers, parent companies, wealthy owners and official news sources..
Media Lens check the media’s version of events against credible facts and opinion provided by journalists, academics and specialist researchers and then publish both versions, together with commentary, in free Media Alerts and invite readers to deliver their verdict both to themselves and to mainstream journalists through the email addresses provided in ’Suggested Action’ at the end of each alert. They urge correspondents to adopt a polite, rational and respectful tone at all times – strongly opposing all abuse and personal attack. Media Lens also publish Cogitations, exploring related personal and philosophical themes.
In 2007, Media Lens was awarded the Gandhi Foundation International Peace Prize.
