It was my first day of graduate school in the Ateneo and I honestly did not know what to expect. To my surprise, my COM 257 class started off as normal as any class would have been. Introductions were made and a short discussion of the course objectives and requirements were given. Only being a total of eight students in the class, it took us less than thirty minutes to complete our brief monologue’s describing ourselves and the reasons why we decided to take up comm. In order to make use of the remaining hour and a half left that we had; we were to view the documentary entitled Manufacturing Consent, directed by Mark Achbar and Peter Wintonick.
The documentary Manufacturing Consent is about the communication theories of the intellectual, Noam Chomsky. The documentary focuses on one of the most well known concepts Professor Chomsky is know for – the propaganda model. He explains in the documentary that government and private corporations use media to control society. Professor Chomsky used various examples -such as the invasion of East Timor and the war in Vietnam- to explain in the film that the media filters the information they release to the public. He rationalizes that the reason why media filters information is for the economic profit of corporations and for political gain of the government. Chomsky justifies that by manipulating people to think and act a certain way, both government and the private sectors get to fulfill their own selfish interests.
After watching the documentary I must confess that I do find some of professor Chomsky’s concepts rather radical and sometimes a little biased. Radical in the sense that he blames media for filtering and sensationalizing all information they release to the public. While watching the film I could not help but imagine a room of producers and writers secretly brain storming and strategizing ways on how to manipulate society in order for them to achieve their mission. The picture professor Chomsky left in my head was that the media –which is made up of the government and corporations- is a top-secret organization that operates much like the CIA and FBI.
Asides from being radical, I also felt like professor Chomsky –at some portions of the documentary- was being a little biased and for the lack of a better term, hard headed. Although I do believe that the media may filter and sensationalize most of the information they let out to the public, I do also believe that not everything is modified by them. I think that at the end of the day people will believe what they want to believe and think in a way that makes them distinctly who they are. Media may give them selected information but when it comes down to it, it is up to every individual to decide what he or she thinks regarding a certain matter.
Manufacturing Consent was definitely an enlightening documentary. It presented professor Chomsky and his theories in an understandable and coherent way. I also appreciated the cinematography of the film. It represented and delivered the message and content of the documentary in a quirky yet understandable way.
I suppose we can never really know for sure if media can be trusted. What’s best is that we stay vigilant and concerned about the issues that affect our society at large. Being misinformed is unintentional, but being ignorant is a choice. Lets all choose to stay correctly up-to-date.
But I think media should just relay everything to the people without all the hype and sensationalism. Report everything as it is. In the first place, it is the media's duty to inform the people without partialities. Then, just like what you said, leave it to the people on what they make out of it. But of course, we know that's just the ideal media and it is far from being one. In this event, the internet has become an important tool. People are just a few clicks away from having all the information they can get.
TumugonBurahin"Media may give them selected information but when it comes down to it, it is up to every individual to decide what he or she thinks regarding a certain matter." I find this statement both true but conflicting at the same time. I agree with you that we are ultimately responsible for what we choose to believe and take in. However, how does one get a complete picture to base this choice on if we cannot rely on the media to present a balanced picture? Stories will always have an angle. Columnists gain a following for taking a stand on issues, but I think that it is also their responsibility to present all sides of the issue as well before picking a side, just as it is our responsibility to challenge what we read, hear, and see everyday until we feel comfortable taking it as our stand too.
TumugonBurahinI agree on the radical part. There are parts in the documentary where Chomsky leaves a picture of overpaid news men who lack balanced editorial judgment and operate on the basis of "who owns them."
TumugonBurahinSure, media organizations are owned by businessmen with personal interests. So are some educational institutions. But why is no one questioning that?
I agree with Sheila and Serena. Media has to be more responsible. However, reporting the 5W's and 1H is a thing of the past now. Viewers have become more critical, intelligent, and independent.
Picking up from Icy's last statement, and based on what we already discussed in class, viewers are indeed more critical and even EMPOWERED not only as consumers of content, but as producers as well.
TumugonBurahinI'm afraid I may be at fault for 'demonizing' the media industry a bit after showing you that documentary. Not a very subtle way of starting a media issues class, I guess. But like I said, the documentary only presents ONE perspective. Let's be clear on that.
And remember this: the problems and issues are definitely real. And, as graduate students, it is our responsibility and duty to remain critical. Like what Sam said in this article, it is ultimately our choice if we want to remain ignorant and indifferent with the issues surrounding the media today.
First of all, let me just say that I really like the picture you included in this post. I think it looks cool :D
TumugonBurahinThis is what I would like to highlight from your post:
"I think that at the end of the day people will believe what they want to believe and think in a way that makes them distinctly who they are. Media may give them selected information but when it comes down to it, it is up to every individual to decide what he or she thinks regarding a certain matter."
I totally agree with this. Much of what we know about the world (events and history, news, popular culture, etc.) come from what we incorporate from media, sure, but the way in which we understand this knowledge, the perspectives upon which we hold our views, vary greatly as a result of our own historicities and backgrounds, our contexts as persons, and how we make out all of these information and apply it in our lives.
Fr. Edward…
TumugonBurahinThe last comments of Sam about the documentary film is commented by Noam Chomsky is interesting to me. The consequences of manipulation of news and information for economic and political interests, it is not impossible is a process of duping the public. What is wrong could be right, and what is right can be wrong. It is very clear to me, this is a remarkable power of the mass media.
However I would like to add one element of the mass media which can be used as a medium of education. I expect that the educational process would be forming a critical capability of the public against the media. I am sure that when people have started to use media critically, so they are able to read reality and the motivation is behind of the news and information. And this is our responsibility as communicators today.