(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Why Corporate Owned Media Tends to Promote Republican Fascism by Remaining "Neutral" [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-24 Network the Movie was pretty close to showcasing the misdirected anger pitch we see today being made to the MAGA crowd, almost 45 years before they were formed. The line "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" was already part of many stations appeal and that could easily serve as the line Trump is feeding to his followers today. Misdirecting anger is a divisive but popular "art" when practiced by politicians and outlets like Fox. Understanding the self-interests and role of the corporate owned news media can be baffling, especially today. It is often guilty of normalizing the fascists among us by posturing that they are remaining “neutral” and “non-judgmental.” Although this is, of course, not entirely true. While Republican hate politics are rarely if ever exposed or criticized, the same cannot be said for Democratic Party coverage. Chief among the reasons for the corporate owned media’s right-wing leanings is the perspective/belief that democracy is only preferable for them if it actually remains under control of the corporate classes. The Consequences of Polarization Red baiting is also a problem for the Democrats. The dangerous and extreme polarization of American politics has already forced one party’s hand and delivered them to the fascist side of the political equation. The other side is fearful of having the Democrats fall similarly to the left/progressive side of the political equation. That has not yet happened, of course, but is always a fear of the upper classes and the Democratic leadership. And one of the reasons many in the corporate media, if given a choice, prefer the fascists. And why the Democratic leadership, also 100% loyal to capitalist interests, always cave when red baited by the Republicans and respond with their own disavowals of being on the political left and openly red bait many of their own supporters. Media Silence as Democracy Dies The Media Motto Today The news departments are no doubt under some form of unwritten ownership censorship never to label a fascist a fascist. Or a racist a racist if it’s a Republican politician. They seem to be saying, or at least are willing to give us the impression, that any such accusations are just part of “normal” two-party bantering, name calling or race baiting. The national news media are mainly silent as one party actively seeks to undermine our democratic institutions, legal system, the right to vote and encourages racial violence and armed attacks against its opponents. This form of deep denial is how the media normalizes fascistic behavior, whether they are consciously seeking to do so or not. Corporate and Republican Viewpoint Dominate Others may have open sympathies with totalitarian rule. Sharps splits surely exist in the national media, but they are rarely allowed to be discussed openly so as to educate the public as to the imminent dangers or true goals of today’s Republicans. As a privately owned industry, news media in the past was heavily subsidized and often ran at a loss and looked as more of a public service. It has evolved over time and many years to be run frequently for profit, which can often have bizarre and destructive consequences. Why Trump is 24/7 on the News TFG in reaction. Either way, the media has its own biases and perceived interests in covering or not covering critical issues and differing points of view. Since today they are much more interested in making a profit, splattering a monstrosity like Trump across its front pages make those profits soar along with presenting news that is not disturbing or too leftish, at least to them. I’m not sure of the exact ratios, but I certain that Trump, for example, gets a lot more publicity that Biden. For Trump, no publicity is bad, and much of it is worse than bad. Even in places like our Daily KOS, Trump is the number one searched for individual/topic. While fascist behavioral is reported on 24/7, it is rarely called by that name in the news media, and instead it’s made to seem like normal and reasonable political blathering. I recall Biden once trying to put the fascist label of the Republicans and was taken to task by much of the media for doing so, showing once again towards which side they lean. A typical media commentary on Biden’s remarks. Crime Coverage, Racism and Fascism The real reasons for runway crime rates in some poor black communities is never discussed in the media. Whether deliberately Republican friendly or not, both local and national news have, over the years, absorbed components which were once or are currently Republican talking points. One of the best examples of this is racially slanted crime coverage. Most, if not all, stations in the country still present regular crime news and programming as part of their coverage. Pandering to white fear of black crime is a profitable function for these outlets. The real historic causes for so much youth crime in destabilized poor black communities, such as generational poverty, runaway unemployment and family disintegration are rarely if ever discussed. Yet another motivation for the national media’s overlooking what the Republican Party is really up to, is losing advertising income. Alienating MAGA mentalities cost advertising dollars! Calling Trump a liar, for example, on the 2020 election could prove expensive and incur the wrath of the Republican Party as well as the MAGA mob. Safer to stay quiet and pretend to be neutral. It’s the corporate way. Profit is always in command. The Destruction of Truth An example of dangerous political lunacy. One of the more ominous “successes” of the Trump/MAGA fascist movement is the destruction of truth in public discourse. Never known as having a politically savvy electorate, the U.S. population has long been fed a largely fictional and racist dose of American and world history and many have proved unprepared and unable to see through the thousands of lies and distortions of reality that emanate today from the Trumpers and most allegedly mainstream Republican sources and “news” outlets. Or believe what Democrats and more rational news and political sources have to say about the same things. Decline of the Internet Once 25 years ago it was believed to be the best thing since sliced bread and toilet paper, the internet today is weighted down and contaminated by advertising, commercialism, and well financed right wing penetration. It has added to the fascist goal of strangling truth, both in news and politics and in the proliferation of wild conspiracy theories and causing public anxiety and division. The time has come to take a new look at freedom of speech in an age in which mass media and the internet are dominated by profit driven corporate interests, mega-lies and well-financed political and social forces hostile to science, justice and truth. A Few Words on the Fox/Dominion Settlement Poll Rather than express my own opinion and try to influence the poll below, I’ll leave it you, the reader, to express how you feel. If you don’t think the choices are close enough to your own views, leave a comment if you are so inclined. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/24/2164628/-Why-Corporate-Owned-Media-Tends-to-Promote-Republican-Fascism-by-Remaining-Neutral Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/