Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media
$25
Renowned scholars Noam Chomsky and Edward S. Herman reveal how U.S. news media, far from being independent watchdogs, often function as tools of elite influence. With probing analysis, they present their Propaganda Model, a framework that explains how systemic bias shapes the stories we’re told, the voices we hear, and the truths that remain hidden.
Through deeply researched case studies, from the Vietnam War to coverage of “worthy” vs. “unworthy” victims, Manufacturing Consent exposes the structural forces that drive news organizations to reinforce power rather than question it. It’s a sobering portrait of a media system more interested in maintaining order than informing the public.
This edition includes an introduction that updates key examples and expands the Propaganda Model’s relevance to issues such as coverage of NAFTA, the media’s treatment of global protests, and environmental regulation.
Manufacturing Consent is a powerful assessment of how propagandistic the U.S. mass media are, how they systematically fail to live up to their self-image as providers of the information that people need to make sense of the world, and how we can understand their function in a radically new way.
Whether you’re a student, activist, or citizen looking to see beyond the headlines, this book will transform how you understand the media—and the world around you.
Authors
Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky, by any measure, has led a most extraordinary life. In one index, he is ranked as the eighth most cited person in history, right up there with Aristotle, Shakespeare, Marx, Plato, and Freud. His contributions to modern linguistics are legendary. In addition to his pioneering work in that field, he has been a leading voice for peace and social justice for many decades. Chris Hedges says he is “America’s greatest intellectual” who “makes the powerful, as well as their liberal apologists, deeply uncomfortable.” The New Statesman calls him “the conscience of the American people.” He is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at MIT and Laureate Professor of Linguistics and Haury Chair in the Program in Environment and Social Justice at the University of Arizona. At 97, though having health setbacks, he continues to inform and inspire people all over the world. He is the author of scores of books, including Masters of Mankind, Consequences of Capitalism, Chronicles of Dissent, and Notes on Resistance. He is co-author with Edward Herman of Manufacturing Consent. His latest books are The Myth of American Idealism: How U.S. Foreign Policy Endangers the World and Surviving the 21st Century.
Edward Herman
Edward Herman was an economist who taught at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He was also highly skilled at exposing media lies, fabrications and propaganda. He is the author of many books, including Beyond Hypocrisy, The Real Terror Network, The Politics of Genocide and The Myth of the Liberal Media. He is author with Noam Chomsky of Manufacturing Consent, one of the most influential books on the media ever written. He passed away in November 2017 at the age of 92.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.