Understanding our World: The Media, Education and Censorship.

By Pam:

I read today about a blind, cave dwelling fish. Apparently, after two million years of living in dark caves, it has lost its ability to see, yet still is influenced by the rhythm of life in its genes. I pondered as to whether we – people, living in the dark under the shroud of propaganda will eventually lose the ability to read truth, or whether it is innately written within our genes, – our need to trust each other, to live within a society, a mutually beneficial existence ensuring our survival.

If not, then the plutocratic parasites controlling our planet, will ultimately self destruct taking the good of mankind with them.

I ponder also how the phrase “Big Brother” metamorphosed into the title of a TV programme, watched by millions ensuring that whole hoardes of people, possible a whole generation, now transfixed by this new “opiate of the masses” are thus prevented from being confronted with the real, painful truth that their lives have become, a source of financial profit for the few.

Those words written by George Orwell Nineteen Eighty Four , (published in 1949) of course led to the title, of a worldwide reality television show Big Brother is based on the novel’s concept of people being under constant surveillance. One cannot help but reflect on the irony.

“The thought police would get him just the same. He had committed–would have committed, even if he had never set pen to paper–the essential crime that contained all others in itself. Thoughtcrime, they called it. Thoughtcrime was not a thing that could be concealed forever. You might dodge successfully for a while, even for years, but sooner or later they were bound to get you.” - George Orwell, 1984, Book 1, Chapter 1

From such an early age, we begin to develop an understanding of our world. A baby’s eyes , once in focus will furtively glance around a room, until finds its mother’s eyes, full of hope, of curiosity, and then pursue an evolutionary prioritised path fuelled by a need to learn, to share, and to create.

There is no doubt that my first understanding of politics was gleaned from the stories our family told of conditions of the coal mines in South Wales, of stories of starving families in the General Strike of 1926, of a great grandmother demanding to be taken to polling stations on a stretcher. It was certainly not from the BBC. In fact current affairs programmes in the 50s and early 60s seemed to be all about The War. I was never hungry, I had shelter, I had health care. The post war socialist world led to opportunities for the working class and for women beyond any ancestor of mine. The Labour Party had made a difference, and the feeling of optimism of the 1960s prevailed.

Later, as an adult, and with my own eyes I saw policemen abusing little children at football matches, the BBC reported football violence, and of course cited some other instigators than The Police. I learned not to trust what I read, or what was reported on radio and TV, and like my ancestors, to have a deep mistrust of the Establishment which cared about self-perpetuation, and nothing for ordinary people.

Most of us learn our first ideas about the world from our parents, and then from our own experiences. As we grow, we learn to expand our sources of knowledge. We talk to our peers, listen to our teachers, read books, and newspapers, watch television and listen to the radio, and for today’s young people the Internet provides a potential source of information and a means of instant communication. It should be a means of education and free speech.

But all this is a means of misinformation, of propaganda, of lies and corruption. Who can we believe or trust? What is Censorship? How and why is it applied? Where is it? It is everywhere. It is a means to control, the tool of the mega-rich who control the planet, a plutocracy which is self perpetuating but only by the veiling of the truth from the many.

Using the propaganda model, Manufacturing Consent posits that corporate – owned news mass communication media — print, radio, television — are businesses subject to commercial competition for advertising revenue andprofit. As such, their distortion (editorial bias) of news reportage — i.e. what types of news, which items, and how they are reported — is a consequence of the profit motive that requires establishing a stable, profitable business; therefore, news businesses favoring profit over the public interest succeed, while those favoring reportorial accuracy over profits fail, and are relegated to the margins of their markets (low sales and ratings).

To protect children, then some censorship is necessary to some extent, but we are not all children. The information we are allowed to know is limited. Our perception of truth clouds our minds. This study from Harvard Business School demonstrates how Americans perceive wealth distribution.

Sources of Information and Truth – or Not Truth.

LIBRARIES

Libraries have historically been a source of information, of education. This source of information for the ordinary people should be brought forward to the 21^st Century, providing access to books and to on line information for all.

See: Think Left 21st Century Library Service

EDUCATION SYSTEM:

Our teachers in the past were a rich source of information and learning skills, are now being deprofessionalised and deskilled, just serving to allow institutions to reach arbitrary targets set by governments, and delivery of a script, a prewritten National Curriculum when the state decides what people should know, or not know. Is this today’s Thought Police?

See: Think Left What Price Failure

RELIGION AND THE CHURCH:

The words Karl Marx “opiate of the masses” echo as loud today than ever.

“Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness.”

— Karl Marx (Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right)

Whether Christian, Muslim, or Jew, those who pursue religions have no right to impose their beliefs on all citizens. For those that believe in the illusion of an imaginary force directing them, I sigh, but I accept in a democracy people have a right to their beliefs. I do not accept that they have the right to inflict on women of Northern Ireland removal of a human right to terminate a pregnancy. (Stephen Fry, Atheism) I am disturbed to hear fundamentalist religious groups attacking atheists for simply not sharing their view. This is propaganda, a precursor to fascism, to wars- those horrors religion always seem to lead to. Whatever, you feel or believe is up to you, but it is time for a separation of the Church and State. Christianity no longer represents the people of our country, these non elected people who seek to deprive women of their human rights.

THE WRONG SORT OF MPs .

Think Left’s study into how representative our Members of Parliament are clearly shows a disparity between the life’s experiences of those who represent the people of this country. How can people learn to trust ? We need to change the make up of the House of Commons so it is the voice of the people as it claims to be.

See: Think Left Becoming a Member of Parliament

Also: Think Left Women as MPs

THE BBC and BROADCASTING:

This week the House of Commons voted to begin the process which will result in privatisation of the National Health Service. The implications of the Bill may be missed by many, unsurprisingly as this was barely reported by the BBC, seemingly obsessed by the anniversary on 9/11, of ‘Free Schools”, of the 50p tax rate. We have hardly had a mention of the plans to asset-strip our NHS and the removal of the obligation by Secretary of State to provide health care for all, as was the intent when drafted. It hardly mentioned that the NHS will be a source of pickings for the rich, and no longer aims to provide the best quality health care. What an outcry will there be when everyone understands this. But by then it will be too late.

The BBC, a public organisation can hardly itself be regarded as representative of people or even an organisation pursuing equality of opportunity. Like MPs fore- mentioned, people presenting the News are unlikely, in the majority to understand the issues faced by the majority of people in this country.

See Think Left: Red Labour must address the elephant in the room

Also Think Left : Labour’s Finest

A Think Left investigation into the profiles of News presenters from BBC 24, Newsnight, Radio4 Today/News at Ten has unsurprising outcomes. Where information was known, it was discovered that there is inherent sexism. There is and under-representation of women, and where there are women the age profile contrasts sharply with that of men.

Almost exactly two thirds of newsreaders went to private, independent or public schools, hardly representative of the general public.

This pie-chart shows the tertiary education of newsreaders, exactly one third having had an Oxbridge education, much in line with MPs.

Perhaps ordinary people might have more confidence in the message from the BBC if its newsreaders were paid realistic salaries in line with the majority of other public sector workers. The Director General earns £838,000. Other directors as of March 2011 had salaries of £488,000, £517,000, £467,000 and £452,000.

The personnel employed by the BBC, can hardly be regarded as representative of the people. They are very similar in their range of backgrounds to the MPs, and the same criticisms can be levelled at the news presenters who interrogate the politicians, and issues of the day. For the most part, they can have little personal experience of the lives of a majority of the population, and consequently do not ask the questions or single out the issues which would be of significance for that majority. For example, why would privatisation of the NHS be a priority for a presenter who has always used private medicine? Why would tuition fees of 9K/y seem enormous to a privately educated interviewer when top public school fees are 29K?

It might be forgiven if they showed an understanding of ordinary people’s lives. That was certainly not the case here – this filmed during the riots, and since removed from the BBC website. These are things we are not supposed to know., deleted by the Thought Police. Darcus Howe , a West Indian Writer and Broadcaster with a voice about the riots. Here is speaking about the mistreatment of youths by police. This was filmed during the riots, and since removed from the BBC website. These are things we are not supposed to know. deleted by the Thought Police.

POLICE AND JUDICIARY:

The knee–jerk responses emphasise the injustice of those who have wealth and want to keep it – and the rest of us. The Huffington Post reports that riot sentences are longer than average according to data analysis:

“The average sentence handed down by judges in all courts for those offences was 13.6 months, compared to 11.6 months for all of 2010.

Earlier reports by The Guardian had claimed that the riot-related sentence were more than three times as high as the average.

However, the Ministry of Justice told The Huffington Post UK that the paper had compared sentences from crown courts to those from all courts in 2010.

The Guardian said that the average sentence for those offences was 4.1 months, more than three times the overall average. The MoJ pointed out the overall average was actually 11.6 months.

Since crown court cases are typically more serious, the difference appeared larger than it was in reality.

“It’s still higher, but not three times higher,” a spokesman for the Ministry of Justice told The Huffington Post UK.

The Guardian has since amended its story.”

See : Think Left Perils of Punitive Evictions.

PRESS and PRINT:

It was the media who got the better of the Labour Party in 1987 and in 1992, (Memories of 97 and beyond). The front page of the Sun made sure of that. In recent months, we have read about, listened to and watched reports of the corruption in The Murdoch Empire. The Law should not allow any individual ownership or editorial rights over more than one newspaper or periodical and ownership must be transparent.

The press sleaze currently filling our airwaves as a result News International criminal practices, exposes the extreme bias and manipulation by the Press. Labour has always struggled to get the people’s message across. Now there is an opportunity to hit back! Labour must finally undertake a reform of the media network.

See: Think Left Quality Life for Civilized Nation ( Secrecy and Tax Havens)

TRADE UNIONS:

The press painted a black picture of the Trade Unions during the 1980s, not surprisingly as it wanted sole influence. Their role in communication, in education is crucial, and must be heard against the deafening voice of the mainstream media. Education of workers through trade union initiatives and through the Workers’ Educational Association learning opportunities for the disadvantaged..

The INTERNET:

Like other media the Internet is a medium through which propaganda can flow. This film demonstrates that there is a culture of Israeli satirical UTube videos about the Gaza strip , and is very disturbing.

It is the greatest bluff of all.

We cannot believe all we read and see. But the Internet undoubtedly is very powerful.

Political blogging and U-Tube has been a challenge to the establishment who try to silence us. We must speak out. People are doing just that.

Here is one man’s view of the riots. This man has answers, and uses the medium of technology to make his message. The young people of today will speak, because they have nothing to lose. We have been here before. Give the money back to the people, to the environment from where it has come. Redistribute the wealth, the wealth made by the sweat of workers, let them have their earnings not the mega-rich.

SOCIAL NETWORKING:

Twitter was blamed for the riots, the people’s communication of today, will challenge the establishment. Meanwhile people’s tweets will be tracked and spied on, CAPTCHA codes used to monitor Face-book posts. They want to know who is doing what, where, when and why – because people are speaking out. They speak The Truth. If the plutocrats and Establishment seek to silence, it is because it is THEY who have something to lose.

HOW WE CAN TO LEARN TO TRUST AGAIN:

An incoming Labour government must never again let an opportunity pass to address the power and bias of the press and media, and should make the following a priority.

We must ensure we have a more representative Parliament which represents us.

Politicians should make politics relevant to the people and not indulge in Yah-Boo antics across the floor of The House of Commons which only those from public schools can understand.

We must ensure that the judiciary is fair, and seen to be so.

The BBC should not be an elitist organisation and should aim to inform, and present quality entertainment, education and current affairs programmes.

Labour should conduct an investigation and implement reform of the whole media network

No individual or company should be allowed ownership of more than one newspaper and they must be a resident British/EU citizen.

It should not be permitted to own both a newspaper and a TV/Radio company.

An inquiry into the role of the PCC (Press Complaints Commission) should be transparent and truly independent.

The Secrecy surrounding Tax Havens and Off shore Financial Centres must be lifted.

The outdated role of the Church of England in state matters must end.

Vindictive sentencing which is clearly politically motivated as seen recently must be overturned.