The media in the United States. Do they control us?

the media, like any other business, has one objective and one objective only. to make money. therefore they will tell you whatever they think you want to hear to make sure you're eyes are glued to the tv set, radio, newspaper, magazine etc. or what have you , so they can sell commercials and demand as much as possible for them..

every notice for instance why most often the first story which leads in a news broadcast involves some really bloody grusome incident? this is because the media knows that you will spend more time watching a story about some pscyho chopping a person's head off than to hear a story about how 1000 people died today in zimbabwe because of starvation and malnutrition. there is a saying in the media business. 'if it bleads, it leads'.

so basically what i am trying to say is, you have to look at the facts and do your own thinking. people can force you to love, buy or care about something only if you let them.

I just don't understand the things they pick for the massive coverage. I think the story of the amish girls being hog-tied and shot in the back of the head is a bigger story than a pervert congressman who sent a "love" letter to a page... (who BTW was 18 at the time)(so it's concentual)

They pick stupid stories and try to make them political instead of focusing on the big picture.

Who cares that some anorexic Hollywood whore is puking behind Mann's Chinese Theater after a night of Crystall and cocaine. Why don't they concentrate on people who make a real difference in the world... like the doctor that finds a cure for something. The chemist who makes a drug that helps people. The cop, the firefighter, the schoolteacher, the soldier, even the damn truck driver.... the real heros of the world, not the over paid starlets in LA.

Well, obviously the media doesn't control you, but I definitely think that they control most of America. Americans are (for the most part) too lazy to think for themselves, so then the media comes in and tells them exactly what they should think, voila, automatic thought processes: I should hate Iraqis, love America, love Bush, drink Coke and look like a supermodel. Even songs tell (at least women) that our bodies are our greatest ASSet and we should use them to get ahead in life. I think the media is the main control in the lives of the average American.

The media expresses the cultural capital of the ruling hegemony. it does not tell us what to believe, but instead sets to create the environments with which to influence change.

It is bias

it serves the fears and wants of the ruling class.

you are not alone.

but you are outnumbered. the media is the voice of the god known as TV. There are two sides to every story, sometimes more, but the media is only one side. even when it seems to condemn the nation it represents, this is essential to enslave those who are foolish enough not to see the slanted one-sided nature of political media.

Stay open minded enough to understand that there is more to see than what they show.

You're absolutely right. Because of your controlling media, the whole world thinks that Serbs are terrorists, and that all Russians are spies etc... They are trying to convince you that you are the best and the most right nation, which is sooo not true. If you'd see it from my angle, you would totally get it. I mean, the whole world thinks about Americans that they are stupid and fat, and that is all your media fault, they made you look that way.

No, you are not alone in feeling this way. So many millions of people watch TV, and TV is definitely controlled. What they can report, what they can show. Welcome to 1984.

Make up your own mind about things, and look to other sources for information. The Internet is the most robust source of information, even though some of it is erroneous too. Just use your common sense.

I totally agree, that is why I don't put up with it. I don't watch the news or read it. If I want to find out about something I research it, not get some halfass story. The sad thing is that people are so easily brainwashed.

Finally! Someone who gets it! No, if you are an independent thinker, they can not control you. As for the lemurs? (Those that can not think for them selves.) I fear that they are lost! Look out below! They will fall off of the cliff into the waters of the political cesspool. You are my brother/sister in the media wars. Fight the good fight, tell every one you see following along to open their eyes! Thank you for asking your question.

Depends how naive and sceptical the reader is I suppose; some media are not as balanced as they should be, meaning that the owner and/or editor have some vested ideological interests, and the reader has to be carefull when reading/analysing.

Controls us? No. Influences us? Definitely. Being aware of the power of the media is the first step towards shedding its influence. Feel the power, dude.