One outstanding part of the Chomsky documentary was what he called the "controlled experiment" in media manipulation, which occurred in the 1970s. Simultaneously, there were two equally brutal genocides occurring in Southeast Asia. One was orchestrated by Communists. The other, Indonesia's genocide in East Timor, was orchestrated by capitalists. It was funded and armed by the U.S., for the benefit of Freeport McMoran. As the killing reached its peak in the late 1970s, and the Indonesians were running out of ammo because they were killing so many people, Jimmy Carter authorized an increase in the already significant arms sales to Indonesia.
What was the media coverage of these two events? Pol Pot, of course, became a much publicized ogre in the American mass media, whereas the Indonesian genocide was almost completely unreported. It is no mystery why the average American thinks people around the world who hate us are motivated simply by jealousy. That is the notion we are spoon-fed by the media.
Tom |
