Skip to main content

Why is the World going to Hell?

by Jonathan Cook
 
Part 4 - A small window on reality
 
The Social Dilemma ignores all of this to focus on the dangers of so-called “fake news”. It dramatises a scene suggesting that only those sucked into information blackholes and conspiracy sites end up taking to the street to protest – and when they do, the film hints, it will not end well for them.

Apps allowing us to hail a taxi or navigate our way to a destination are undoubtedly useful tools. But being able to find out what our leaders are really doing – whether they are committing crimes against others or against us – is an even more useful tool. In fact, it is a vital one if we want to stop the kind of self-destructive behaviours The Social Dilemma is concerned about, not least our destruction of the planet’s life systems (an issue that, except for one interviewee’s final comment, the film leaves untouched).

Use of social media does not mean one necessarily loses touch with the real world. For a minority, social media has deepened their understanding of reality. For those tired of having the real world mediated for them by a bunch of billionaires and traditional media corporations, the chaotic social media platforms have provided an opportunity to gain insights into a reality that was obscured before.

The paradox, of course, is that these new social media corporations are no less billionaire-owned, no less power-hungry, no less manipulative than the old media corporations. The AI algorithms they are rapidly refining are being used – under the rubric of “fake news” – to drive out this new marketplace in whistleblowing, in citizen journalism, in dissident ideas.

Social media corporations are quickly getting better at distinguishing the baby from the bathwater, so they can throw out the baby. After all, like their forebears, the new media platforms are in the business of business, not of waking us up to the fact that they are embedded in a corporate world that has plundered the planet for profit.

Much of our current social polarisation and conflict is not, as The Social Dilemma suggests, between those influenced by social media’s “fake news” and those influenced by corporate media’s “real news”. It is between, on the one hand, those who have managed to find oases of critical thinking and transparency in the new media and, on the other, those trapped in the old media model or those who, unable to think critically after a lifetime of consuming corporate media, have been easily and profitably sucked into nihilistic, online conspiracies.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Trump's attempt to divide Russia & China is failing, badly

Geopolitical Economy Report   Donald Trump claimed he would "un-unite" Russia and China, but the US divide-and-conquer strategy is failing. In a meeting in Moscow celebrating the 80th anniversary of their nations' victory in World War Two, Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin reaffirmed that "China-Russia relations have reached the highest level in history" and will "jointly resist any attempts to interfere with and disrupt the traditional friendship and deep mutual trust between China and Russia". Ben Norton explains.     Related:   Why China supports Russia

Protesters Stalk & Confront Israeli Minister Through NY Streets!

The Jimmy Dore Show   Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who is also a convicted terrorist and Jewish supremacist, has been touring the US, speaking on college campuses and meeting with political groups, and he even traveled to Mar-a-Lago. His visit has been met with widespread protests, however. Ben Gvir was confronted by pro-Palestinian demonstrators in New Haven, Connecticut, following a speech he gave at Shabtai, a private Jewish society at Yale that’s not officially affiliated with the university. Jimmy Dore and Americans’ Comedian Kurt Metzger discuss how Ben-Gvir’s security detail was able to assault protesters with impunity — and that in fact police officers approach an assaulted protester to demand that he step away from Ben-Gvir’s group.

Το νέο ψευδοδίλημμα που κατασκεύασε το καθεστώς Μητσοτάκη για να κρατηθεί στην εξουσία

του system failure   Ένα από τα βασικά χαρακτηριστικά ενός καθεστώτος, είναι η έκδηλη αγωνία του να διατηρήσει την εξουσία. Ως απόρροια αυτής της προσπάθειας, είναι και ο σχεδόν απόλυτος έλεγχος της μαζικής (παρα)πληροφόρησης, δηλαδή, ότι ακριβώς κάνει το καθεστώς Μητσοτάκη.   Η αγωνία αυτή είναι φανερή και σε άλλους καθεστωτικούς μηχανισμούς, όπως οι εταιρίες δημοσκοπήσεων, που πασχίζουν να εμφανίσουν μια εικόνα ανάκαμψης για το καθεστώς, προκειμένου να διαμορφώσουν, ως συνήθως, το επιθυμητό κλίμα. Τελευταία, τα καθεστωτικά προπαγανδιστικά φερέφωνα, έχουν κατασκευάσει ένα νέο ψευδοδίλημμα, στοχεύοντας τον μέσο Έλληνα ψηφοφόρο και την ανάγκη του να νιώσει ασφάλεια, σε όλα τα επίπεδα.  Και για να συμβεί αυτό, έπρεπε προηγουμένως να κατασκευάσουν ένα ανερχόμενο αντίπαλο δέος απέναντι στον Μητσοτάκη, που όμως θα τρόμαζε τους, επιρρεπείς στις απότομες πολιτικές αλλαγές, "νοικοκυραίους". Και το βρήκαν στο πρόσωπο της Ζωης Κωνσταντοπούλου και την Πλεύση Ελευθερίας. Είναι σ...

From the United States to Europe, Criticizing Israel Is Becoming a Crime

by Kit Klarenberg     Part 2 - ‘Drastic Rise’   In a grave testament to the speed with which U.S.-based pro-Israel organizations, including several prominent Jewish advocacy groups, sought to capitalize on October 7 for their own purposes, two-and-a-half weeks after Palestinian fighters breached Gaza’s infamous apartheid walls, Republican lawmaker Mike Lawler proposed H.R. 6090, also known as the Antisemitism Awareness Act. Lawler is a major recipient of Israeli lobby funds, with the influential lobbying group AIPAC gifting him $392,669 in 2023 and 2024 alone, his largest donor by some margin. His bill would require the Department of Education to consider the highly controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism (which critics argue conflates criticism of Israel with antisemitism) when determining if cases of harassment are motivated by antisemitism, raising concerns that it would violate the intent of Title VI of the...

Uber CEO plots ‘opening up’ of Iran with Israeli-tied monarchist opposition group

A livestreamed Iranian royalist chat revealed a network of foreign-educated elites plotting to plunder Iran’s economy after realizing their dream of regime change. The CEO of Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi, has drawn criticism following his participation in an online discussion workshopping ways to exploit Iran in the event of regime change. The event wad hosted by NUFDI, the main DC-based advocacy group for the monarchist movement surrounding Reza Pahlavi, whose father was the last reigning Shah of Iran.   The discussion, marketed by one prominent online Pahlavi booster as an effort “to present designs that could be quickly implemented in Iran after the fall of the Islamic Republic” and “the establishment of a sound government,” was held to cobble together a loose plan for the privatization of Iran’s economy following an apparently to-be-determined regime change scenario. It’s unclear whether the vision laid out by the two Iranian expats represents a concrete blueprint for toppling the g...

Israel's Destruction of Gaza is "Our Generation's Kristallnacht" Warns Yanis Varoufakis

Glenn Greenwald  

China and Russia vow deeper partnership and global coordination

CGTN Europe   China and Russia reaffirmed their strategic partnership, vowing to deepen political trust, coordinate in international affairs, and promote an equal multipolar world. President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin emphasized cooperation in various fields, including trade, energy, technology, and culture. They also committed to upholding multilateralism, international law, and opposing unilateral sanctions. The presidents signed a joint statement to strengthen comprehensive strategic cooperation, exchanging over 20 documents on various sectors. President Xi will attend Russia's Victory Day celebrations, further highlighting their close ties. 

Inside Iran's Savak torture museum

The Grayzone   Caution: This report contains depictions of simulated violence that may upset some viewers. Max Blumenthal tours one of the most disturbing museums on the planet. Set in Tehran's former Ebrat Prison run by the anti-sabotage unit of Shah Reza Pahlavi's Savak intelligence services, the museum is filled with shockingly graphic exhibits featuring lifelike mannequins recreating the hideous torture tactics deployed to repress dissidents rebelling against Iran's monarchy. Many mannequins on display represent notorious torturers who either fled or were executed after the Islamic revolution in 1979, while others are modeled after famous prisoners locked away in Ebrat like the current Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamanei.  

From the United States to Europe, Criticizing Israel Is Becoming a Crime

by Kit Klarenberg     Part 3 - ‘Targeting Critics’   Such brazen pro-Israeli lawfare is a longstanding tradition in modern American politics. In 1977, two amendments to the Export Administration Act and the U.S. Tax Code were passed. In theory, they prohibited U.S. citizens and companies from complying with foreign boycotts against any country considered “friendly” to Washington. In reality, it was specifically intended to counteract the long-running embargo of Israel by the Arab League. Most U.S. allies adopted the prohibition, in some cases ironically damaging their relations with Israel. Then in 1987, Ronald Reagan designated the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)—at the time recognized almost universally as the Palestinian people’s legitimate representatives—a terrorist entity, but enacted a waiver the next year permitting “contact” between White House officials and the group. This fudge meant the Organization was forced to shut down its D.C. office and cease mo...