To continue a thought that came to me in another thread: This is where my mind was a few hours ago and I feel more and more vindicated in this belief as I pour over all of these threads. I'm starting to come to the most radical conclusion that any complete libertarian revolution in America should also come with the total abolishment of mass media so that people are once again forced to reach their own conclusions and share those conclusions in an environment free of imposed and distant opinions. In fact, I will say that no total libertarian revolution is complete until the media has been removed from public life. The 24/7 news cycle has not only diminished liberty but the ability for men to think for themselves and as the years pass it seems increasingly evident that we are living in an age void of any imagination. The fanatical pursuit on behalf of American citizens for things such as war with Iran and gay marriage and other such nonsense derived from the powerful make it more than clear to me that our civilization is not heading towards any societal destination worth arriving at. With the rise of the internet it seems to me that the mass media's only remaining purpose is in maintaining a tyranny over thought that crushes the human spirit, stamping out any idea that could be construed as original or creative or contrary to those imposed by a media elite. Nothing can come from the existence of a mass media save totalitarianism and national stupidity. It does not serve the enlightenment of man and only serves the interest of a powerful elite, corrupt or otherwise. It stamps out all traces of individualism and creates a mobilized collective to be wielded like a weapon by those more powerful than you are. I begin to envy those who lived in a world where men had to learn from one another rather than be trained in what to think by a single source. This is not the road to a renaissance. The internet, too, comes with its challenges to a more fulfilling human existence and condition, diminishing human contact and interaction for reclusiveness, but that's likely another only partially related issue.
Not allowing media is tyranny. You are no better than the most hardcore socialist on that issue. I think you need to turn your libertarian card back in.
Once again you make alot of good points that I strongly agree with but I disagree with your overall conclusion. The internet is one technological advancement that will inevitably lead to more people being educated. There is nothing wrong with the ability of information to be passed more quickly. It's the quality of information being passed, ie. we must ensure that government does not begin censoring the internet (it REALLY wants to). Abolishing mainstream media is akin to infringing on freedom of speech, which no true libertarian could ever support. Yes the media has the power to edcuate falsely and instill fear in people, but it is their right to do so. Nobody is forced to listen. By banning media, you are no different than the totalitarian elite that control it.
Some sort of media is required for any democracy to work. No one can make a decision about how they want to be governed if they lack information about what is going on in the world. I will say that our media is mostly currupt and plays the class warfare game almost incessantly, but I don't know how you replace that system entirely, and banning media is not going to work. IMO the road to renassance is to have thousands of sources. Everything from communist to libertarian to christian to buddhist viewpoints expressed. A thousand flowers blooming lets you pick, or even combine them into a new whole.
Most people don't think for themselves and can't be made to think for themselves. Removing the media will just make them rely on gossip instead. Chances are they'll stop thinking about politics as we know it altogether, like medieval villages. Through history, the people has swayed to whatever thoughts are popular. During the enlightenment, most people with access to information were in favour of enlightenment, during the renaissance, they favoured renaissance. Humanity has touched on so many very different viewpoints that I find it hard to believe that humanity is able to come to a conclusion without input. I agree that media is one of the things that break the system, but abolishing it is not the answer. Exactly what is, I cannot tell you, but just shutting everyone off from information is not going to produce a completely enlightened humanity.
A reality that is made plain to me at every moment of every day. In the very least it would create a society that must discuss the state of itself with more face to face interaction. I can see town halls becoming more prominent in American life, political societies, etc. The problem with the media as it exists today is that it cannot be confronted and disputed with the same success and scope with which it is capable of spreading misinformation. Is it better to have the people who are incapable of thinking for themselves under the impression that they know everything and are right in all regards? Today the ignorant have a fanatical faith in the validity of their `own` ideas. Nietzsche once said something that always stuck with me despite how radical and absurd it sounds. He said writing books should be an offense punishable by death so that the only people who would risk writing one were those with something worthwhile to say. I doubt he was serious in this and instead only making a point about the uselessness of everyone having something to say, believing they have equal right to all problems and solutions when clearly they do not. I doubt we would have had an American Revolution were there a Fox News and CNN and MSNBC in the 1770's. At least when the media was restricted to newspapers one had to at least know how to read before they could be so fanatically assured of the righteousness of their own opinions. Today that isn't even a requirement.
I support collapsing The Big 6 monopoly on information in favor of localized media outlets. What we are currently undergoing is more or less information slavery.
The primary benefit as I see it in eliminating the mass media is that it would improve the likelihood of the creative genius of individuals rising above the mob. If the mass media strengthens the resolve of the mob over the individual the lack of a mass media must have the opposite outcome. What is the mass media if not a tool of tyrants? It has never been a means of distributing information for the purpose of enlightenment and education and it never will be. At least not over the course of any extended period of time.
It is nothing more than a tool of tyrants. When they aren't using propaganda and lies to further their many agendas they flood the information airwaves with insignificant non-stories that keep people's minds off of the real issues. They demonstrate their power with the fact that whatever candidate they talk up ends up leading in the polls. I've said for a long time, if we don't destroy this beast we can kiss goodbye conservative, libertarian, social conservative values because that is one of their greatest enemies. If they can completely undermine societies moral values and libertarians economic theories they can control our minds and destination of the human race, or at least in western civilization.
