Televisions Manipulation of the Facts Essay - 1304 Words

Televisions Manipulation of the Facts One of the main activities that Americans participate in during their free time is watching the television. Since its invention over sixty years ago, the television has been a source of enjoyment and information for the American citizen (Pember, 1981). Though what one sees on the television is not what one should always believe. Many people look at television with the camera never lies attitude, and are easily manipulated by this medium. People are manipulated by television because most television programming is controlled by a small number of companies, this is a main source of information, and people all too often trust what they witness in the media. Because television is controlled by an†¦show more content†¦In fact, three companies, ABC, NBC, and CBS, control over 50% of television broadcasting. And these companies are all owned by even larger companies (Bagdikian, 1983). With only three companies running most of television broadcasting, these companies can easily pick and choose exactly what they want the public to see. The facts are easily skewed with this kind of oligopoly in effect. If a story emerges that may be harmful to a controlling companys business, the solution is simple: omit these detrimental facts from broadcasting, and the public is blind to the full story. John Swinton, former chief of staff for the New York Times once said, The business of the journalists is to destroy the truth, to lie outright, to pervert, to vilify, to fawn at the feet of mammon, and to sell his country and his race for his daily bread. (stevetwt, 1998) It is easy to see how these few companies can shape the publics opinions, and therefore manipulate society as a whole. And when television is one of Americas main sources of information, this is an even easier task. We live in a time where 98% of American households own at least one television, and almost 66% own two or more (Kaufman, 1998). Along with newspapers and magazines, television is a very prominent source of information in our country, and over two-thirds of Americans rank TV as their main source of news and information (Mann, 1982). News is easy to come by when watching television,Show MoreRelatedEnders Game by Orson Scott Card Essay example2588 Words   |  11 PagesManipulation Today â€Å"Individual human beings are all tools, that the others use to help us all survive† (Card 35). This quote from the novel Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card foreshadows the manipulation and control that the characters experience throughout the story much like one does in real life. The novel is centered on a young, precocious boy named Ender Wiggin. 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