Category Archives: Media

What are we worried about?

calm-down

I haven’t paid much attention to the primary season. It’s all a forgone conclusion, as far as I’m concerned. That’s because I’m aware of some basic facts:

  1. The media prioritize profits over truth. Let’s face it: That’s called capitalism. It’s the logical outcome of our entire system. Public figures can say absolutely anything without being challenged by journalists. We may have their previous, contradictory remarks on tape, but it’s as if they never occurred. Reporters are loath to call out politicians on their lies for fear of losing access to them. If you don’t land the interview, then you don’t get the viewers and the network starts losing money.
  2. Rallies don’t mean much. Who attends them? Students, young people, and hard core supporters with the time and energy to devote to them. Most working people (the majority of voters) are too tired, too busy, and too disinterested to attend, especially if they have children at home.
  3. Open primaries are undemocratic and unrepresentative. Letting people who don’t belong to a party select the person who will lead that party is akin to inviting the French to vote in American elections. They will vote their own interests, which have nothing to do with ours. If you want to vote in America, you have to move here and become a citizen. Similarly, if you’d like to vote in a closed primary, you need to establish residency in that state; it makes sense that you should have to join the party, too. I can think of no other organization that allows outsiders to vote for its leadership.
  4. Most voters don’t vote in primaries. According to Pew Research, as of March, only 17.3% of registered voters had been turning out to vote in Republican primaries. Even fewer of them – 11.7% – had so far voted in Democratic primaries. Meanwhile, Gallup says over 40% of registered voters are Independents who can’t vote at all in closed primary states. Since they don’t care much for either party, this strikes me as fair. Still, they’ll take a side in the end. But while media outlets discuss Democrats and Republicans exclusively, the fact is that both parties together represent just over half (about 55%) of registered voters.
  5. Demographics are destiny. In 2012, 7 million more white women than men showed up at the polls on election day; they represented about 43% of the total vote. White men made up about 38%. That means that you can’t win a Presidential election by appealing exclusively to white men. You need to pull votes from women and people of color. It’s really that simple.

So yes, I’m confident about who’ll be our next President. In the meantime, enjoy the bread and circus.

BRB

brb_black_funny_text_1366x768_99251

I know it’s been a long time.  I’m sure you understand that life can be like that.  You, too, may have a side project that you love, but no time to dedicate to it.  You, too, may have a dream to pursue that is a borderline fantasy and a job that is real enough to keep you from making it happen.  You, too, may know what it feels like to start something great and get stopped in the middle.

The hiatus is nearly over. I’m two months away from removing the obstacles in my path.  The podcast is returning.  The format may change a bit, but Episode 16 is finally on the way.

If you listened to the show, then please write to me.  Ask me some questions.  Give me some feedback.  Toss out some topics.  It’s been difficult doing the podcast in a vacuum.

My goal, to be clear, is radio.  National distribution, AM or XM, broadcast or podcast. That means I need people to talk to.  There’s a new voice mail line coming soon where you can leave me a message to play and respond to on air.  One day those calls will be live.  Send me an email or tweet for now.

#theanonymousanthropologist

theanonymousanthropologist@gmail.com

Stay tuned.

Letter to an Ignorant but Beloved Friend

I get it.  You’re in a different place than I am.  You weren’t into school, or it just didn’t work out for you.  Or you did that but your career didn’t pan out like you thought it would.  You didn’t have any job security.  You don’t make enough money.  You’re raising a family.  You’ve had health issues.  You can’t afford cable.  So all of your information comes from free media — in other words, Fox, Rush, and word of mouth.

If I tell you that you’re being fed information by corporations whose only interest is themselves, you say both sides are biased. It’s all opinion. Yes, I’ll, grant you, it’s true.  But you’re listening to the stupid side.

You know what I learned in school? Something called “critical thinking.”  You may have learned it at one time yourself, but you’re just too tired or busy to deal with it. You turn on the TV to relax, not to think.

Well, friend, if you’re willing to do a little critical thinking, you’ll discover some pretty important stuff.  Like the fact that Fox is controlled by a single billionaire whose only real interest is in remaining a billionaire.  Said billionaire has freely admitted that he used his media to support the Bush agenda. Certainly it kept people watching, “Shock and Awe” and all. That’s one man.  Just one man has enough power to manipulate the opinion of millions through something he calls “news.”  You bought the product he was selling.

Critical thinking leads to the discovery that Rush is paid by CC Media Holdings, which owns Clear Channel Communications, Premiere Networks, and over 850 radio stations across the country.  Headquartered in Texas, 70% of the company is owned by two partners, one of which is Bain Capital (Romney’s old haunt).  Do you seriously think these people are interested in what’s good for you?  Please.  They’re interested in selling you the products of their advertisers, and their programming had better keep you listening. That Rush guy is pretty compelling, isn’t he?

Let me save you the time and give you the benefit of the critical thinking I’ve already done:

Money = Power;  Wealth = Control;  You = Screwed.

Get the picture?  Now turn off the damned TV.