Trapnest, Herman and Chomsky

Herman and Chomsky in this work look to investigate mass media and the unofficial rules and regulations which govern it. In the beginning of the piece they outline a “propaganda model” as they call it, or a set of news “filters” for mass media. Really, what I feel they are establishing within this is the factors that govern what news story will be chosen and why. These factors are as follows:


1) “The size, concentrated ownership, power, wealth, and profit orientation of the dominant mass-media forms.”
This I feel takes on a similar approach as Horkheimer and Adorno’s works on the Culture industry. They discuss that the people who own the money are more likely to be able to influence culture because of that power. What Herman and Chomsky are saying is by all accounts almost the same.
It is this focus on ownership, power and profit that has lead to many news stations being bought out and taken over by other more powerful stations. The problem that occurs when this happens is that all the stations then have to air similar media, or at the very least draw from the same pool of resources. This also puts the media at a weakness to the market and creates a system that is not lenient for non-biased, free news.

2) “Advertising as the primary source of income of the mass media.”
Similar to number one, this is another way that the media becomes involved in business and projects that are beyond it. Media cannot screen anything that could offend it’s advertisers products. It also enables advertisers to take advantage of the consumer watching the media by carefully placing products where they’re likely to be seen.
Herman and Chomsky also discuss how this puts strain as well on the media companies because they have to focus on developing departments dedicated to advertising to not loose funding to their competitors.

3) “The reliance of the media on information provided by government, business, and “experts” funded and approved by these primary agents of power.”
This is another limitation to what gets aired on the news because the news reporters and correspondents cannot be everywhere at once. Therefore they must depend upon others to report stories to them. This creates a problem because it can develop obligations to air stories that may not be the best at times to keep good graces with a company friend. Or impose limits on the pool of knowledge that the news can draw from.


Herman and Chomsky also discuss two other points. I have separated them from the aforementioned three because these two, I feel, deal with the way the media puts it’s information forward and how it is received. Not as much about the media as an industry and the effects that the industry has on the news that is aired.


4) “”Flack” as a means of disciplining the media”
Flack is the negative feedback that the media can and will get at times. However, what I felt was most interesting was that Herman and Chomsky said how even those who put forward flack against the media will get their appropriate air time and proper recognition.
One of the things I thought about with regards to this was the recent Jon Steward vs Cramer from Mad Money. He said something about Cramer, and attacked the CNN network and all of a sudden the whole network was talking about it. Even though they were being portrayed in a poor light they continued to blow it up and discuss it. It evolved into this issue that even John Stewart was surprised about.

5) “”Anticommunism” as a national religion and control mechanism”
I feel that anticommunism to describe the media’s power to control is a little out of date. Anti-terrorism I feel would be more appropriate. This is the media’s ability to create, and abuse, the artificial terror that they have the power to produce.


In all, Herman and Chomsky investigate the media as an industry rather than a force simply designed to report upon facts and issues. That power is often abused by the industry, be it on purpose or simply by the nature of the industry.