Blog 2: Manufacturing Consent

In the movie “Manufacturing Consent,” Noam Chomsky condemns the media elite for manipulating the U.S. public by filtering the information that is available to them. He gives the example of how news of the East Timor genocide was completely cut out of the media. The presentation of the news always involves some framing. This can be seen through the selection, restriction, presentation, emphasis, and shaping of the news. The filmmakers then in turn make use of this technique (which they criticized the media elite for using) throughout the movie. They cleverly frame the information they present, controlling what the viewer sees and doesn’t see. Noam Chomsky was presented in an obviously one-sided and biased way. There was a strong emphasis on his “good qualities” as an intellectual who always looked at the facts. This was sharply contrasted with his critics who were portrayed as narrow-minded idiots who were incapable of coming up with a coherent argument. This is especially evident in the debate with the Dutch politician which ended with him storming out like a little kid throwing a temper tantrum. I’m sure there are plenty of clips portraying Chomsky in a not so pleasant/flattering manner but these were conveniently left out. While this movie appears to aim at educating the viewer to recognize and be on guard against propaganda, the filmmakers themselves make use of these techniques which they criticize and warn the viewers to be wary of.