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The thesis of the book is that mass media acts or editorializes on behalf of the powerful in society- not just that their 'incentives are aligned'. The book is

The thesis of the book is that mass media acts or editorializes on behalf of the powerful in society- not just that their 'incentives are aligned'. The book is about the specific actions that media companies supposedly take. So, pointing out all of the times that mass media has acted orthogonally to powerful interests in society (publishing the Pentagon Papers, publishing the Snowden revelations, the current run of publishing ultra-critical pieces about tech companies, etc.) would be relevant counter-examples. Zooming out slightly, handwaving everyone who's wealthy or powerful in the US into 'elites' that are sort of one fused organic unit with identical interests is just bad, sloppy thinking, sorry. Wall Street, Silicon Valley, the military, Fortune 500 corporations, Hollywood, New York/DC-media companies, Ivy League universities- they're all 'elites' and they are competing, at times hostile power centers to each other. I don't take any analysis that smushes them into 'elites' or 'the 1%' or whatever seriously. (For example, the 'mass media' that Chomsky handwaves- a more precise description would be New York/DC media moguls- is actively hostile to Silicon Valley these days. Many of these power centers actively compete. His categories are absurdly broad)

ehmish 7y ago
Currently the elites are fighting and not one united front against the non-elites (the rise of tech created a new elite group that wasn't dependent on the existing elites to exist), bit that doesn't mean one side won't either eventually win, or broker a truce in order to go on managing the masses for corporate gain.
- tsimionescu 7y ago
  But even now, how are the elites not united in most goals? Are the new tech elite pro workers rights? Are they for radical action to stop global warming? Are they anti-monopoly? Are they pro corporate taxation? Are they anti-interventionist? There may be in-fighting between the elites, but that does not mean that these groups are not still aligned on most broad topics. Teh same has always been true for democrats VS Republicans. They do care who gets to be in power, and will fight tooth-and-nail for that, but neither will do anything that would hurt the elites in general.
tsimionescu 7y ago
No, the mass-media that Chomsky discusses very much includes Hollywood, Jeff Bezos' newspapers, gaming companies and any other popular company producing media. Of course there is in-fighting amongst the elites. But there is no group of elites that is willing to reduce the power of even a different group in favor of 'the masses'. The NY/DC media moguls may want to take SV down a peg, but they wouldn't want to see, say, FB become a worker's co-op, or Jeff Bezos to start paying 90% progressive income tax.

ehmish 7y ago

Currently the elites are fighting and not one united front against the non-elites (the rise of tech created a new elite group that wasn't dependent on the existing elites to exist), bit that doesn't mean one side won't either eventually win, or broker a truce in order to go on managing the masses for corporate gain.

tsimionescu 7y ago
But even now, how are the elites not united in most goals? Are the new tech elite pro workers rights? Are they for radical action to stop global warming? Are they anti-monopoly? Are they pro corporate taxation? Are they anti-interventionist? There may be in-fighting between the elites, but that does not mean that these groups are not still aligned on most broad topics. Teh same has always been true for democrats VS Republicans. They do care who gets to be in power, and will fight tooth-and-nail for that, but neither will do anything that would hurt the elites in general.

tsimionescu 7y ago

No, the mass-media that Chomsky discusses very much includes Hollywood, Jeff Bezos' newspapers, gaming companies and any other popular company producing media. Of course there is in-fighting amongst the elites. But there is no group of elites that is willing to reduce the power of even a different group in favor of 'the masses'. The NY/DC media moguls may want to take SV down a peg, but they wouldn't want to see, say, FB become a worker's co-op, or Jeff Bezos to start paying 90% progressive income tax.