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People choose from what is presented to them. That's consumerism. It's not like people get to pick what gets produced. If more public interest material is avail

People choose from what is presented to them. That's consumerism. It's not like people get to pick what gets produced. If more public interest material is available and advertised, it'll get watched more. The alternative is to watch less TV and engage with society directly more. Both of those outcomes would be preferable to the excessive production and consumption of entertainment. Private broadcasters do not pick material based on public interest or even their judgment of what is good. It is far more mechanical and influenced entirely by market forces. Herman and Chomsky discuss this in Chapter 1 of Manufacturing Consent. https://ia802700.us.archive.org/31/items/pdfy-NekqfnoWIEuYgdZl/Manufacturing%20Consent%20%5BThe%20Political%20Economy%20Of%20The%20Mass%20Media%5D.pdf https://ia802700.us.archive.org/31/items/pdfy-NekqfnoWIEuYgd...

eru 5y ago
> The alternative is to watch less TV and engage with society directly more. Both of those outcomes would be preferable to the excessive production and consumption of entertainment. I agree. And economically, if you want less of a good to be consumed, ceasing to subsidize its production with tax payer money is a good first step. If you want to go further, perhaps even tax its production. > Private broadcasters do not pick material based on public interest or even their judgment of what is good. It is far more mechanical and influenced entirely by market forces. How do market forces differ from public interest? Or rather, what do you mean by 'public interest'? It's what the general public is interested in? Market forces come from people. Related: https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/09/11/book-review-manufacturing-consent/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/09/11/book-review-manufactur...
- nitrogen 5y ago
  Market forces come from people. Market forces tend toward baseness. It takes active intent to elevate society above the lowest possible level. Just as one doesn't want to hire at the median skill level of their company lest the average continue to drop over time, a society has to aim higher than what the impulsive market optimizes for, or it will decay. Revealed preference is just code for exploitation of vice.
  - eru 5y ago
    'Market forces' are just what people want and are willing to pay for. Of course, there are always enlightened and sophisticated people like yourself that know better what's good for the unwashed masses.

eru 5y ago

> The alternative is to watch less TV and engage with society directly more. Both of those outcomes would be preferable to the excessive production and consumption of entertainment. I agree. And economically, if you want less of a good to be consumed, ceasing to subsidize its production with tax payer money is a good first step. If you want to go further, perhaps even tax its production. > Private broadcasters do not pick material based on public interest or even their judgment of what is good. It is far more mechanical and influenced entirely by market forces. How do market forces differ from public interest? Or rather, what do you mean by 'public interest'? It's what the general public is interested in? Market forces come from people. Related: https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/09/11/book-review-manufacturing-consent/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/09/11/book-review-manufactur...

nitrogen 5y ago
Market forces come from people. Market forces tend toward baseness. It takes active intent to elevate society above the lowest possible level. Just as one doesn't want to hire at the median skill level of their company lest the average continue to drop over time, a society has to aim higher than what the impulsive market optimizes for, or it will decay. Revealed preference is just code for exploitation of vice.
- eru 5y ago
  'Market forces' are just what people want and are willing to pay for. Of course, there are always enlightened and sophisticated people like yourself that know better what's good for the unwashed masses.