Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
While the ‘manufacture of consent’ is an idea now mostly associated with Noam Chomsky, the phrase was actually coined by the US journalist and writer Walter Lippmann in his influential book Public Opinion (1922) – a fact that Chomsky and Edward S Herman, his co-author of Manufacturing Consent (1988), readily acknowledge. Lippmann contended that, because the world is too complex for any individual to comprehend, a strong society needs people and institutions specialised in collecting data and creating the most accurate interpretations of reality possible. When used properly, this information should allow decision-makers to ‘manufacture consent’ in the public interest. However, in one of the most damning critiques of democracy, Lippmann identifies how public opinion is instead largely forged by political elites with self-serving interests – powerful people manipulating narratives to their own ends. This video essay from the YouTube channel Then & Now dives into Lippmann’s legacy, starting with his study of the rise of the importance of public opinion during the First World War, and extending through an examination of why, a century after Public Opinion, democracy still has a major mass-media problem.
Director: Lewis Waller
Video by Then & Now
video
Art
‘If you’re creative, why can’t you create a solution?’ One artist’s imaginative activism
17 minutes
video
The ancient world
An ancient Roman’s hilarious (and perhaps relatable) response to a social snub
2 minutes
video
Ethics
For Iris Murdoch, selfishness is a fault that can be solved by reframing the world
6 minutes
video
Death
A hunter’s lyrical reflection on the humbling business of being mortal
6 minutes
video
Love and friendship
After his son’s terrorist attack, Azdyne seeks healing – and his granddaughter
25 minutes
video
Art
More than breathtaking, ‘The Birth of Venus’ signalled an aesthetic revolution
19 minutes
video
Values and beliefs
A Zen Buddhist priest voices the deep matters he usually ponders in silence
5 minutes
video
Rituals and celebrations
Meet the entrepreneur whose business is crafting perfect peak experiences
12 minutes
video
Human rights and justice
A reporter orphaned by night raids in Afghanistan investigates their cruel legacy
17 minutes