The Age of Media Fakery: Threshold of the Simulation

[Anonymouse]

@lux - your gun control idea may well be right, or a correct part of the total picture. In the UK there have been a couple of occasions of gunmen going berserk; in one case, schoolchildren were shot and it's entirely possible the whole thing was arranged, firstly to remove child abuse victims, and secondly as part of the propaganda to control guns.

...Oh! And I'm totally reminded of the whole Port Arthur massacre thing with subsequent "gun buy-back" and tightening of gun laws in Australia.

...plus I never really bought the whole Martin Bryant = crazed killer scenario they were trying to paint in the media. Lol!...Way to go, sub judice laws!

If he really was autistic, possibly schizophrenic, and with an I.Q. hovering around the "legally retarded" levels, it seems far more likely that he was an easily manipulated patsy.

Of course, the impressions of a then-12-year-old girl that "He really doesn't look like an evil killer" probably doesn't mean much. Anyone looked into this in any more depth?

[antipodean]

@lux - your gun control idea may well be right, or a correct part of the total picture. In the UK there have been a couple of occasions of gunmen going berserk; in one case, schoolchildren were shot and it's entirely possible the whole thing was arranged, firstly to remove child abuse victims, and secondly as part of the propaganda to control guns.

...Oh! And I'm totally reminded of the whole Port Arthur massacre thing with subsequent "gun buy-back" and tightening of gun laws in Australia.

...plus I never really bought the whole Martin Bryant = crazed killer scenario they were trying to paint in the media. Lol!...Way to go, sub judice laws!

If he really was autistic, possibly schizophrenic, and with an I.Q. hovering around the "legally retarded" levels, it seems far more likely that he was an easily manipulated patsy.

Of course, the impressions of a then-12-year-old girl that "He really doesn't look like an evil killer" probably doesn't mean much. Anyone looked into this in any more depth?

Try this,
http://www.whale.to/b/viallspam.html

[Anonymouse]

Try this,
http://www.whale.to/b/viallspam.html

Oooh thanks!

[simonshack]

*

Over 35 million views - on Youtube.

Hopefully, this will help waking up many people to the fact that ANY PHONY STREET DRAMA
can be faked with cinematic techniques - or am I just being over-optimistic ?


full link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=316AzLYfAzw

[diagonal2]

*

Over 35 million views - on Youtube.

Hopefully, this will help waking up many people to the fact that ANY PHONY STREET DRAMA
can be faked with cinematic techniques - or am I just being over-optimistic ?


full link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=316AzLYfAzw

Lol, not sure if real or drama. :p

[simonshack]

Lol, not sure if real or drama. :p

It is perfectly 'real drama', diagonal - as in 'real theatrical, stage-managed entertainment'.

I truly hope your comment was meant to be funny!

[diagonal2]

Lol, not sure if real or drama. :p

It is perfectly 'real drama', diagonal - as in 'real theatrical, stage-managed entertainment'.

I truly hope your comment was meant to be funny!

Oh yes.

[simonshack]

*
No, this is not precisely about 'media fakery' as such. It is about...

"La pluralité de l'information"


full link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEAY445h7uw

Thank you, AP! I guess "Associated Press" means just what it sounds like. An associated press.


And here are at least a few truthful words from AP. Well, that's if you read those words as: "No one needs AP!"

"You don't need us to tell you that gas prices are back on the rise":
http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo ... AN_on_TBS/

[hoi.polloi]

Wow, Conan O'Brien is actually fighting the simulation. Awesome. Humanity has an ally in the eye of the storm. Potentially very good news.

I think he also had a skit where his assistant Andy Richter destroyed an artificial intelligence computer with a stick because he was feeling 'replaced' as a co-host. It was a stunt with a powerful message: humanity first!

Conan O'Brien has an interesting story that was covered by that creepy organization 60 Minutes. He claimed that he was removed from the air despite popularity ratings and that there had been some kind of unexplained agenda for doing so.

When he protested because the figures were showing no actual decline in ratings, he was ignored. However, there was some kind of continued demand, he pulled some strings somehow and maintained a show. His return was marked with owls (Masonic symbolism?) so my guess is that he just had to convince TPTB that he was still playing their ego game. Odd too, how 60 Minutes, which is like the usual news propaganda program only in hyperdrive and which looks like it's regularly produced by the same people who determined the aesthetic for 9/11 and other military ventures, covered his story. I got the sense that they were the only ones who would take his "case" so to speak to the powers that be. He basically said it was very clear when his show was canceled that it was a set up with no justification. Is 60 Minutes some kind of twisted internal power police? It's always had a very carpet-padded CIA cubicle vibe to it. It must be that Conan was able to talk with others about it ... the fact that it was on any TV show at all must indicate something.

It is so surreal to think that Conan O'Brien may very well be the ONLY person in all of television bringing up these points to his audience. I wonder what kind of deal he must have that he can get away with this. Whatever it is, I hope he continues to "push the envelope on television" in this way. It may be I really don't understand the psychology at work, but I must say I don't care because it is just so refreshing to see someone injecting a dose of humanity (dare I say morality?) into the usual block of "entertainment". I shouldn't trust him - he's so huge - and yet ... I kind of hope we can.

I think you're right that this belongs in the category "threshold of the simulation" Simon, and I think Conan just might be on the side of truth to some degree. Encouraging. Must be a lonely fight in that world and I wish him luck.

[lux]

It perhaps should be noted that Conan's referenced "pushing of the envelope" was that he officiated at a gay wedding on his show.

[fbenario]

... and until he discusses media fakery publicly, his "pursuit of the truth" is just more controlled limited hangout. The fact he's still on TV shows TPTB approve of what he's saying, and have likely already ensured he mentions nothing important.

[lux]

What I think is interesting about things like this O'Brien news media gag is that WE see a lot more in it than the average viewer sees.

We see evidence of a controlled media and they just see "a funny thing happened on the TV news -- ha, ha" and nothing more. They're also given the message that this sort of media puppetry is funny when, in truth, it's anything but.

I think Conan is an extremely clever fellow and I was a big fan of his at one time. He's about as quick a wit as any comic has ever been and a brilliant comedy writer IMO. If you remember there was a brief period in the 1990s when The Simpsons had some really brilliant comedy and satire in their episodes. That was when Conan was producing and writing for the show and when he left the show it quickly descended back into crap again.

Anyway, nowadays I still admire Conan's comedic skills but I don't trust him.

[hoi.polloi]

It perhaps should be noted that Conan's referenced "pushing of the envelope" was that he officiated at a gay wedding on his show.

I believe that was already very clearly noted. Sorry if my attempt to inject humor into the phrase made me come across as a boob who totally missed the point.

You're right about that psychological factor -- acclimating people to the idea that "just a funny thing" happened is enough to prevent the natural outrage that the revelation may deserve. I meant that it seems likely that anyone in the show business industry/gang only has a few tools at their disposal and humor seems to be one of the masks allowed to discuss big ideas.

But I suppose it's an illusion that the people hosting television have real power in their hosting -- it's behind the scenes in the producer's offices, in clandestine meetings with script-writers (always under the auspices of not "spoiling" a good joke or dramatic turn) and pre-made deals where the real power of television is determined. Conan is probably one of the mixed bags - partial writer and mainly just a deliveryman. Still, I prefer the simple presentation of the truth to Alex Jones' doom cult.

fbenario's right that our standards should probably be considerably higher.

[lux]

Still, I prefer the simple presentation of the truth to Alex Jones' doom cult.

Me too.

[edgewaters]

What I think is interesting about things like this O'Brien news media gag is that WE see a lot more in it than the average viewer sees.

What I'm seeing in these sorts of things is a two-pronged technique. The first is not quite exactly a limited hangout; it's similar but I would say the effort is not to prevent more damaging information from being unveiled, but rather as a conditioning technique ... as you say it makes a silly joke out of media manipulation, it normalizes it. Makes it mundane and everyday. This is the way it is, have a laugh, shake your fist, whatever, just go back to sleep.

But there's another level to it too.

Superficially perhaps, "pushing the envelope" may have referred to the gay wedding. But that's not the only envelope being pushed here, is it? I think this is basically a sort of taunting. Here he is normalizing the fakery ... pushing the envelope ... right out in the open, laughing as its done ...