Almost everyone is being manipulated at one point of the day in their lives. Whether they are driving on the highway, reading the newspaper, or watching T.V. the U.S. population is constantly having information thrown at them to sway them to an idea or action. For the most part people don’t want to be manipulated. Most people think that if they avoid certain programs they can avoid most advertising and manipulation. It isn’t true. Many of the U.S. population have fallen into the reality television craze, preferring it over syndicated television and many still continue to view the news broadcast. What ever the case, manipulation in the U.S. is a way of life. Manipulation is used in both reality television and in the news to portray a certain point of view or idea.
Reality television has taken over media; more and more of the U.S population grow tired of syndicated television and want to view “real” people, not actresses or actors. But these shows are hardly ever true reality. Shows use technology to present footage in a certain light. In James Poniewozik ‘s How Reality Fakes TV It, you can see that reality show producers may use a technique called Franken biting, to cut out or add certain words or phrases to someone’s dialogue to portray what they, reality show producers, want or need. A contestant on the show The Dating Experiment disliked on of her suitors, but the producers thought it would make a better show if she did, so they sat her down for an interview and asked her who her favorite actor was; she replied, “I really love Adam Sandler.” Afterward they spliced out Sandler’s name and added the name of the male contestant. Dating games also portray the producer’s vision and not what really happened. They’ll place scenes out of order, to liven up a date or create a sense of hostility or even boredom that isn’t there. It is also said that the queen of all reality shows, Laguna Beach, a reality series about rich teens in Orange County, Calif., is manipulated. Members of the cast have said that no love triangle existed between L.C., Kristin, and Stephen; in fact L.C. and Stephen were platonic friends (P1). The term “reality TV” is loosely-based, with all the Franken biting and cutting, one cannot think its better than regular syndicated drama. Newscasters and journalist also deliver manipulated information, although the public is led to believe that it is unbiased truth.
The majority of people do not think they have to view the news or read the newspaper with a discerning eye. News casters and journalist are supposed to give unbiased facts, but almost everything that is said or written in these publications, have a slant. I bet most people don’t realize that only 5 corporations own most media in the U.S. Ben Bagdikian tells us in The New Media Monopoly that those corporations are Time Warner, Disney, Murdoch's News Corporation, Bertelsmann of Germany, and Viacom (formerly CBS). News caster don’t use Franken biting to manipulate the public. In his article, Share the Wealth, Chris Gupta describes a technique that is used from board rooms to the government:
"… the job of the facilitator is to be a neutral, non-directing helper to see that the meeting flows smoothly. Actually, he or she is there for exactly the opposite reason: to see that the conclusions reached during the meeting are in accord with a plan already decided upon by those who called the meeting. The process used to "facilitate" the meeting is called the Delphi Technique.” (Gupta, par. 4-5)
This technique can also be applied to coporations use of the media. “Using the ‘divide and conquer’ principle, they manipulate one opinion against another, making those who [don’t agree with their point of view] appear ‘ridiculous, unknowledgeable, inarticulate, or dogmatic.’” (Gupta, par. 1) When writing or speaking about a peace of news newscasters and journalist use certain terms and words to invoke feeling in their viewers, swaying them toward on side or the other. For instance, if a news broadcaster wanted the audience to feel outrage toward an event, they might refernce another event, which greatly influenced the audience before. Corporations agendas get through before the news is told. This manipulation has a definite effect on society.
Although reality TV shows and the news use different tools to manipulate, they both have manipulation in common. Both forms of manipulation have an affect on society. The most common form of manipulation is suppression by omission. Viewers never see the whole story to make make-up their own mind. Society thinks they are getting the truth, but they are being lied to, skewing their views on relationships and life. The manipulation sways viewer’s opinion so corporations almost always have their own personal views and opinions perceived as society’s views and opinions. Society is never without influence from outside sources. Society is lied to by t.v. producers and indirectly influenced by the news, but there is something the community can do to stop it.
This manipulation has produced a coarse and vulgar culture that celebrates the worst characteristics of human nature — greed, deceit, and cheating as a legitimate way to win (Bagdikian 35). Let’s demand for reality shows to show us the reality, not the cut and edited version. According to experts in the fireld we must decentralize our media sector, to let our press truly become free. Then, one can say that his or her views and opinions are not swayed by anyone but themselves safely.