Anyone remember Paddy Chayefsky’s novel and movie ? He was a great prophet of our time. Network has proven to be the model of our own society. Rent it, watch it and see how fiction became fact and the handwriting on the wall was waiting to become reality. It seemed like science fiction back then. The movie was released in 1976.
Unlike “1984” and “Brave New World” “Network” was reality based on the impact of television on the average American. Chayefsky really got it right.
For those that don’t know who Howard Beal was, he was a lifetime newsman that was fired after umpteen years for bad ratings. New corporate staffers closed down the network news, or had intended to and Howard Beal was fired. After a momentary nervous breakdown, he decided to commit suicide on the air, for his last broadcast. Because he announced his intentions his ratings soared and his job remained, however, the news became a sideshow for prophets, soothsayers astrologists and the like. Howard would have a revelation, wave his hands around and pass out. Similar to the Glen Becks of today. And he would tell the audience both in and out of the studio, how to think and what to do. He was the voice of what was news and what was not. It was junk from a madman that brought ratings and advertisers to the network. He was free to speak his mind and voice his opinions on anything and he did, until he got it into his head that there was going to be a network takover by a worldwide corporation and that was a bad thing. Probably a moment of clarity for him, but unfortunately, he was brought to the CEO of CEO’s, Headquarters, lights off except for the little green lamps in the monstrous conference room and was told that he was messing with the forces of Nature, that there were no more countries, there was only ATT, ITT and corporations that ruled the world.
What am I saying here. Our information comes from the very same corporations that own our networks and speak the words that they are told to slant to the right or the left. Go find your Howard Beal that speaks for you, more subtle, no doubt, but your favorite talking head that talks your language, pushes your buttons, makes you despise anyone that doesn’t think like you. Fox News, MSNBC, CNN cable networks that are on 24/7 to bring you the latest interest, be it newsworthy or just trash to numb your brain or insight you to open up your window and shout “I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore” It’s just entertainment, isn’t it? Or is it? Who are these Howard Beals of today that broadcast to us, come into our homes, tell us what we want to hear? We aren’t watching the opposition for fear our anger at their slant will cause serious medical problems like a heart attack or stroke. Who are these people and why are we listening to them to get our information about politics, war, the economy, they are simply tv personalities. Their opinions are no more relevant than anyone else's and yet, they have a platform, unlike the rest of us, that listen and believe that they are authorities on what is going on in the world.
Maybe we should take a really good look at our opinions and how they are formed and who has formed them for us. Do you think you have ever really seen a newscast or a commentary that made you think about what you heard without feeling a little angry, or depressed or outraged? Those of you that have had the experience of a broadcast that made you think have not been watching cable news or even local news. Do we even know how to hear something without jumping on key words and turning off the ability to think past what we don’t want to hear anymore . It’s worth taking a look at what we call news today. “ I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore.”
http://www.youtube.com/... Howard Beale: Turn off your TVs