This is an abridged version of an article published in Chinese Taiwan's "The Journalist ", a weekly news magazine. In the article, the writer laments that the American media has become a political tool that assists the expansion of terrorism.
Three American missiles hit the Chinese embassy in
Yugoslavia "by mistake" and sparked off demonstrations and protests of students and the masses in mainland China. It is worthy to note the mode of reporting and the language used in the American media with regards to this incident.
First of all, there is the "mode of exclusion". The
American media has always love nitpicking where other things are concerned, but as to how three "intelligent weapons" could have hit a target "by mistake" and with such accuracy, the most basic media scepticism was not to be found. This is indeed an eye-opener.
Anyone with some knowledge will know that this was not an accidental hit. It was right on target. Therefore, the
American media should have posed these questions: Why was the Chinese embassy the target for missile strikes? Why did three missiles simultaneously struck "by mistake" and with such accuracy? Alas, they are not at all interested in these obvious questions.
This is a form of "mode of exclusion". Never ask
questions which are not supposed to be asked. For one, it is to shirk the responsibility in the international arena. For another, it is to shape the thinking modes of Americans within the United States. This "mode of exclusion" of the American media has developed into a new "political correctness" which appears on its own without any directives from the media bosses.
Secondly, there is "selective inclusion" and
"misinformation". For instance, in the reports on the
students' demonstrations and protests in China following the missile strikes, the American media, in its images and reports, has repeatedly reminded their readers and viewers that they were state-orchestrated demonstrations. This is very strange. It is strange to the point of perversity. The US has bombed another country's embassy, but does not allow the citizens of that country to protest. Any protestors who took to the streets must have been mobilised by the government.
Such a mean and despicable attitude stems from the
attempt to shirk its own responsibility by calling into
question the genuineness of the demonstrations. In the
reports of the protests and demonstrations by the American media, the inconvenience suffered by and the anxiety of the US embassy staff were played up, and the demonstrations were seen as a big threat. The fact that the US has bombed someone else's embassy was downplayed, while the seriousness of irrelevant incidents was exaggerated. Their deliberate obfuscation of the issue and shameless spouting of nonsense show up their malevolence.
And this is the American media's "model of argument". In his four books on the American media - "Manufacturing Consent", "Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies", "Turning the Tide" and "The Culture of Terrorism" - American linguistic doyen Noam Chomsky argues that the American media has already become a propaganda tool for American terrorism.
※本文作者：佚名※