Propaganda, a thing of the past, as many of us would like to think. Centuries have gone by since politicians have used media outlets to help reinforce their political agendas, that are driven by corporate ideals, or have they? A survey launched by the European Commission found that the public’s trust in the British media ranked the lowest out of 33 European nations. Just because you no longer see blatant propaganda posters plastered across the UK, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Propaganda is alive and well in the form of smokescreen tactics.
Over the years the prominent media bias and use of distraction tactics, which the traditional media has tried its hardest to conceal, has developed into nothing less than political propaganda. Journalists employed by traditional media in the UK no longer operate under a public service duty, instead they’ve stepped into the shoes of political pamphleteers, inspired by money and greed for public influence. These new-found values of the media have not only destroyed the quality of reporting but on a deeper level undermined our democracy, threatening civil rights as we know them.
The propaganda that infects British society is focused on making the rich richer, presenting the royal family as our white saviours and upholding the lies of the establishment. So while British democracy deteriorates, systematic racism advances and corruption flourishes, the mainstream media continue to produce biased, nonsensical reports that glorify those in power rather than hold them to account. Often media outlets propagate prejudice through omission in their reporting, failure to report on matters of mass public interest can also prove
harmful.
The recent death of Prince Philip, husband and also cousin to Queen Elizabeth, was the perfect distraction opportunity for the mainstream media. The plethora of reports about the death of an elderly man was farcical, to the point where the BBC faced severe criticism due to its decision to cancel all other reports, and focus solely on his death. The British Broadcasting Corporation, more like the British Billionaires Corporation.
Just days before the death of Prince Philip, the body of a young black student, Richard Okorogheye, was discovered in Epping Forest, a story of police failure and incompetence, a story that again highlights the racial disparities that dominate Britain, a story worthy of coverage, where a young healthy man lost his life too soon. Not surprisingly, the story was brushed under the carpet the moment news about Philip surfaced, this was an elderly man with underlying health conditions, yet his death rocked the nation more than the negligence of the police.
Not to mention the fact that while the BBC and other mainstream media outlets continued to bombard us with Royal Family propaganda, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, managed to under the table gives special Tory treatment to his pal, David Cameron, granting his new paymasters Greensill Capital with millions of pounds worth of COVID-19 relief money. Corruption at its finest and that is how the Greensill scandal was allowed to happen without any initial scrutiny from the public. The media blinded the public with propaganda and smokescreen tactics, allowing the Conservatives to get away with more lies and cronyism.
The British media has a duty to the public but it is funded by the government, so you have to ask yourself who does their loyalty truly lie with? As Peter Oborne, from Open Democracy, said, “From the Mail, The Times to the BBC and ITN, everyone is peddling Downing Street’s lies and smears. They’re turning their readers into dupes.” These media outlets simply repeat what they are fed by the rich, essentially if you have money, you can have your say, unless of course, you’re a person of colour then you need to be rich and a Conservative. The latest report by the Media Reform Coalition found that “three companies (News UK, Daily Mail Group and Reach) dominate 90% of the national newspaper market (up from 71% in 2015).” There is no variety or diversity in reporting, most of it is just Conservative propaganda.
The British media has become the primary tool in Boris Johnson’s spread of misinformation. While it is hard to ignore these biased reports, awareness is a key step in stopping the rise of fake news and propaganda, the second step would be investing time and money in independent media. Independent media outlets, such as Byline Times, The Canary and Bywire News are run by everyday people and free from corporate control. Unlike traditional media, these outlets do not try to sugarcoat their bias, their prejudice is influenced by facts and data.
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