Chapter 14: Engineering of Consent
“Anytime the public reacted in a way which was not part of the script, it struck fear into the hearts of businessmen and politicians. In order to maximize their wealth and power they needed life to progress according to their plan. There were actually people known as government planners, and it was there job to write the script our society was to follow,” Claudia rambled on in her excitement.
Trying hard to stay focus she added, “Take the Vietnam War and the sixties as an example. When the turmoil ended, the government planners assessed what went wrong and came up with solutions. First, they realized they had underestimated the power of students and professors. They also realized they could no longer ignore blacks nor assume women would follow the political beliefs of their fathers and husbands.”
“The responses by the power elite of government and business were swift and relentless. Public opinion polls which had previously ignored the students, blacks and women now became obsessed with measuring and shaping their opinions. Blacks and young adults who had been generally ignored in advertising were now the targets of ad campaigns designed to win their loyalty. Each day all these people were told that the true way to demonstrate their new found freedom and power was through purchasing such and such products. Issues of social equality were replaced by goals of personal purchasing power. I buy, therefore, I am, became the public mantra.”
“So, you’re saying business used ad campaigns to change the public’s mind,” Kendra broke in feeling a little overwhelmed by Claudia’s verbal barrage.
“Yes, but the change is subtle and slow. It involves no conflict, it just guides you in a slightly different direction by repetition. It takes social concepts such as freedom and personal power and restates them in commercial terms. Freedom becomes the freedom to buy the products of one’s choice and power is reduced to purchasing power. It steers people away from social equality and encourages people to be competitive to keep up with the Jones’s.”
“But, you said something about government planners,” Kendra interjected still feeling a little lost, “what do they have to do with ad campaigns?”
“Well,” Claudia blushed feeling a little silly about her latest tangent, “the corporate world has their own planning and public relations departments. Their job is to increase sales and profits, while insuring the public’s continued support of free enterprise.”
“What do they do other than ad campaigns and commercials?”, asked Kendra trying to clarify the different roles of business.
“Businesses used their public relations departments to do a lot of stuff which we usually don’t consider as an ad campaign. They waged a war against the labor unions. They provided the media with any information regarding union corruption they could. Some would even go so far as to assist organized crime into getting leadership positions in the unions. Lies were spread about the unions, and whenever possible they coerced the media into portraying labor unions as a detriment to the workers. Labor unions were blamed for promoting laziness on the job, reducing productivity, and hiring inferior workers.”
Claudia paused for a brief moment to gather her thoughts. She was glad she had invited Kendra over to help her put into words all her concerns. Often pacing as she talked Claudia felt like a trial lawyer rehearsing her case.
“Each business has its own agenda, and therefore, its own message. The business world naturally evolves towards monopolies and larger corporations, thereby reducing the number of speakers. Monopolies, having no real competition, can put out a message without concerns of contradiction and, therefore, drastically increase their influence and control of public opinion.”
Thinking of a different line of attack, Claudia excitedly added, “Each huge corporation understands the importance of invention and research in maintaining their dominance. Through building and funding research departments at major universities they succeed at inhibiting competition in those fields. First, discoveries and inventions by professors and students would usually be the property of the sponsoring corporation allowing them to maintain technological superiority. Second, they could customize each lab equipping it with only supplies that fit experiments they wanted to conduct. And finally, they could pretty well call the shots of what was researched and how. This allows studies which support their products to be completed, while preventing studies possibly damaging to their products from being conducted. An additional gain is the studies appear to be objective because a study out of UCLA or Duke does not have to state who funded the study.”
“Hold on child”, Kendra blurted out angrily, “are you trying to tell me that all these scientific studies are staged”.
“Austin always taught me to follow the money. Research is very expensive. So who in their right mind is going to fund research which might prove harmful to their wealth or their business? Research is conducted to make money, either through promoting one’s products or finding fault in a competitor’s product. Yet, the smaller the number of competitors the less chance of negative research being conducted. Making money is the motivating force behind all research, therefore, it is only logical that most studies have a specific goal.”
Kendra shook her head in disgust. Over the last hour she had been exposed to many insights regarding how the world works. Most of it didn’t shock her because it made sense, but it often did offend her. She was beginning to understand how wearing it must have been for Claudia to be exposed to this world every day. She wanted to console her, but she had no idea what to say.
Kendra sat in silence as Claudia began to talk about the ways in which the government establishes control. Claudia was explaining how the combined use of force and propaganda keep the public loyal and afraid.
According to Claudia the social revolutions of the sixties left a very bad taste in the mouth of government planners. Embarrassed and concerned they constructed and stepped up a number of tactics to increase their control of the public.
The riots on college campuses deeply troubled and worried the government. The federal government, like business, pumped huge amounts of research money into major universities. With top notch labs they would be assured of continuing to attract the world’s finest scientific minds to work at American universities. Research at campus labs in various fields such as chemistry, physics, medicine, meteorology and even psychology could have hidden military applications. Claudia argued students and even professors could be working on projects advancing military projects such as germ warfare while believing their research was designed to put an end to infectious diseases.
Making professors increasingly dependent on federal funds wasn’t the only strategy the government used to silence professors with more liberal views. In the late 70′s and 80′s a number of ex-CIA agents were placed by the government on the faculties of major universities. At first these plants were found only at colleges and universities which had rioted, but soon they could be found, or be reported to be at, almost every college. No matter where a teacher taught they always knew they were being monitored. The government couldn’t necessarily stop them from talking, but they could listen and make sure their propaganda got equal time.
During the sixties the CIA and FBI infiltrated student organizations to monitor and sabotage their efforts, often inciting student violence at peaceful rallies in front of the media they had invited. In the years following the riots, they helped form conservative groups to counteract existing liberal groups. They also helped form bogus left wing extremist groups creating confusion and turning off students who potentially might be sympathetic to their causes.
Claudia gave examples of times our intelligence agencies overthrew foreign governments and even assassinated leaders who threatened our way of life. She said it shouldn’t be surprising to learn that our government would kill American citizens who likewise posed a threat to the status quo. Claudia said the more she read about the government planners the more convinced she was that they were involved in the murders of the Kennedys, King and Malcom X. “If they weren’t involved in the murders,” Claudia said wearily, “they sure were a number of powerful people who were relieved”.
Kendra wondered if Claudia was using this conversation as a catharsis, as a way to cast out her demons. Claudia did look exhausted, but it was hard to tell if this evening signaled an end or a beginning. She hoped for Claudia’s sake, that the pain inhabiting her words, would pour out and dissipate into the air the moment they were uttered.
Totally spent Claudia asked, “Does any of this make sense, or have I only been babbling?”
“Oh, its scary,” Kendra said with a look meant to convey anxiety, “but it makes sense. Do you really think the government was involved in the assassinations of King and the Kennedys.”
“I really can’t say for sure,” Claudia said sullenly, “but, it certainly would answer more questions than it raises. We do know through memos and released documents that many influential leaders in government, business and the intelligence community blamed those eventually assassinated for causing the riots and turbulence. Many of the same documents state a desire and need to have those individuals neutralized and silenced.”
“After the war, the media was blamed for fueling the fires of dissatisfaction regarding the rights of blacks and women, and inciting the public outrage at the war. The media was soon bought out by even larger corporations many of them like GE and Westinghouse with strong military contracts and revenues. These huge conglomerates exercised even stronger control over the content and spin of the news. The Vietnam War was the last televised war, and media coverage of each following war has been handled more like a press conference than anything else.”
“How does Austin defend all this?” Kendra asked trying not to sound too judgmental.
“Austin would say that much of public relations is contaminated by people’s fears and it would be unfair to judge an entire discipline by the actions of its extremists.”
Kendra shifted forward in her seat and asked, “So, what does he feel is the general good of public relations?”
“He would say public relations is neither inherently bad or good. Public relations is just the label we use to describe the method our society uses to monitor and affect change,” Claudia squinted trying to find the right words. “Public relations is just a tool, and like any powerful tool can be used for man’s benefit or his destruction. He would probably say that, like nuclear energy, it is easier to use it in a harmful way than a beneficial way, but his job is to try and use it to make our world a better place”.
“Are you happy with the way Austin conducts himself?” Kendra asked hoping Claudia would not be offended by the question.
“Austin does try his hardest to use public relations to make the world a better place. Any time I’ve questioned his ethics or strategies regarding a specific project, he has explained to me why he’s doing what he’s doing, and I’ll have to admit I’ve never been able to suggest a better way,” Claudia admitted more to herself than to Kendra.
“He constantly reminds me that public relations exists in the real and not the ideal world, and, therefore, must at times make short term compromises to attain long term benefits,” remarked Claudia while thoughtfully looking off into space.
“Do you believe what he says, or do you think he’s just making excuses?”
This question snapped Claudia out of her daydream, and reestablishing eye contact with Kendra she replied, “Oh, I believe he tries his best, and I know I sometimes expect him to live in an ideal world. Yet, I guess what bothers me is that I worry he makes too many concessions to the real world. I worry he’s too patient and tolerates the methods of those who have no regard for others, whose only concern is personal wealth and power.”
Claudia suddenly feeling depressed, sat down and looking at the floor admitted, “I worry that his optimism regarding the future is unwarranted. I fear the techniques of persuasion are becoming so sophisticated that people like Austin will unintentionally assist the ruthless and power hungry in gaining complete control of society.”
Kendra seeing Claudia was near tears offered, “It’s okay, honey. Do you want to talk about something else awhile?”
“No,” Claudia answered raising her head, “I really need to talk this all out.”
“Well, honey,” Kendra said supportively, “I’m still here.”
Claudia and Kendra talked for hours. The longer she talked the more Claudia realized how afraid of the world she had become. Though Austin was the strongest and most influential human being she had ever known, she had become convinced that the ills of the world were far beyond his curative powers. Though she was amazed at how pure he remained she was certain that one day he would be infected by the disease which so many others in his field had succumbed.
Kendra listened patiently and offered whatever consolation and guidance she could. She admired Claudia for her strength, her moral commitment, and her willingness to see both herself and Austin accurately. Kendra, though very tired, felt herself drawn to Claudia and her story and could not find a way to end the evening.
Claudia talked and talked until she finally fell asleep propped up with her back against the couch. Kendra, deciding it would be best to leave Claudia undisturbed, took the quilt from off of the bed and covered her. She took a pillow and slowing lifting her head, gently placed it beneath her.