What has been said about the formation of ideas and judgments
concerning the public apply as well to the distribution of the
knowledge which makes it an effective possession of the members of
the public. Any separation between the two sides of the problem is
artificial. The discussion of propaganda and propagandism would alone,
however, demand a volume, and could be written only by one much more
experienced than the present writer. Propaganda can accordingly
only be mentioned, with the remark that the present situation is
one unprecedented in history. The political forms of democracy and
quasi-democratic habits of thought on social matters have compelled
a certain amount of public discussion and at least the simulation of
general consultation in arriving at political decisions. Representative
government must at least seem to be founded on public interests as they
are revealed to public belief. The days are past when government can
be carried on without any pretense of ascertaining the wishes of the
governed. In theory, their assent must be secured. Under the older
forms, there was no need to muddy the sources of opinion on political
matters. No current of energy flowed from them. To-day the judgments
popularly formed on political matters are so important, in spite of all
factors to the contrary, that there is an enormous premium upon all
methods which affect their formation.
The smoothest road to control of political conduct is by control of
opinion. As long as interests of pecuniary profit are powerful, and
a public has not located and identified itself, those who have this
interest will have an unresisted motive for tampering with the springs
of political action in all that affects them. Just as in the conduct of
industry and exchange generally the technological factor is obscured,
deflected and defeated by “business,” so specifically in the management
of publicity. The gathering and sale of subject-matter having a public
import is part of the existing pecuniary system. Just as industry
conducted by engineers on a factual technological basis would be a
very different thing from what it actually is, so the assembling and
reporting of news would be a very different thing if the genuine
interests of reporters were permitted to work freely.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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