Chomsky Film

A film was made in the early ‘90s of Chomsky’s work called Manufacturing Consent. There are various scenes in which someone rejects the Chomsky view, or a caricature thereof. On one occasion Tom Wolfe did just that in an interview with Moyers speaking of Chomsky’s critique of the domination by corporate ownership of media outlets. Insofar as it speaks of some huge conspiracy, says Wolfe, it is pure fantasy.

It was one of those moments when a well drawn counterfactual could have been decisive. Just imagine the furor if all the major news outlets were owned by unions! Just imagine the furor if the Times were bought by Cuba -- especially after the ports scandal. It turns out that the only instance in which ownership is irrelevant is when it’s in the hands of conglomerates or wealthy families, and this of course is Chomsky’s point.