Monday, June 24, 2013

Edward Snowden and the Mass Media: Missing the Big Picture

Versions of this commentary were published in truth-out's SpeakOut, the Morning Call, and the Baltimore Sun --June 17, 2013 and June 20, 2013.


In the aftermath of the Edward Snowden revelations about government surveillance, the national mass media are in their element:  a highly controversial issue framed as national security vs. individual liberty, a dramatic figure to focus personal scrutiny and condemnation on (Snowden), the public as stakeholder, and government officials falling in line to reassure the public that our rights are secure.  Trust us, they declare.

What is, and will continue to be, missing from the mass media debate, however, is the connection between government surveillance and the larger imperative of maintaining a system both at home and abroad designed to maximize corporate profits.  Those who argue for a vastly more democratic system –notably the left— continue to be excluded from the mass media’s “legitimate” debate.