A look at how the Washington press corps ignored nearly every major scandal of the 1980s--including the S&L scandal and the Iran-Contra scandals--argues that the press's number one priority is continued access to government's leaders. 25,000 first printing.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
How could the Washington press corps miss, or report tardily on, the savings-and-loan debacle, Iran-Contra abuses, Saddam Hussein's Western-backed military buildup and nearly every other major scandal of the 1980s? Parry, a former reporter for Newsweek and the Associated Press, faults the major news media for cozying up to the political elite and suppressing stories that go beyond the conventional wisdom dictated by the Washington/New York government, business and journalistic establishments. Crucial reading for citizens who want to be informed of the news behind the news, this compelling report is replete with examples of media cowardice and kowtowing to power. Parry delivers a damning account of the media's selling of the CIA-funded Contra army to the American public, the demonization of longtime CIA employee Manuel Noreiga, the Reagan administration's propaganda apparatus (operating out of the National Security Council) to create a pro-interventionist mindset, President Bush's professed ignorance of Iran-Contra abuses, and the press's failure to cover CIA terrorist campaigns abroad under Bush, its former director.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Given the clear indications of the political alienation of a broad spectrum of the American public, Parry's well-documented and fascinating book could be one of the most important in this national election year. "Conventional wisdom" is defined as "the collective judgment of that community of insiders--what the Washington-New York elites in government, journalism, academia and business think . . . is true about any number of hot topics." And to assure the validity of such CW, Parry says, the public is lied to over and over again. The author documents his charges by taking the reader through the machinations of the Iran-contra scandal, the 1988 presidential election, the Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill Supreme Court hearings, and the use by the federal government of what is euphemistically called "public diplomacy," i.e., illegal domestic governmental propaganda supported by taxpayer dollars. Parry's muscular closing chapter on America's future outlines 14 ways the public can act to "demand an end to Washington's antidemocratic elitism." Highly recommended for all libraries.
- Chet Hagan, Berks Cty. P.L. System, Pa.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
- Chet Hagan, Berks Cty. P.L. System, Pa.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
AN INDISPUTABLE CONFIRMATION OF "MANUFACTURED CONSENT",
By A Customer
This review is from: Fooling America: How Washington Insiders Twist the Truth and Manufacture the Conventional Wisdom (Hardcover)
Despite the Kirkus' reviewer's oddly negative reference to a mass of "newspaper-like detail," which refers to the hard documentation that makes Parry's case, the fact of the matter is that Parry has clearly demonstrated that only the "truth" as it is cut and pasted in accordance with the prevailing doctrinal parameters is permitted to be known. This is a well-known if frequently ignored reality in American political culture. I find it highly suspicious that two of his other books (Colin Powell: The Record Revealed, The October Surprise X-Files), all of recent vintage, are not even listed by Amazon. You have books like Michael Meiers' book on Jonestown, which was never offered by Mellen for general book sale; but you have no listing for these two books by Parry. Amazon, check yourself out!
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