Nick HutchisonFounder and CEO, BookThinkers

What do you think of this concept ‘Manufactured Consent’ from Kevin Howard’s book, Onward At Last?

11 Sept 2023 · 1 min

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1:01

In this brief segment of a YouTube discussion, Speaker B explains the concept of "manufactured consent," originally articulated by Noam Chomsky and another influential author. The idea is that powerful actors craft narratives and frames that persuade individuals to make choices—particularly voting decisions—that run counter to their own interests. By convincing people they are supporting certain policies or candidates (X, Y, Z), the actual outcomes betray the electorate. Speaker B asserts that the last four U.S. presidents have betrayed the voters who elected them, a dynamic that, according to the speaker, helped generate the support that propelled Donald Trump to the presidency, evidenced by roughly 70 million votes. The tone is conversational and explanatory, with a critical, somewhat skeptical sentiment toward the political establishment.

Chapters

You talk about this concept, manufactured consent, and I think like you've dispelled it pretty well, but do you think you could maybe try to describe it to our listeners, like in a few words, in a couple sentences, what exactly that is and how it affects their daily lives?
No idea is original, but that term is Noam Chomsky— I forgot the other writer who wrote a legendary book on that subject, right? And Chomsky is amazing. But again, the idea is to create a narrative, frames what you think is happening in such a way to induce you to make choices in alignment with that And, you know, even though the things are actually going on, and the net effect of that is to— how do you get a person to vote against their own interests? You convince them that they're voting for X, Y, and Z, and the people that they're actually voting for betray them. And I can show you, and I have commentaries to show you, for example, each of the last 4 presidents have absolutely betrayed the electorate that elected them. And this is ultimately what led to Trump. And why it's so sad that we don't understand why 70 million people voted