Would you be surprised to learn that spies sit and write articles in newspaper editorial offices? Which are then published on op-ed pages under the names of well-known journalists? Or which journalists receive bribes for their reporting? Have you heard how prestigious "journalism prizes" are a reward system for cooperation? Much as "Heroes of Labor" were honored for writing the best communist propaganda in the former East bloc. Seen from the inside, the difference between journalist and propagandist isn't as far as you might like. The elite owners of the media feel it's their right to think for us, and to mold public opinion to their agendas. Their Freedom of the Press is Freedom to Censor the news.
Our nation depends on the media to understand our world, just as each one of us depends on our eyes and ears. The media are our senses. When they hide the truth, or lie to us, they put us all in danger.
A million people died in Iraq, Libya and Syria because the press didn't just report the news, didn't just lie about the news, but they invented and sold the events that served as pretexts for wars.
The author spent years in the Middle East, surviving an attack with chemical weapons supplied by US and German firms. This book is a veteran's guide to the media spider's web. It shows how the system works, sharpens your common sense skepticism, and increases your immunity to the controlled media's attempts to do our thinking for us.
You will gain a whole new perspective on media reports. A good idea of how much you can believe the news on TV or the radio: almost nothing. Ulfkotte dissects the German media establishment, which media outlets are owned by political parties, the journalists that are under their influence, and what keeps them there. You will see how whole countries are manipulated – and who is pulling the strings and why. Here is the bad news about the news: our idea of a free press with a broad spectrum of opinion is pure fantasy. Very often, what is called the "news" is simply brainwashing.