J 301F Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Robert Jenson, Corporate Capitalism, Waterboarding
10/4/16
Robert Jenson
Aeria jouralis’s ideology: Why the lieral edia is fudaetalist
• If ideology is defied as a igid, ee faatial, deotio to a set of ideas o atte hat the eidee,
then it is a good thing for journalists to avoid ideology
• If ideology is udestood as a set of soial attitudes, politial eliefs, ad oal alues that shape oe’s
interpretation of the world, then everyone works within an ideological framework, including journalists.
• Fundamentalism: any intellectual, political, or moral position that asserts a certainty in the truth and/or
righteousness of a belief system. The United States is an especially fundamentalist country.
• National Fundamentalism
o A faith i the eeolee of the Uited “tates’ pojetio of power around the world.
o The United States acts in its own interests but always to advance the greater goal of creating a
just and peaceful world.
o When journalists cannot step back to evaluate these claims, their accounts of the world
inevitable reinforce the fundamentals, even when those reports are critical of some of the
specific ways that US policy is executed.
• Economic Fundamentalism
o The steadfast belief in the moral claims of capitalism and the efficiency claims of the corporation.
o Corporate capitalism is not only the best, but the viable, way to organize economic activity.
o When journalists cannot step back to evaluate these claims, their accounts of the economy
inevitably reinforce the fundamentalism, even when those reports highlight market failures and
the corrosive nature of concentrated wealth.
• Technological Fundamentalism
o The unquestioned assumption that the use of high energy/high-technology is always a good thing
and that any problems caused by the unintended consequences of such technology can be
remedied by more technology.
o When journalists cannot step back to evaluate these claims, their accounts of the problems and
potential solutions reinforce the fundamentalism, even when those reports present data that
suggests that the solutions are inadequate or even counterproductive.
• In a healthy political system striving for informed democratic deliberation, it is important for citizens to be
exposed to all relevant opinions.
• Journalists’ task is ot to settle these uestios ut that help circulate the ideas, striving to identify and
amplify the relevant competing points of view.
Chapter 2: Intellectual Basics: Simple but Not Simplistic
We should always be asking four basic questions about a claim being made:
• What are the unstated assumptions behind the claim, and how do those assumptions affect our
understanding?
• How are terms being defined, and might those definitions favor one position over another?
• What is the quality of the evidence being offered, and is the full range of evidence being acknowledged?
• Does the evidence lead in logical fashion to the claim being made?
Who am I?
• Ecological: On what principles should my relationship to the non-human world be grounded, and how
does that relationship define me?
o This change in terminology shifts our frame of reference and asks us to think about ourselves not
as the center of the world, but as one component of it. How we define ourselves personally will
depend in part on how we understand the human family in relation to that living world.
• Societal: On what principles should my relationships to others be grounded, and how do those
relationships define me?
o Our sense of self is connected to how we understand our relationship to others.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
A(cid:373)eri(cid:272)a(cid:374) jour(cid:374)alis(cid:373)"s ideology: why the (cid:862)li(cid:271)eral(cid:863) (cid:373)edia is fu(cid:374)da(cid:373)e(cid:374)talist. If (cid:862)ideology(cid:863) is defi(cid:374)ed as a (cid:396)igid, e(cid:448)e(cid:374) fa(cid:374)ati(cid:272)al, de(cid:448)otio(cid:374) to a set of ideas (cid:374)o (cid:373)atte(cid:396) (cid:449)hat the e(cid:448)ide(cid:374)(cid:272)e, then it is a good thing for journalists to avoid ideology. If (cid:862)ideology(cid:863) is u(cid:374)de(cid:396)stood as a set of so(cid:272)ial attitudes, politi(cid:272)al (cid:271)eliefs, a(cid:374)d (cid:373)o(cid:396)al (cid:448)alues that shape o(cid:374)e"s interpretation of the world, then everyone works within an ideological framework, including journalists. Fundamentalism: any intellectual, political, or moral position that asserts a certainty in the truth and/or righteousness of a belief system. Economic fundamentalism: the steadfast belief in the moral claims of capitalism and the efficiency claims of the corporation. In a healthy political system striving for informed democratic deliberation, it is important for citizens to be exposed to all relevant opinions. Journalists" task is (cid:374)ot to settle these (cid:395)uestio(cid:374)s (cid:271)ut that help circulate the ideas, striving to identify and amplify the relevant competing points of view.
