Movie Review: Network (1976)

Network _____ 9/10
Presaging the rise of the New Media

Network“It is the international system of currency which determines the vitality of life on this planet. THAT is the natural order of things today.  THAT is the atomic and subatomic and galactic structure of things today.  And YOU have meddled with the primal forces of nature.  And YOU WILL ATONE.  Am I getting through to you, Mr. Beale?  You get up on your little 21-inch screen and howl about America, and democracy.  There is no America; there is no democracy.  There is only IBM, and ITT, and AT&T, and DuPont, Dow, Union Carbide, and Exxon.  Those are the nations of the world today.” — Arthur Jensen, UBS (United Broadcasting System) Chairman of the Board (of the conglomerate purchasing the network)

An actual, modern-day “Old Media” elitist couldn’t have said it better, as a domineering Ned Beatty (playing Arthur Jensen) rips into the self-destructing TV cult icon Howard Beale (Peter Finch)—explaining to the now-cowed newsman the facts of life. Continue reading

Brian’s Column: Truman Prophecy Context

Identifying the Gordian Knot and focusing on its undoing…

StructurePlease forgive me for airing out my thinking before actually cutting significant chips. Two reasons for this: 1) I find I think better toward solving problems when posting via writing as an open letter, and 2) I want to assure those who helped me to crowdfund After 9/11 Truth that I haven’t forgotten them—that I still plan to honor my revenue sharing scheme as sales become substantial. Indeed, part of the reason for launching the Truman novel is to stimulate sales of my Truth book, then naturally lead into activism in the Toto Worldwide Foundation I’ve envisioned.

  1. You may read a teaser draft short of the penultimate chapter, “Declaration Eve,” of the book here.
  2. Then a couple of weeks ago I assembled a kind of analysis of social context that gives a reality to the fictional activity… here.

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