Beyond Hypocrisy

by Edward S. Herman

In a highly original volume that includes an extended essay on the Orwellian use of language that characterizes U.S. political culture, cartoons, and a cross-referenced lexicon of doublespeak terms with examples of their usage, Herman and Wuerker highlight the deception and hypocrisy contained in the U.S. government's favourite buzz-words. This spirited book offers abundant examples of duplicitous terminology, ranging from the crimes of free enterprise to media coverage of political events. Illustrations are by Matt Wuerker.

Genres: Politics, Theory

239 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1992

About the author

Edward S. Herman was an economist and media analyst with a specialty in corporate and regulatory issues as well as political economy and the media. He was Professor Emeritus of Finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He also taught at Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor of Arts from University of Pennsylvania in 1945 and PhD in 1953 from the University of California, Berkeley.

-wikipedia

Reviews

[Shane Wallis · Rating 4 out of 5]

In many ways this was a much lighter version of arguments presented in Manufacturing Consent. Some similar examples are presented here to demonstrate the ways in which the mass media, and politicians, influence the public consumption of news & politics. One example being the differntial portrayl of elections relative to whether they are seen as beneficial or detrimental to U.S. 'interests'. The style or writing presented here is, as mentioned, much lighter. Instead of a few well detailed case studies, we find ourselves with a series of short, conversational esque, essays covering a range of topics. At points he will be discussing the portrayl of entitlements vs subsidies, whereas later on he might be discussing how the forestry industry is portrayed. The short essays which comprise the first half of the book flow really nicely, and are both entertaining and easy to read. The dictionary which comprises the second half of the book is also incredibly amusing, with some quite fitting definitions being supplied. I would definitely encourage checking this book out for a light easy read. :)

[RYD · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good red meat criticism of American governance, I enjoyed this book and the critique it presents, especially considering the conservative times we seem to live in today.

One passage I underlined, given the welfare bashing we hear so much lately:

"Conservative policies generate disorder, crime, and job scarcity by increasing unemployment, withdrawing the safety net from the weak, unleashing greed, encouraging corporate abandonments, and returning society to the law of the jungle. The conservative 'solution' to increased crime and violence is more police, prisons, and an end to 'coddling.' This is a feedback process, in which basic policies and attitudes encourage alienation, hopelessness, and crime, which the conservative then attack only at the level of symptoms while exploiting the other other social results of their policies ... ."