Reply #12: I don't think it's quite that conscious

[hfojvt]

the media is corporate, except for PBS. Thus it does not "look to protect the interests of the ruling class" as much as it looks to pad its own bottom line. Back when I had a bookstore somebody shared a cartoon with me that summarized it nicely. The cartoon said "the eternal battle" and there was a sign that said "going out of business - beauty, literature and theater" next to that was a sign that said "coming soon - crap that sells - ugliness, fluff, and cinema".

Crap sells. Violence sells. Sex sells. And sales are like a self-perpetuating law of natural selection. What sells, survives, and continues to sell. Unless there is some kind of regulation, some established social rules or laws, there develops a race to the bottom. Not sure why that is any more than I know why bacon, salt and high fructose corn syrup taste better than brussels sprouts.