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THE ANDREW OLLE MEDIA LECTURE 2005
No to be missed:
THE ANDREW OLLE MEDIA LECTURE 2005
Friday, 7 October 2005
Presented by John Doyle
continue reading: http://www.abc.net.au/sydney/stories/s1476723.htm
THE ANDREW OLLE MEDIA LECTURE 2005
Friday, 7 October 2005
Presented by John Doyle
(....) The truth is that in the belly of any society theres a violent brutal core that exposes itself when the thin veneer of culture is stripped away. The marauding Rascols blowing into Port Moresby from the New Guinea highlands are no different to the clans of Mogadishu; and those filmed roaming the streets of New Orleans armed to the teeth, all with hunger and many with hatred in the belly are similarly the result of neglect and cynical indifference by politicians and media alike. The recent Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico has partially revealed the feral world that snuggles so closely within the first world. And there are web sites that explain that the shape of the hurricane was that of a womb and that while ever the US continues to allow abortion, God will rein such punishments down. Without doubt there are other web sites that suggest the shape is that of a bum hole and is a warning against the legalization of gay marriage. And others suggesting this is simply Gaia attacking the oil industry. The fact is New Orleans has been known to be a disaster waiting to happen for decades. Being in denial about global warming is to court disaster. And Tokyo is a disaster waiting to happen the earthquake is already 250,000 years overdue. (....)
The genie of limitless spin and unlimited market power is to be unleashed. And this coincides with a time when were led to believe media resources are utterly stretched. The solution has been to squeeze the commercial lemon shamelessly. There is a never-ending stream of services offered that come with the tacit irresistible message of the promise of the good life. And somehow people spending 150% of what they earn makes for a robust economy. And then theres the promise of globalization which has still done little for the Asian sweatshop worker being paid fifty cents an hour to build the shoes for the golfer who is being paid fifty million a year to wear them. Never before have I been aware of just how obscene has become the remuneration amongst our top company executives. Fifteen to thirty million a year seems to be unexceptional whether successful or not. And nobody bats an eyelid. Were becoming a nation of acquisitors: special interest, real estate and the stock market. (....)
continue reading: http://www.abc.net.au/sydney/stories/s1476723.htm
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