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I really liked this bit: "You know, I remember in high school, already I was pretty old."
Excerpts from Manufacturing Consent, Noam Chomsky interviewed by various interviewers
Now there are other media too whose basic social role is quite different: it's diversion. There's the real mass media-the kinds that are aimed at, you know, Joe Six Pack — that kind. The purpose of those media is just to dull people's brains.
This is an oversimplification, but for the eighty percent or whatever they are, the main thing is to divert them. To get them to watch National Football League. And to worry about "Mother With Child With Six Heads," or whatever you pick up on the supermarket stands and so on. Or look at astrology. Or get involved in fundamentalist stuff or something or other. Just get them away. Get them away from things that matter. And for that it's important to reduce their capacity to think.
Take, say, sports — that's another crucial example of the indoctrination system, in my view. For one thing because it — you know, it offers people something to pay attention to that's of no importance. [audience laughs] That keeps them from worrying about — [applause] keeps them from worrying about things that matter to their lives that they might have some idea of doing something about. And in fact it's striking to see the intelligence that's used by ordinary people in [discussions of] sports [as opposed to political and social issues]. I mean, you listen to radio stations where people call in — they have the most exotic information [more laughter] and understanding about all kind of arcane issues. And the press undoubtedly does a lot with this.
You know, I remember in high school, already I was pretty old. I suddenly asked myself at one point, why do I care if my high school team wins the football game? [laughter] I mean, I don't know anybody on the team, you know? [audience roars] I mean, they have nothing to do with me, I mean, why I am cheering for my team? It doesn't mean any — it doesn't make sense.
But the point is, it does make sense: it's a way of building up irrational attitudes of submission to authority, and group cohesion behind leadership elements — in fact, it's training in irrational jingoism. That's also a feature of competitive sports. I think if you look closely at these things, I think, typically, they do have functions, and that's why energy is devoted to supporting them and creating a basis for them and advertisers are willing to pay for them and so on.
Not that he doesn't have a point, but some of this feels more like the feelings of someone with a nerdy and intellectual disposition feeling disconnected with the culture around him.
I think it's interesting that sports have been coded as right wing all my life, and now we're in a moment where conservatives are shying away from them.
what a fucking nerd
sports are fun, community is fun, it is humans creating meaning out of absolutely nothing, transcendence of our existential quandary in a nutshell. whatever why am I wasting my time, go stare at a math
the only sport should be the people's protracted war
Chess or Starcraft 1?
But the point is, it does make sense: it's a way of building up irrational attitudes of submission to authority, and group cohesion behind leadership elements — in fact, it's training in irrational jingoism. That's also a feature of competitive sports. I think if you look closely at these things, I think, typically, they do have functions, and that's why energy is devoted to supporting them and creating a basis for them and advertisers are willing to pay for them and so on.
this is the only part I particularly agree with, the rest is pretty half-hearted analysis by somebody in an intellectual circle trying to justify their superiority to the rubes, whether that's the intention or not.
this isn't to say that sports are always bad anymore than, say, nationalism is always bad. the idea of "I was born in a place surrounded by fans of this team, and thus I must also support this team" is a pretty transferable mentality to geopolitics. it's very anti-internationalist and keeps you believing that you have more in common with your billionaires than the working class in the countries your empire is routinely destroying. but sports can also be a positive force for building camaraderie so I wouldn't go as far as the reddit-esque critique of "sportsball, amiright?"