Mind management 2.0: The internet and the myth of individualism and personal choice in neoliberal times

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5209/tekn.81245
Keywords: Herbert Schiller, myths of neoliberalism, political economy of communication, The Mind Managers
Agencies: This work is part of the research projects «Problemas y públicos mediatizados: emociones y participación» (PID2021-123292OB-I00) and «La contemporaneidad clásica y su dislocación: de Weber a Foucault» (PID2020-113413RB-C31)

Abstract

The year 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of Herbert I. Schiller’s The Mind Managers that carried out a critical political economy analysis of the myths that sustained industrial capitalism and the role played by the media and cultural industries in their dissemination. As a tribute, this paper highlights the value of Schiller’s work, tracing the historical origins of, and updating, what he considered to be the most important myth in this groundbreaking book: individualism and personal choice. The research shows that this myth has strengthened and undergone important changes in the technologically-centered neoliberal context of today’s cognitive capitalism, where its function is to hide and idealize the present-day structural conditions. The prevalence and characteristics of this myth are analyzed through the paradigmatic example of dating apps. Both the possibilities and limitations provided by media technologies are considered in the context of power relations.

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Author Biographies

Joan Pedro-Carañana, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Department of Journalism and New Media, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM). PhD in Communication, Social Change and Development (UCM). He is interested in the role of media, education and culture in the reproduction and transformation of societies. He is co-editor of El Modelo de Propaganda y el Control de los Medios (Comunicación Social), Talking Back to Globalization: Texts and Practices (Peter Lang), and The Propaganda Model Today: Filtering Perception and Awareness (University of Westminster Press).

Ledy Armirola-Garcés, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Communications professional, with training in Social Communication, Master in Social Development and PhD in Audiovisual Communication, Advertising and Public Relations from Complutense University of Madrid. She has worked on research projects with various development organizations on issues such as human trafficking, early childhood and the environment. In the field of business communications, she has advised different companies in creating and sustaining relationships with their audiences. Her lines of research are communication for development and information and communication technologies, with a focus on the study of access and use of ICTs by companies and their relationship with communications and digital transformations.

 

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Published
2023-01-12
Opr
How to Cite
Pedro-Carañana J. y Armirola-Garcés L. (2023). Mind management 2.0: The internet and the myth of individualism and personal choice in neoliberal times. Teknokultura. Journal of Digital Culture and Social Movements, 20(1), 109-116. https://doi.org/10.5209/tekn.81245
Issue
Vol. 20 No. 1 (2023): Democratic deliberation on the Net: From digital dialogue to digital noise
Section
Dis/Regarding...

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