…the press has become the greatest power within Western countries, exceeding that of the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary. Yet one would like to ask: According to what law has it been elected and to whom is it responsible? In the Communist East, a journalist is frankly appointed as a state official. But who has voted Western journalists into their positions of power, for how long a time, and with what prerogatives? (Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, A World Split Apart, Commencement Address At Harvard, June 8, 1978)

Notes:

a) The media in particular and corporations in general are the most powerful actors in nation-states today and are often more powerful than many nations. Despite having immeasurable (or at least unmeasured) influence on education, morals and taste (not to speak of the environment and the economy), these powers are charged with no responsibility. As Solzhenitsyn asks, “to whom is it responsible?” And for what?

b) What is afoot where the most powerful entities have the least responsibility?

The World Split Apart segments continue here.