„U laži su kratke noge“, poslovica je sa kojom smo odrastali, vaspitavani i obrazovani. U tradicionalnom shvatanju vrednosti istina se smatra dubokom, a laž plitkom. Borba za istinu je uvek uzvišene prirode, dok je laž nešto nisko, zlobno i podmuklo. To potvrđuje i narodna umotvorina.

U današnjem društvu laž sve više postaje fina, indirektna, nenametljiva i sladunjava. Od onog: „Izgledaš mlađe za svoje godine“ do: „Nije sve crno ili belo, ponešto je i sivo“. Ponekad, laž posluži nameni – nekog poštedi sekiracije, nekome ulije lažnu nadu, nekome pomogne da izbegne opasnost. Meša Selimović, sažimajući suštinu života u jednu rečenicu, napisao je: „Nisam ni slutio da laž može sprečiti zlo.“

Ali šta kada laž ima siguran posao i dobru zaradu?

U savremenom dobu moderne tehnologije uposlile su laž i ona stvara profit. Moderni mediji svakodnevno unose strah u javnost, proizvode i šire laži, stvaraju kontroverze ne bi li povećali prihod. Kako su se mediji razvijali i koristili prednosti interneta, tako se i način na koji se generiše prihod znatno promenio. Sada prihod zavisi od pregleda stranica ili utisaka, pa su blogeri prisiljeni da izbacuju što više sadržaja, kako bi povećali oglasni prostor sajtova. To umanjuje kvalitet članaka jer oni postoje samo da bi dobili prikaze stranica. Proces podrazumeva pisanje kontroverznog naslova ili širenje laži i „curenje“ dokumenata.

Manipulacija počinje sa manjim blogovima. Tako oglašivači imaju mogućnost da utiču na ono što veće novinske kuće objavljuju, i tako se tok sadržaja pomera predvidljivom putanjom – od manjih ka većim.

Za osnovno razumevanje eksploatacije medija zamislite lanac u kome svaka karika predstavlja medij. Na vrhu su velike medijske kuće, a na dnu su blogeri lokalnih veb stranica. Oglašivači kreću sa blogerima sa dna lanca, jer oni malo proveravaju činjenice i, kada se priča završi, kreću da pozivaju sledeće u lancu. Svaki sledeći pretpostavlja da, pošto se kreće na drugim sajtovima, oglas mora biti istinit i verifikovan, pa vodi priču dalje bez provere činjenica. Koristeći ovaj proces, oglašivači stvaraju mnogo buke, čak i u nacionalnoj štampi i medijima. Bez obzira da li su informaciju dobili sa lažnog mejla, ili je krajnji cilj prodaja knjige ili dobijanje donacije u dobrotvorne svrhe, ova prevara funkcioniše za sve na isti način.

Ekonomija stvaranja prihoda je jasna: Prihod = oglašavanje x saobraćaj.

Prenošenje poruke na bilo koji način je imperativ uspešnog oglašavanja. Bez obzira na tip prikaza stranice, oglas se pojavljuje na sajtu i vidljiv je publici, a to je najvažnije. Poznavajući mehanizam, blogeri čine sve da povećaju promet. U suštini, preduzetnici prave i objavljuju vesti.

Sam poslovni model vesti-blog osnovni je razlog zašto se medijima tako lako manipuliše. Blogovi zarađuju od reklama, oglasi se kupuju na osnovu utiska, pa su vlasnici blogova zabrinuti samo za prikaz stranice. Svemu tome možemo dodati i opšte uslove rada blogera – oni su siromašni i nemaju na raspolaganju dovoljno vremena da provere izvore i činjenice, nemaju vremena da izgrade lojalnu čitalačku publiku jer u toku dana moraju da izbace više tekstova. Veb sajtovi zarađuju tako što prodaju oglase koji se ocenjuju po broju pregleda stranica, stavljajući blogere pod stalni pritisak da proizvedu što više postova na koje se može kliknuti. U prilog tome politika bloga Business Insider kaže da zaposleni koji zarađuje 60.000 dolara godišnje mora da proizvede 1,8 milona pregleda stranica svakog meseca, inače ostaje bez posla.

Nedavni primer iz Austrije, gde je nekadašnja asistentkinja bivše ministarke Sofi Karmanis optužena da je lažirala istraživanja u korist Kurcove Narodne partije Austrije i plasirala ih besplatnim novinama, govori u prilog naše priče. Da li je Kurcovo povlačenje iz politike  dobar primer da je laž prepoznata i javno prikazana, ili je baš on žrtva medijske manipulacije?

Možda su se kola slomila na bivšem kancelaru Austrije, ali kakve sve  posledice  proizvodi gore pomenuta medijska manipulacija?

Plasirajući laž kao vest, oglašivači stvaraju svet između lažnog i stvarnog, u kome se jedno nadovezuje na drugo i ne može se razlikovati. Rezultati medijske manipulacije stvaraju štetne efekte koje ona može imati na živote stvarnih ljudi. To mogu biti zaposleni u kompanijama, ili ličnosti na javnim funkcijama, kojima blogeri izvrću reči i teraju ih da podnesu ostavke.

Blogeri prvo objave vest, a tek kasnije provere i potvrde činjenicu. Ova vrsta oglašavanja se oslanja na glasine. Ako imaju sreće, priča će se na kraju pokazati kao istinita. Ako ona to i nije, oni će izvestiti o reakcijama na vesti koje su kreirali.

Dakle, sve posledice možemo da svedemo pod pojam „ceremonijalne degradacije“ koji podrazumeva radnje ritualizovanog uništenja. Svrha je da omogući javnosti da izdvoji i prikaže jednog od svojih članova, da unizi njegov status ili da ga izbaci iz grupe.

Na kraju, ako se osvrnemo na moderni trend da se stav prema moralnim pitanjima izražava rečenicom: „Nije sve crno ili belo, nešto je i sivo“, postajemo svesni moralnog nazadovanja. Ajn Rend nam je daleke 1964. godine ukazala na to da znamo da „crno i belo” znači dobro i zlo, a da bismo definisali sivo, moramo najpre znati šta je crno i belo. U suštini,  moramo znati šta je dobro, a šta je zlo. Kada čovek utvrdi koja je šansa dobra, a koja je loša, više nema razloga da bira njihovu mešavinu, sivu. Ne treba da opravdavamo izbor nečega za šta znamo da je loše.

Ne mogu drugačije da završim osim rečima Meše Selimovića: “Više je dobrih ljudi na svetu, nego zlih. Mnogo više! Samo se zli dalje čuju i teže osećaju. Dobri ćute“.

„Lies Have Short Legs“ is a proverb with which we grew up, were raised, and educated. In traditional values, truth is considered profound, while a lie is shallow. The fight for truth is always of a noble nature, while a lie is something lowly, malicious, and deceitful. This is confirmed by folk wisdom.

In today’s society, lies are increasingly becoming refined, indirect, unobtrusive, and sweet. From „You look younger than your age“ to „Not everything is black or white; some things are gray.“ Sometimes, a lie serves a purpose—it spares someone from worry, gives someone false hope, or helps someone avoid danger. Meša Selimović, summarizing the essence of life in one sentence, wrote: „I never suspected that a lie could prevent evil.“

But what if a lie has a secure job and a good income?

In the modern age, technology has employed lies, and they generate profit. Modern media daily instills fear in the public, produces and spreads lies, and creates controversies to increase revenue. As media evolved and took advantage of the internet, the way income is generated has significantly changed. Now, income depends on page views or impressions, forcing bloggers to produce as much content as possible to increase advertising space on websites. This reduces the quality of articles, as they exist merely to gain page views. The process involves writing controversial headlines or spreading lies and „leaking“ documents.

Manipulation starts with smaller blogs. Advertisers thus have the ability to influence what larger news outlets publish, and so the flow of content moves along a predictable trajectory—from smaller to larger.

For a basic understanding of media exploitation, imagine a chain where each link represents a media outlet. At the top are major media companies, and at the bottom are bloggers from local web pages. Advertisers start with bloggers at the bottom of the chain, as they verify facts minimally. Once the story begins, they move on to the next link in the chain. Each subsequent link assumes that, since the story is circulating on other sites, the advertisement must be true and verified, thus perpetuating the story without fact-checking. Through this process, advertisers create significant noise, even reaching national newspapers and media. Whether the information comes from a fake email or the ultimate goal is to sell a book or raise charitable donations, the deception works in the same way.

The economics of revenue generation are clear: Revenue = advertising x traffic.

Conveying a message in any form is crucial for successful advertising. Regardless of the type of page display, the advertisement appears on the site and is visible to the audience, which is the most important factor. Understanding this mechanism, bloggers do everything they can to increase traffic. Essentially, entrepreneurs create and publish news.

The very business model of news blogs is the fundamental reason why the media is so easily manipulated. Blogs earn from advertisements, and ads are purchased based on impressions, so blog owners are primarily concerned with page views. Adding to this is the general working condition of bloggers—they are often poor and lack sufficient time to verify sources and facts, and they do not have time to build a loyal readership because they must produce multiple posts throughout the day. Websites earn by selling ads that are evaluated by page views, putting constant pressure on bloggers to produce as many clickable posts as possible. Supporting this, the policy of the blog Business Insider states that an employee earning $60,000 annually must generate 1.8 million page views each month, or they risk losing their job.

A recent example from Austria, where a former assistant to the ex-Minister Sophie Karmanis was accused of falsifying research in favor of Kurz’s Austrian People’s Party and disseminating it through free newspapers, supports our narrative. Is Kurz’s withdrawal from politics a good example of lies being recognized and publicly exposed, or is he a victim of media manipulation?

Even if the fallout landed on the former Chancellor of Austria, what are the broader consequences of the aforementioned media manipulation?

By presenting lies as news, advertisers create a world between falsehood and reality, where one blends into the other and becomes indistinguishable. The results of media manipulation can have harmful effects on the lives of real people. These can include employees in companies or public figures whose words are twisted by bloggers, forcing them to resign.

Bloggers first publish news and only later verify and confirm the facts. This type of advertising relies on rumors. If they are lucky, the story will eventually turn out to be true. If not, they will report on the reactions to the news they created.

Thus, all consequences can be summarized under the term „ceremonial degradation,“ which involves actions of ritualized destruction. The purpose is to allow the public to single out and display one of its members, to diminish their status, or to expel them from the group.

In conclusion, if we reflect on the modern trend of expressing attitudes toward moral issues with the phrase, „Not everything is black or white, some things are gray,“ we become aware of moral regression. Ayn Rand pointed out back in 1964 that knowing „black and white“ means understanding good and evil, and to define gray, we must first know what is black and white. Essentially, we must know what is good and what is evil. Once a person determines which chance is good and which is bad, there is no reason to choose their mixture, gray. We should not justify choosing something we know to be wrong.

I cannot end differently than with the words of Meša Selimović: „There are more good people in the world than evil ones. Much more! Only the evil ones are heard further and felt more intensely. The good ones are silent.“