It's no wonder business psychos get away with their crimes for so long.
The media these days are pretty toothless.
In fact, journalists these days are likely to be part of the problem.
In his new book, Flat Earth News, writer Nick Davies sets out to expose the falsehood, distortion and propaganda endemic in the global media these days.
The problem for journalists these days is that there are millions of them, in competition, and they're thinly spread across almost as many news outlets. Nobody has the resources to come up with any stories of their own, so they frequently regurgitate second hand news. They don't have the time or the man power to verify the story, or even get a fresh interview. They're more likely to make a quote up.
There has never been a better opportunity for unscrupulous PR spinners to feed stories into the global news machine. Nobody checks their story, and once it's in circulation, it can spread right across the world.
Even those journalists who aren't, as Davies calls them, "moral cowards, intellectual quislings, boot lickers, butt kissers or natural born liars" are unlikely to be able to maintain standards given the deluge of sewage they are expected to churn out.
Modern writers are not journalists, says Davies, they're churnalists.
Great news for pyshopaths. Pyschos are magnificent liars.
There's never been a better time for the shameless, ruthless exploitation of opportunities.
Friday, 23 November 2007
Why be a psychopath?
Psychopaths have a bad press.
Don't let that put you off. No true psycho cares what people say about them. Think of the contestants on The Apprentice - although they're usually just faking it.
The truth is, indifference to other people's feelings is one of the 12 traits that make pyschos great.
And here's another thing. Psychos actually get a bloody good press. When it matters. When a psycho is starting out in business, fawning press coverage is vital. And that's when the average anti-social lunatic will enjoy the most arse kissing publicity imaginable. Ask Robert Maxwell, he was a psycho.
Or better still, ask Alistair Campbell, his loyal defender. No, Campbell is NOT a psychopath. But he desperately defended Britain's most unscrupulous bullying thief ever. He even punched a Guardian journalist who made a joke about Captain Bob.
Why?
Perhaps it's because psychopaths are often enormously successful. Especially in business. So wherever there's psychos, there's sycophants.
(noun: psycophant. A newspaper journalist who sucks up to bullying thieves.)
Why do pyschos make good businessmen?
Psychos thrive wherever there is conflict, uncertainty and flux.
They enjoy a good war. They're also tailor made for the cut and thrust of commerce.
Look at some of the clinical attributes of these sociopaths.
Stick with me, and one day, you'll be breaking bread with computer salesmen. You'll learn how to tell losers that you "don't suffer fools gladly, mum".
One day soon, you'll have your own crowd of sycophants looking up to you.
And you can tell them: When you see something I want, I take it.
Stick with us, and you will unleash the power of your inner pyschopath.
It's time to get anti social.
Don't let that put you off. No true psycho cares what people say about them. Think of the contestants on The Apprentice - although they're usually just faking it.
The truth is, indifference to other people's feelings is one of the 12 traits that make pyschos great.
And here's another thing. Psychos actually get a bloody good press. When it matters. When a psycho is starting out in business, fawning press coverage is vital. And that's when the average anti-social lunatic will enjoy the most arse kissing publicity imaginable. Ask Robert Maxwell, he was a psycho.
Or better still, ask Alistair Campbell, his loyal defender. No, Campbell is NOT a psychopath. But he desperately defended Britain's most unscrupulous bullying thief ever. He even punched a Guardian journalist who made a joke about Captain Bob.
Why?
Perhaps it's because psychopaths are often enormously successful. Especially in business. So wherever there's psychos, there's sycophants.
(noun: psycophant. A newspaper journalist who sucks up to bullying thieves.)
Why do pyschos make good businessmen?
Psychos thrive wherever there is conflict, uncertainty and flux.
They enjoy a good war. They're also tailor made for the cut and thrust of commerce.
Look at some of the clinical attributes of these sociopaths.
Manipulative
Charming
Glib
Deceptive
Parasitic
Irresponsible
Selfish
Callous
Promiscuous
Impulsive
Antisocial
Aggressive
Stick with me, and one day, you'll be breaking bread with computer salesmen. You'll learn how to tell losers that you "don't suffer fools gladly, mum".
One day soon, you'll have your own crowd of sycophants looking up to you.
And you can tell them: When you see something I want, I take it.
Stick with us, and you will unleash the power of your inner pyschopath.
It's time to get anti social.
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