Rating: 
Summary: A great tool for understanding
Review: This film is a fantastic starting point for those interested in exploring the ideas of Noam Chomsky. It should function less as a typical biographical portrait and more as an overview of concepts--an overview which happens to include a bit of historical information about Mr. Chomsky's life. Those concepts, particularly those of the abolition of unwarranted power and authority should lead the viewer to take this film not as an authoritative documentary, but as a jumping block for a new means of analytical thinking. Taken as such and put into practice, I think this film's subject matter could help transform the narcotized western mind into a valuable, alert tool--a tool for healthy skepticism that could lead to a remarkable rethinking of power and domination in any guise, media or otherwise. It's length is not at all a disadvantage. The filmmakers manage to present a comprehensive body of ideas in as short a time as possible while maintaining an enjoyable pace. Well worth the time--insights like these are priceless.
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Summary: Perhaps the greatest intellectual alive today...
Review: I just finished watching this 2 tape movie on Chomsky's view of the media. It is really excellent.After reading about a half-dozen of his essays and transcripts of his speeches, he struck me as struck me as highly articulate intellectual, but he rankled my patriotism with what I pereceived as a "blame America
for 9-11" viewpoint. After watching the movie, I realize that
characterizing him like this was much too narrow an interpretation of what he is about. This movie is about the importance of the media, how it shapes our opinions and viewpoints, and the role the media plays for the establishment and government. The central example is a comparison of how the media handled the killing fields of Cambodia vs the US-sponsored
occurences in East Timor in Indonesia. I have no recollection of East Timor, I want to read sections of Blum's Killing Hope to get a little more context on this aspect of US foreign policy. But anyways, he has been called by Time Magazine arguably the most important intellectual alive today. Certainly he may challenge your well-established viewpoints on uncomfortable and disconcerting political matters. Through the whole movie I was thinking about mainstream media coverage of Afghanistan. Central to his beliefs are democracy and freedom, dissent, and active interpretation of the media. This skill is not just a priveledge and right, but may be a requirment for the preservation of democracy, freedom, and survival.
However, I feel the movie has lost some relevancy due to the changing nature of news and the media. Twenty years ago...yes, media and the government manufactured consent and Chomsky's points are relevant. But news now, particularly the plethora of internet news, diminishes the relevancy of Chomsky's thesis. On the internet there are so many news sources --left-wing, right-wing, mainstream, fringe, national, international -- and it is all available to all -- that the nature of manufacturing consent has changed and become much more complex due to the availability of varied information. Still, I recommend this VHS as it makes Chomsky the man, and ideas, available and understandable to more people.
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Summary: Noam Chomsky 101
Review: This is a great introduction to the work of Noam Chomsky. Everyone owes it to themselves to think about what he's saying.Very few intellectuals tell the plain truth like this guy. He's extremely down to earth and just decent. The video is a bit long at times but there's plenty of fascinating material in it. He explains how the media tries to dupe us and keep us atomized.
The world starts making lots of sense after viewing this tape.
Rating:
Summary: See it for yourself
Review: I'd just like to say that.....you must see this film for yourself. There are a few reviewers here that are dead set against Chomsky (for various political reasons) and have given all materials related to him bad reviews.....see it and make up your own mind. You can often find it at a local library or if they dont have it, ask them to bring it in. That way you wont have to commit to anything.....and then if you do like it then buy it. Please note, it is long and rather harsh if you are not use to documentaries. Manufacturing Consent is the best documentary I have ever seen. It gave me a better understanding of the so-called "free-world" and provided "a course of intellectual self-defense" as Chomsky is quoted a saying. Created by Mark Achbar, Peter Wintonick, this documentary exposes the direct relationship between democracy and propaganda. It goes a little overboard covering the life of Noam Chmosky but if you have never heard of him then its a great intro. The directors have used techniques that are often used in the mainstream media in order to show how manipulation works....so look for those and see how many you can spot. There is a companion reader that goes along with this doc. but its pricey. Hope this helps.
Rating:
Summary: It gave me a new perspective
Review: I am about to buy this movie. My cousin told me I had to watch the movie. I did. It is very insightful, i cannot believe how controlled the media is by the government. It gave me a whole new perspective on how the media and government work; i saw how decieving and evil the government and media can be. The people know only what "the man" wants you to know.
Rating: 
Summary: Subject is facinating/Delivery is manipulative.
Review: This film introduced me to the ideas of Noam Chomsky which are powerful and compelling arguments about the structures of power and their effects on the population in our society. It was facinating to learn about Chomsky since his ideas are so easily understood yet so easily forgoten. In this way I found the subject of the film to be very interesting. The delivery of the film, the techniques used by the film maker, made me very uncomfortable. Typical manipulation techniques were used throughout the documentary. For example, while you were hearing the voice of Noam Chomsky you were seeing visual ideas endorsed by the film maker and not by Chomsky himself. This is a tie-in. This technique, used in many propoganda films makes you believe in the "image" because you believe in the words being said. Also the film maker would take many comments Chomsky made, out of context, and string them together to create the film makers own sentence using Chomsky's words. This may or may not be endorsed by Chomsky himself, I do not know the context of the messages, however I felt highly manipulated by the technique. Througout the movie I felt like I was watching MTV and it made me very uncomfortable. In general the film had many distractions that took the viewers attention away from what Chomsky was saying. I felt manipulated. I would have been much happier just to hear Chomsky's speaches from begining to end. Thank you.
Rating: 
Summary: Manufacturing Consent Review
Review: This video begins with a short bio of Chomsky which I found interesting. The information concerning events in East Timor and Cambodia were definately the highlights.
Rating:
Summary: Thought provoking, and Inspirational
Review: I must recommend this documentry to everyone. Although I had read a book of Chomsky's (Secrets, Lies and Democracy) I never fully understood his views. That is, until I saw this film. I then began asking myself certain questions. Why had I never learned about dissenters (i.e. Chomsky, Zinn) in public high school or read about them in a paper? Or for that matter why was "mainstream" politics and the media that "covered" it so exclusionary? That is, why does the media never fully investigate dissenting voices. This film is a wonderful introduction to the tireless work of Chomsky. Humorous, brilliant, and caring, he is a truly an inspirational figure. In short, go out and get this film, you will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Great video
Review: Although I'm sure Professor Chomsky isn't too thrilled, this video is a great chance to not only learn about the media, but also a little about Noam Chomsky himself. Despite the recent happenings in East Timor, it is important to see this video to learn about why it has taken over twenty years for it to get attention. In this video, we get learn that one of the main reasons East Timor made it into the spotlight was because of the grassroots effort of people we meet in this video. This is not only an informative video, but an inspiring one. When asked about his own life's work and dedication, Chomsky responds by recognizing the all the people who work for change, and shows us how important it is to be able to "look in the mirror" at ourselves every morning
Rating:
Summary: Ponder the concepts and suppositions, question the facts
Review: Noam Chomsky is great. Not since John Dewey have I read someone so passionate about holistic scholarship in the humanities.Still, there are a lot of facts that need to be brought up to date with these tapes. Just to name a few - more advances have been made in the area of animal cognition than what was shown. Also, media conglomerates are of course much larger than what was presented. Other excerpts were also incorrect since they were from the 1960's, 70's, etc...the facts were just out of date and have been proven false with new research.And not to nitpick but the East Timor case is old and it only makes a skeptic wonder if any of it has any validity - pick up the New York Times and it's really easy to read about what's going on now of days. Also, take the WTO incident - that, for the most part was covered objectively and just about all sides were heard. There seems to be more of this kind of objective style prevailing in the 90's and a promise of it for the future.My last criticism is that, personally, I was left with the impression that he's coming across with a conspiracy theory. He says in the tape and in his writings that of course he isn't - but I'm just saying that he really gives off the impression. The majority of American media is of course regulated by market forces since no one particular individual or group is in control. The main focus of the media conglomerates, as with any corporation, is to make profit for the management and for the shareholders. The whole idea of these corporations manipulating the masses just like elite groups in the past would also manipulate is a somewhat paranoid. I'd suggest reading an old classic by Herbert Marcuse if you get a chance, "One-Dimensional Society." It'll show how decisions in an industrial society aren't just made by individuals but made because of the design of the system we create itself (i.e., a market system, etc.). On the positive side, the tapes are ingeniously presented and it's a great summary of Noam and his work. If you're a fan, you'll love these tapes!
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