Elite Power and the Manufacture of Ideology

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                                                (Fronch, via Youtube,  New York Times, 2018)

Description 

        The images show thirty-six screengrabs arranged in a grid, each featuring a different television news caster, while the specific studio background varies and is not fully identifiable, at this stage, the repeated framing emphasizes uniformity in broadcasting. Each frame isolates a single anchor or pair of anchors centered within a professional studio setting, reproducing a visual of structured presentation. 


Context 

        This image is drawn from a widely circulated video compilation that stitched together dozens of local news broadcasts in which anchors recite the same scripted message. The video was created to expose centralized production, scripted news distributed by the Sinclair Broadcasting Group, a conglomerate that owns 193 stations and a large array of local television stations. It was created and circulated in 2018, but has resurged periodically in the mainstream. By assembling 36 nearly identical screencrabs, the image makes visible what would otherwise be difficult to identify individually. The standardization of programming that was supposedly localized and independent journalism. The compilation was mobilizing on the internet, where public criticism erupted over media consolidation, editorial and ideological control, and the erosion of journalism. Viewers and critics interpreted the repetition as evidence of top-down messaging, ironically, warning against fake news. The clip and surrounding controversy raised broader questions about trust, authority, and concentration of media power.  

The Power Elite

        In The Power Elite, Mills argues that modern American society is no longer in an autonomous balance organized around independent corporations, but instead increasingly centralized and bureaucratized, led by a small group of interconnected elites who occupy command positions in major institutions. He separates power into three distinct spheres, economic, political, and military, although he adds the condition that these spheres are continually overlapping as elites move around positions of power. One of Mills' important quotes regarding this is, "They are not made by their job." This quote contrasts with the Weberian basis for social order, wherein each member of an institution wholly identifies with their job, expressing the exceptional character of the power elite. Those power elite, given their positions, are a cohesive group of mutual advantage that, through decision and indecision, have broad consequences on the broader population. The power elite occupy positions that allow them to exercise power over the environment, if indirectly, while "the powers of ordinary men are circumscribed by the everyday worlds in which they live." This complete lack of seeming autonomy leads the average person and the elite themselves to think they are inherently worthy, while mills are argues that this is purely a result of rationalizing their power inequity. He makes sure to rearticulate that the power elite, far from isolated actors, are socially and institutionally interconnected. Their complementary social position puts them in the same rooms and in the same organizations, and each's command in their respective hierarchies is seen as mutually beneficial. This relation reveals Mills' core contribution, the three keys to examining the power elite: theory of mind, hierarchy, and cause of unity. By examining the root of each, one can understand the relationships and relational power of the power elite and the control they exercise over history. 

Import

Using the ideas from Mills' The Power Elite, we can see this image in an entirely new light. By looking into the roots of the photo, namely, Sinclair Broadcast Group and its management, we can trace how these power elite operate, making the image an obvious symptom of Mills' theorization. The first, obvious discovery, is the CEO, Christopher S. Ripley's background in finance and investment banking. This tracks with the concentration of media that was so hotly contested, showing how journalism's reputation of reputability and autonomy has fallen to the same consolidation that Mills describes as symptomatic of a world increasingly controlled by the power elite. The specific example of Mr. Ripley is also a prime example of Mills' understanding of fluidity in the power elite, shifting between positions of power and authority instead of being defined by a singular occupation. The repeated script itself raises questions about the operation of the power elite in itself, especially when considering the former CEO and current chairman, David D. Smith.  Mr. Smith stepped down in 2017 following a close relationship to President Donald Trump and his campaign, firmly aligning the broadcast conglomerate with the Republican Party and MAGA politics. This image presents another example of their alignment with MAGA politics, with their cautionary message about fake news. This represents an association between the Political and Economic domains as defined by Mills. Mr. Smith is recorded as saying,  "We can deliver your message" to Donald Trump. Two people in positions of power, the president of the United States and the CEO of a private media conglomerate, made a deal. Trump himself, in this case, represents Mill's idea of a celebrity while he vies for elite status in two of the three domains. His lifetime was spent pursuing elite status in the economic realm, and as his career went on, he became a broadly recognizable figure. Now, in the Political sphere, he leverages his generalized status and brand to reach an elite position. In sum, this image represents and is represented by Mills' argument about the power elite and their command positions. The image directly presents a standardization of discourse led by people in these elite positions. Inquiring into the power elite implicated in the creation of the photo, or rather the company responsible for giving the image meaning, illustrates Mills' elite power relations perfectly in this particular respect. The image represents both the consolidation of media, its role in disseminating elite ideology, and the interconnectedness among the power elite. 

Bibliography

Fortin, Jacey, and Bromwich, Jonah Engel. 2018. " “Unfortunately, some members of the media use their platforms to push their own personal bias and agenda to control exactly what people think,” dozens of news anchors said last month, reading from a script provided by Sinclair Broadcast Group." New York Times, April 2. Retrieved April 13, 2026 (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/02/business/media/sinclair-news-anchors-script.html)

Mills, Wright. 1956. The Power Elite: Higher Circles. New York: Oxford University Press.

David D. Smith. 2026. "David D. Smith." Wikipedia. Retrieved April 17, 2026 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_D._Smith.

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