On it's own it's not a big deal, but you don't control 320 million people doing just one thing.
So, the surprising thing is not that it works, but that nobody thinks of it in terms of free speech. After all, of course news organizations will chase profits so access becomes a useful tool.
PS: Press releases are not just a means of corporations using lazy reporters to spread there message.
I don't think it's entirely fair to characterize Americans as being "controlled" by the media or the government. If the president (Obama in particular) had that much power to influence popular opinion through propaganda, we would have an actual national healthcare plan right now.
What's the basis for believing that President Obama wanted an "actual national healthcare plan"? Did he get negligible funding from the health insurance sector?
The US government does not have a single viewpoint so it's message is not unified on a wide range of issues. But, things like the food pyramid have a huge impact on how people think.
Consider, did the Fed have anything to do with the recent housing bubble and burst? Well, bubbles become self sustaining up to a point, but was there anything that caused a huge amount of money to slosh into the housing market?
Now, let's take a step back. Are houses a good investment in the abstract?
So, the surprising thing is not that it works, but that nobody thinks of it in terms of free speech. After all, of course news organizations will chase profits so access becomes a useful tool.
PS: Press releases are not just a means of corporations using lazy reporters to spread there message.