Better than Ezra

For a blogger, Ezra Klein of Tapped has tapped into a 20th century mentality. Regarding the spreading of ideology through books, he writes:

... the conservative movement is rife with them. A simply stunning number of institutions arose in the 40s and 50s that did nothing but disseminate and popularize books setting out the conservative economic worldview to the country. The focus was, quite literally, on creating conservatives. Not Republicans, not GOP voters, but ideologues of a certain brand and style, whose foundational world view, rather than mere partisan allegiance, would be aligned with the movement.

Liberals in this day and age, despite facing a moment not altogether dissimilar from mid-century conservatives, have not embarked on on similar educational strategy. Indeed, the books most likely to be publicized by progressives are partisan tracts laying out the case against the Bush administration or the Republican Party, not explications of the liberal worldview and persuasive literature arguing for its adoption. I can't even think of many books written for popular consumption that attempt to provide such a rigorous education.

Ezra's point about books is valid, but he acts as if books are the only means of mass instruction (how 1990s). And, in doing so, he overlooks the fact that the liberals (in this day and age) are adept at using cutting-edge technology -- not just books -- to indoctrinate. For example, here is just one example of a video that airs every day on MTV. (Hat tip to Jim Eltringham for pointing this out to me)

As you will see, this video does not just advocate an "anti-Bush" position, it fosters an anti-Free Market ideology (some would call this Communism). And because of the catchy music and cartoon animation, it is much more appealing to the youth of America than, say, Russell Kirk's The Conservative Mind.

The real question isn't: "Why don't liberals write books." The real question is: "Why aren't conservatives using technology better?"