William Hawes (US writer specializing in politics and environmental issues) (2015): “Here in the US there is no overt state-controlled media, no KGB or Stasi-like agencies telling journalists what to write and what must be censored. Most media outlets are simply unwitting pawns, Manufacturing Consent of their own citizens through pure ideological stupidity, arrogance, and propaganda regarding American exceptionalism. Not to mention their utter disregard for a nuanced understanding of history or accepting our countries’ past mistakes. They are less than puppets, who at least know that they are being manipulated by outside agents” (William Hawes, “Media Manipulation, Inc: The New World Disorder And What They Won’t Tell Us About The Middle East”, Countercurrents, 17 December, 2015: http://www.countercurrents.org/hawes171215.htm ).