It is working at scale. Would you seriously characterize the US voting populace as "well-informed" or "well-educated"? They don't need to be because they have no real power.

And the mass-marketed "news" most of them watch is only reinforcing their ignorance.

I wouldn't call this working, civil rights aren't doing as well as they were 10 years ago (just as one example).

American society has taken multiple large steps backwards precisely because people have been convinced to vote against their own self interest.

The system is not working in our (the citizenry's) interests, no. But it's working spectacularly for the multinational corporations that just happen to finance and produce the news, though. Think that's a coincidence?

It's not working for the multinational corporations either. They're getting fined in the trillions, they're losing workers faster than they can replace them, their profits are shrinking again, and the world in which they conduct business is destabilizing.

There isn't some comfortable ruling secret society pulling any strings, it's just a lot of unpredictable people doing unpredictable things.

I genuinely feel bad for folks who think “billionaires” or any other group of people are either capable or willing to successfully coordinate in a general sense to steer global events.

This is purely your political opinion not some kind of fact like Ukraine war or a recent Nuclear fusion breakthrough etc.

...yes? Does me having an opinion about the state of my society as a result of following what happens in it bother you?

Gay marriage became legal in all states in 2015.

You’re presenting emotion as fact which is precisely what a lot of the news does too.

Ah and that’s the actual problem; I didn’t do what you claim, but you can’t tell the difference between my judgement and a fact, can you? Or to be more accurate, you can tell but you think that’s because you saw through a ruse.