“Public Opinion, which is an attempt to organize the ignorance of the community, and to elevate it to the dignity of physical force.”

—  Oscar Wilde

The Critic as Artist (1891), Part II
Context: England has done one thing; it has invented and established Public Opinion, which is an attempt to organize the ignorance of the community, and to elevate it to the dignity of physical force.

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Irish writer and poet 1854–1900

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“By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, journalism keeps us in touch with the ignorance of the community.”

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The Critic as Artist (1891), Part I
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