Noam Chomsky's work, "Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies," explores how the prevailing social structures often manipulate the general public. He argues that mainstream society tends to treat the populace as passive recipients of information rather than as active thinkers and contributors to discourse and decision-making processes. This manipulation keeps individuals from engaging critically with societal issues.

Chomsky emphasizes that in order for the existing power dynamics to maintain control, it is essential for the public to be kept uninformed and disconnected from meaningful participation. This framework of control limits the potential for genuine democratic engagement and stifles independent thought, positioning the public more as an audience than as engaged players in a democratic society.