Here is one possible path: We observe that the highest-profile politicians, investors and journalists frequently claim that propaganda fills the media and universities. That is, some people's interests lie in distorting truth, and they have sufficient resources to do this. The history of these distortions are not at all hidden in open societies, and it's not at all strange or like a conspiracy theory once we realize that people certainly are willing to use physical violence in war and to fill burgeoning jails. Propaganda is probably even more normal than violence once societies become increasingly civil, and so masses of assumptions underlie education and journalism.
Just as engineers release great energy by breaking nuclear and chemical bonds, widespread lies and taboos are sources of power.
A disturbing reversion to childhood begins from this realization. All the fundamental questions pop up again since they were never adequately answered: Who creates money? (And if it is not under democratic control, in whose interest is it created?) What does it mean to be professional?
Maybe those of us lucky enough to get a serious education don't have to go through this, but the rest of us do.
Minds resist returning to this state of ignorance, just like nature abhors a vaccuum. But this resistance can provide an important ingredient for creativity -- motivation. Many are energized by helping fill this desperate vaccuum, as the creativity of others fills their own. I believe people are more willing to accept this painful reversion if others help make it brief, and they may eventually reciprocate with their own contributions.
Comedy (The Daily Show), drama (The Wire) and documentary (The Corporation) are old tools where skill still makes a big difference, even though conventional wisdom is that TV and documentaries are boringly kitsch. Scientific honesty is also a skill that people find antiquated, but makes a world of difference.
All that remains is building communities of relatively honest people. But that is more for discussions on construction. -- TayssirJohnGabbour