Of course they didn't invent it, but they've perverted it entirely. The difference between mainstream choices is essentially just which corporate agenda you prefer. The impact of that is a lot broader than micro targeted Facebook ads. That might sway an election, but the media has a role in selecting the candidates and defining their policies that Facebook ads don't. David Frum once said "Republicans originally thought that Fox worked for us and now we're discovering we work for Fox.", but I think that idea applies to the corporate media and all politicians. These media companies are not benign, they're an integral part of an anti-democratic power structure.