I was born in the USSR. No we did not think that the media was propaganda. At least most of the people I knew. And USSR's own propaganda was so cheesy that it was not believable to normal people. My parents were scientists and I also studied in university and had become scientist myself. So my experience might be somewhat not all encompassing because of the environment.

What I do find now is that the amount of corporate, media and government propaganda in the west is insane and is as cheesy as the one of former USSR.

Also the amount of venom and paranoia in this thread is depressing.