I think its not so much a "they" than a breakdown in society structure.

Since the 1980s, a lot has changed in the workplace and industry. Computers were only part of it. Globalization of industry happened. Most people in many countries changed jobs and careers at least once, if not more. In the UK, Japan, Germany, etc the population moved around some. In the USA, the population moved around a lot, at much greater distances than most other countries.

In the USA, this change uprooted many families, friendship networks, community ties. People started to socialize less with their neighbors. There were less community activities. At the same time, interest and participation in municipal and very local politics collapsed. People started to pay almost exclusive attention to state and national politics.

New political parties and grassroots only come from local politics. The internet so far has not been a replacement for what was lost in a sense of community. This is why there are no significant protest or street movements by any political group in the USA. The mechanisms are broken.

The only way to have significant interest in local politics again is to either grow the internet in new ways, or to abandon it. Until then, there is a vacuum in politics, which is exploited by the rich. It is not a coincidence that this time is also when the wealth disparity increased dramatically.

There cannot be a socialist revolution, new parties, or even a mild reform of current politics, until there is a greater sense of community in the USA.