Ah Ken, calling a spade a fork you must know by reading that what I'm suggesting is that the closer to authority people get the more likely they are to suck up and believe in the reasoning of authority. Marks theories fail because he is trying to separate the people into the stupid and the smart by way of formal education. There's no consistent logic behind that statement, therefore it can only be elitist.
That's not saying that uneducated people are all wily and intelligent, but what it certainly is saying is that being educated does not make you either. It is a false assumption based only on his position and personal experience, which is very much in the world of further education. Therefore, snobbery.
I would suggest the split between those who believe what they read I the papers (sun/guardian no quantitative difference imo in terms of bullshittery) and those who take a way more cautious approach is likely more equally split, though my gut says the further you are away from positions of authority the less likely you will be sucked into the charade of it all. I know in my social experience this is the truth of it, but it's not fact nor can it be reasonably proved this.
This, in the more mundane ways of scientific exploration, is my point, not the black and white sensationalism you suggest.