Accusing Democrats of subverting the next election? Really? That is literally what Trump did in 2016, and literally what Trump and the entire Republican party are doing for this election.
They have tried to get Ukraine to interfere in our elections. They refuse to act on any election security bills that Democrats have passed in the House, despite dire and repeated warnings from every one of intelligence services about Russia is going to do (hack into voter registrations and polling machines). They continue to repeat Russian propaganda that it was Ukraine and the Democrats that interfered in 2016, not Russia.
Words can't describe how disturbing and un-American this entire Republican Party is, as well as their henchmen on Fox News. Yet, 40%-45% of Americans will believe ANYTHING they are told.
1
Everyone should read this.
3
It is vital to remember the following about the pattern of lying and strategic mayhem summarized in this column: both sides are not being described.
The left does not do this; only the right does.
The Democratic Party does not do this; only the Republican Party does.
Liberals do not do this, nor do all conservatives; but those who do are conservative.
412
But let's look at this from a Conservative viewpoint: the mainstream media is controlled by liberals. They openly mock conservatives, evangelicals, and citizens of flyover states. They hysterically decry Trump's corruption but poo poo Biden and Son's shady dealings. It's sacrilegious among the chattering classes to wonder how a drug addict, with no energy industry experience, ends up on the board of an energy company in Ukraine, a country where the drug addict's father was leading the charge against institutional corruption. Oh, and the drug addict gets millions of dollars for his lack of expertise. Look, you want to condemn Conservative conspiracy theories? Then, take their rational concerns seriously.
13
Perhaps heads will need to roll.
1
This is the muck from which present-day, holier than thou, conservatives have emerged. How could any principled, thinking, and responsible individual follow what these snake oil salesmen, and woman, continue to peddle?
5
Good grief, as an outside observer, what's taking place in the insane msm in America is left and right msm outlets accusing each other of the exact same thing, all claiming to have the high road. I swear I've heard almost identical claims in this article on Fox News, pointed in the opposite direction, except that Fox News is outnumbered by numerous lefty outlets all saying the same thing - which quite frankly, starts to sound incredibly orchestrated, like the entire left using identical words from the same dictionary, on the same day. Yikes.Good grief, as an outside observer, what's taking place in the insane msm in America is left and right msm outlets accusing each other of the exact same thing, all claiming to have the high road. I swear I've heard almost identical claims in this article on Fox News, pointed in the opposite direction, except that Fox News is outnumbered by numerous lefty outlets all saying the same thing - which quite frankly, starts to sound incredibly orchestrated, like the entire left using identical words from the same dictionary, on the same day. Yikes.
1
Thank you for saying that Nicole and NYTs. It is deception the political right media enjoys advantage of. Journalism cares about truth and facts.
The right wing media can be ignored by most of the thinking people in the nation. Usually. I know of no one in my circle who listens to Glen Beck or Hannity or Limbaugh, or any of the other radio "personalities" that command the local AM stations from sea to shining sea. They are droll and hurtful people, for the most part, and say mean spirited things about perfectly good Americans on a daily basis. I cannot explain why they command an audience of such size, except that a lot of Americans must be bored and stupid, and enjoy hearing nasty talk about powerful people. President Trump owes his success to these media clowns. He is one himself. Lord help us if he is re-elected in November. The gloves will come off.
4
Yet we keep electing conservatives. And the Dems keep putting up pathetic candidates from yesterday. We deserve what we are getting.
The problem with this piece is that the Democrats are doing it even worse.
E.G. they FALSELY accused Brett Kavanaugh of sexual crimes.
They could get no proof at all ... it was only claims that were claimed by one main claimant apiece ... the possible witnesses all produced only exhoneration of Kavanaugh.
They (Democrats) have been getting nastier and more farfetched as the decades pass. This is the culmination.
Of course, they always talk about Russia. The names Lavrentiy Beria and Josef Stalin come to mind: "You give me the man and I will give you the crime". Beria, Pelosi, Schiff ..... etc.
I've seen the facts: which are, that no one has any proof
of any crime whatsoever.
Its like the OJ Simpson trial: the prosecution never even tried to prove he killed anybody ... they tried to prove
he had visited the scene, not that he did it, and carefully tried to obscure that fact.
Remember .... the Democrats have never accused Trump of a crime! They've never accused him of doing anything wrong ... they in fact have accused him simply to ask
for an investigation ... which is part of his job, whether the
investigatee is running for President or not.
After all ... the Democrats demanded and got an investigation of Trump vis-a-vis Putin ... and nothing at all
turned up. That's the same idea in reverse.
3
I read that a key determinant of conservative politics is the expression of disgust - a sneering curled lip being the visual clue
and responding to rational arguments from the left with ad hominen attacks - when you have no persuasive argument based on facts, just insult the person !
like - she's a woman - and she bleeds - all over ...
2
This, ladies and gentlemen, is why we can't have a nice country anymore.
Right wing conspiracy theories?!?!?!?!
Imagine that?
Masses of blind sheep latching onto those theories, and allowing a man like Trump to take office and remain there based on those bogus theories?!?!?!?
Imagine that?
A nation that is losing itself, and its democratic principles because those aforementioned blind sheep fall for the propaganda?!?!?!
Imagine that?
"It can't happen here" by Sinclair Lewis
Uhhhh, yes. Yes it can!
2
Today in the impeachment trial, his defense team accused the Democrats of meddling in the election.
*sigh*
November can't get here fast enough.
3
The biggest lie of all is ignored, and that lie is that the red states are indelibly damaged by east coast elites, and other liberal areas of the country.
Truth be told if it weren't for those "liberal" federal dollars flowing into those states, they wouldn't survive.
And you can take that to the bank.
3
If I were to spread such divisive destructive lies about my neighbors they could sue me for slander. How is it that Fox News, with its stream of hate filled slanderous lies broadcast throughout this land, are not held accountable?
3
companion reads from the NYTs' incisive reporting on right wing propaganda operations masquerading as journalism:
"How a Conservative News Site Thrived on Facebook and Google"
'The Western Journal has had one of the biggest online audiences. But it now finds itself clashing with Silicon Valley tech giants. Here are highlights from a Times investigation.'
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/22/us/western-journal-highlights.html?searchResultPosition=1
...and;
"In the Trump Era, a Family’s Fight With Google and Facebook Over Disinformation"
'The man behind “Willie Horton” and Citizens United built a potent online disinformation mill with his son. Then Big Tech changed the rules.'
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/21/us/facebook-disinformation-floyd-brown.html?searchResultPosition=2
1
This trainwreck is like Douglas Adams' "somebody elses problem field."
Half the country has gone nuts while the other half is going nuts trying to fathom how the half that's gone nuts could be so devoid of reality.
And, dependent upon where you sit, the differentiation is interchangeable.
"So it goes."
- K.V.
1
And what of the left-wing media? CNN, MoveOn.org, Slate, etc.
2
the right wing propaganda machine, firmly behind a corrupt, venal Chief executive has destroyed our democracy in service to greed and power.
The writers of the Constitution never envisioned a corrupt President, enabled by a congress in the pocket of their donors.
"Amerika, what a country!"
2
What a gonzo, clear-eyed, long overdue and incisive piece! Thank you Ms Hemmer and Times. Now what? We're all swimming in this sewage, like it or not, along with the National Inquirer and Lev Parnas and Stormy Daniels and Jeff Bezos' affair and Elizabeth Warren's ancestry and Lindsey Graham's howling faux outrage. It's damaging us as individuals as well as our shared civic life.
Friends don’t let Friends watch Fox Fascist News. On a more serious note; Fox News has paved the way for America’s present
slide towards Fascism.
It has promoted ultra nationalism, xenophobia, misogyny, and racism. It has constantly targeted the vulnerable “others” for
the woes of the nation.
It has undermined a scientific view of the world and attacked the
very nature of truth itself.
Mike
2
Obama talked tough about Putin then whispered I'm really "flexible" is no big deal. Ukraine was invaded soon after.
Hillary using the Steele dossier is no big deal. The dossier becomes the foundation for FISA court warrents.
Trump cracks a joke "hey Russia maybe you can find the missing emails" becomes proof there was Russian collusion.
Bidens nepotism is perfectly normal,nothing to see here.
I guess I need to go to re-education camp.
2
The GOP has destroyed any integrity our country used to have. Trump is the most corrupt president ever, but the GOP convinces their magats that the Democratic politicians are worse. And the magats believe only Faux Snuze.
Liberal talk radio "Air America" ultimately failing. Why?
2
Really, really. Have you ever watched a full day of MSNBC. Joe and Mica set the tone and off they go. It’s the same story told 10 different ways throughout the day. No balance no opposing point of view. The funny thing is when I hear an expert or guest that surprises and disagrees with the daily narrative. You never see them again. I have a question. Who is the Chris Wallace or Brett Baier or Andrew Neapolitan for MSNBC or CNN.There isn’t one. Not one. Sure there is the Hannity and Tucker. That is for show. I know you’re going to say. Yes but Hannity is doing the President’s bidding. Do a little digging and see how many times Maddow was invited to the Obama Whitehouse for “Off the record” meetings. Just saying.
3
This is a cute article but it forgets to mention that all this is possible because huge swaths of the American public have the mental capacity of a rock. So you can sell them whatever you like and they’ll eat it up. Nation of dunces really.
You left out the racism, that is dog whistled into every presentation.
Added into the hatred for others message, so absolutely Christ like in the religious right.
1
This is what happens when you let the FOX guard the White House. A bone-spurred chicken gets to roost.
Here's an excerpt from another article that appears in the Times this morning:
"On Fox News, Mr. Schiff was filleted. “Amateur Thespian Schiff Tries Out Some New Lines,” TV monitors broadcasting the network declared Thursday, as the host Tucker Carlson mocked the congressman, calling him a “wild-eyed conspiracy nut.”"
Americans are starting to speak two different languages (think of the Eloi and Morlocks in 'The Time Machine'). I cannot talk politics with my Republican 'friends' - people with whom I socialize in sports and games - without being called an idiot or a moron or without hearing disparaging epithets about leading Democratic politicians.
Our country is dangerously divided and becoming more so. Part of the reason is the "I've got mine" syndrome. But this article points to the other: a cheapening of rational public discourse relying on facts and reason which steers clear of personal attacks, both on those in the public spotlight and ordinary citizens who attempt to voice their opinions in a respectful manner.
The joke is that a Democrat looks at a glass of water and says that it's half-full. A Republican looks at that same glass of water and thinks it's his. The joke is that Republicans intend to co-opt all of public discourse.
Bad words drive out good? The joke is on us.
3
come on ... it really must be global warming
Because right-wing media & republicans know the only way they can win is by using fear & sensationalism to undermine honest debate & discourse -and that’s exactly what they are do and will continue to do. Heck it’s working for them. And it’s shameful. And it seems they believe their voters are fools.
2
Democrats should now launch sequential impeachment enquiries addressing the multitude of this President's high crimes (including impeaching office bearers who are also implicated), tie up the senate, and steal the agenda away from the Republican cover up and complicity.
Impeach. Rinse and repeat. Impeach. Rinse and repeat etc
Another reason that people who still read should read Orwell's 1984 and some of his essays on truth and lies. But then people would have to be willing to read and not watch State TV like Fox News or listen to blowhard liars like Limbaugh.
We learned the lessons from the Dems' defense in the Clinton impeachment. Ignore the perjury and claim it's just about an affair. You reap what you sow.
2
Yes, I've noticed that the right wing isn't as opposed to fake news and lying and deficits and spending and treason and propaganda breaking the law....as they seem to claim.
Roger Ailes' choice of "fair and balanced" as a tag line is a corner stone of conservative medias' "all lies all the time" operating principle.
'Trump Team, Opening Defense, Accuses Democrats of Plot to Subvert Election'
"President Trump’s lawyers argued against his removal in the Senate impeachment trial, saying Democrats are “asking you to tear up all of the ballots” by convicting him of high crimes and misdemeanors."
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/24/opinion/sunday/impeachment-fox-news.html?
Sean “Three Fingers” Hannity (that’s the distance from his eyebrows to his hair line) is a menace. Smug, vindictive, downright nasty sycophant and lead henchman to his truly HRM Trump. Never trust anyone with that narrow a forehead. Such little brainpower in that minuscule cranium.
Fox News is the greatest threat American democracy faces. It traffics in lies and hatred, it poisons the minds of the fools who make Fox their news source.
1
The author honorably admits his bias in this amazingly one-sided opinion piece. While no doubt fodder for the left, some perspective might be in order. The foundation for believing Fox has been established by the acceptance of advocacy journalism - such as this piece - where no attempt at thoughtful analysis is in evidence. For those whom the author disparages, the TImes, CNN, MSNBC etc seem just as biased as he avers Fox to be, and thus not terribly influential outside their own base. Perhaps the author should spend more time, and a little more effort, looking at all the messengers, not just those he dislikes.
3
Thank heavens for conservative media. Remember The Dan rather/George W scandal? How many “fake” news stories has CNN been forced to apologize for? Ditto for ABC, CBS and NBC! We’re talking prime time news and their “anchors” not the pundits spewing their rants on the “opinion” shows, both liberal and conservative. The NYT and WP are guilty of publishing half/truths, and worse, more often than not...unnamed sources attributed to breaking (fake) new stories. Fortunately, Americans now have many media sources from which they can choose to form their own opinions.
4
I can’t wait for Fox News conspiracies to spring up as to who was ultimately responsible for Trump’s downfall.
Jews will certainly be getting a big part of the blame -- they are always the usual suspects --- but blacks, women, Hispanics, Muslims and gays will certainly be accorded a respectful hearing.
1
Sauce for the goose, sauce for the gander.
Both sides of the media do the very same thing - exonerating every single thing that their side does and demonizing every single thing that the other side does.
The NY Times needs to ask itself a simple question: Does it want to be reporting ONLY one side?
1
The roots of this American fascism, to call it by its true name, are far older than we think. Harking back to the Puritans of the late 17th century and continuing through to the Revolution with its numerous Tories who wanted to continue to nurse at the bosom of the mother country, despite the logistical and ethical disadvantages...Social Darwinism flourished and gave us such bizarre movements as Prohibition and the 20th Amendment 100 years ago, a thinly-veiled version of bigotry and racism wrapped up in a virtuous skirt. Ayn Rand came along with her appeal to the self, based on a reactionary reading of Soviet-style communism, one that doesn't include compassion but relies on competition and greed. No wonder we're such an ugly nation of ungracious violent pigs.
1
This disregard for the truth was not invented by American Conservatives. It is part of the Fascist playbook and the Soviet agitprop. It is an important part of totalitarianism.
This argument, that conservative media have been "at it" to demonize democrats for 50 years, is frankly false. Perhaps you've heard of William F. Buckley and similar commenters, and you can find videos of how the conservative media treated Nixon prior to his resignation. These show how false this view is. Conversative media has always had a problem, but they did not create trump.
The current trumpy situation is caused entirely by trump. It gets progressively worse because republicans, and for that matter EVERYONE, is afraid of the madman in one or another trumpish aspect. Democrats are fearful of his demagogic impulses; republicans fear his vindictive wrath against them if they simply bat a negative eye towards him; his trumpish loyalists fear that he is the only "savior" they've seen (or will see again) in decades and so they must completely defend his corruption, sexual crimes, stealing from veterans and charities, ....
Everyone is Afraid of one or another aspect of trump.
This is why republicans will not defy him. They fear his wrath -- his twitterstorms, his vindictive rants, his campaigning against them, his creating false rumors about them, ...
We have a very unstable (ill) person occupying our Oval Office, one who uses anger and hatred and fear to keep himself in power. We absolutely need to remove him. He is seriously harming our government, in ways we'll learn of in 20 or 50 years!
The conservative media did not create him -- they simply encourage him.
10
The right-wing media complex also invented "alternative facts." Actual facts and truth are no longer relevant. In the post truth era it's all about what you choose to believe.
If the facts aren't in your favor, concoct new ones. The internet has made it easy to leap down the rabbit hole and find support for whatever cockamamie conspiracy theory you have in mind.
R.I.P. truth, we miss you.
19
Amen, a thousand times amen! The canard "they all do it" is the worst, most insidious falsehood drummed into our skulls by the professional cynics of the Republican party. Because then, nothing matters. At the same point, however, Democrats would be foolish to ignore the common sense understanding that Hunter Biden benefited from his father's position. People understand this as corruption even if it's technically legal. Sanders should not have apologized for his staff calling a spade a spade.
1
I have several friends who are long time conservatives. They are currently ashamed of Trump and his party, although some of them had supported Trump for President in 2016. Every one of them had remembered these days as a golden age of pure true conservatism. Every one of them had especial love for Regnery Publishing and were shocked, shocked! when I pointed out that early Regnery became popular and rich by publishing racists, Birchers, and other peddlers of vicious conspiracy lies. More than one did not initially believe me when I mentioned that Regnery had published some piece of trash. Legitimate conservative tracts existed but were not major in the business plan of such right wing publishers.
Let us never forget. These were poisonous serpents from the beginning.
2
Republican hypocrisy in action. You have to admire their constancy and loyal tribalism however. Theirs is not politics (the art of the possible); 'politicking' instead. This is not a reflection of true democracy, where the truth, based on evidence, may be used when a politician is knowledgeable, honest and dedicated to serve his/her constituents, if elected, when competing with like-adversaries for a public job. What is on display, particularly on the right-wing media, is an evil distortion of the facts...to benefit one of their own, however corrupt and/or incompetent; witness the current cadre of misfits in the Trump's administration, especially the 'Lindsey Graham' types, total wheather vanes, all to keep their miserable seats in government...to go on abusing their power.
Excellent article. The mendacity of the conservative Republicans is driving this Country to despotism.
It’s more than just trump, the entire GOP are bad faith actors, propagandist and to an astonishing degree, criminals.
American democracy needs to be rid of these people or it will collapse.
It seems like the most patriotic thing any random megabillionaire could do for this country and the planet, would be to buy out every single media asset owned by the Murdoch's and then turn them in to beacons of truth.
The U.S., UK, and Australia are all in a free-fall as a result of this one deranged family and their propaganda. To what end?
2
So Adam Schiff talking endlessly, going on into the wee hours of the night, boring the country to death has nothing to with "The Republicans Are Winning," quoting Jeffery Toobin.
1
Let me float this little conspiracy theory I've been cogitating for a few days: the entire impeachment process is gambit by Nancy Pelosi to get the 2020 Presidential election thrown into the House of Representatives. When no clear winner emerges, Speaker Pelosi will be elected President thus becoming the first Female Chief Executive.
Please do not inform Rush Limbaugh or Steve Bannon of this concept.
Add in fox propaganda the opioid of the right we come to the crossroads,this isn’t just the pendulum swinging Democracy either swims or sinks with the Impeachment and election.
The Republican Party does not exist without Fox News.
To a point where since fox controls the voters, fox controls the party.
1
Over 60% of Republicans watch and believe FOX News. The Murdoch family has destroyed American democracy.
In ticking off the sins of the conservative media against Democrats and their campaigns, the endless overblown coverage of nonexistent scandals, the author tactfully omitted The New York Times and the amount of four-column, above-the-fold coverage it devoted to Hillary Clinton's "emails". At a certain point in 2016, it seemed that a day didn't pass without something popping up in my feed.
1
Thank you for this lesson in the history right wing subversion of America. I had no idea it started that long ago.
It wasn’t the Conservative press, they were blaming FDR for Pearl Harbor as early as December 1941.
liberals are attached to the enlightenment, thus believe logic and facts are effective communication tools. They do use simple statements repeated and repeated, and they do not use stories. I no longer send money to dems because most of their strategies to communicate are a waste of money.
We are forced to watch the spectacle of senate republicans pretending they think Donald Trump is honest and fights corruption, both of which are simply preposterous. The president did not simply descend in a golden sphere from Venus - it was a golden escalator in Trump tower. He has history. There is a record of his and his crime family’s having indeed sought out corruption...so they could reap some of the rewards. Has the right wing scandal mechanism obliterated our collective memory of the Trump Foundation? Their “charity” designed mainly for beak wetting. I mean, you’d have to have a degree from Trump University to believe this bunch saw corruption as anything other than another business opportunity.
There was a gradual transition from legitimate conservative journalism to sensationalized headline stories from Fox News today. “Serial Pooper arrested”? OK, it’s funny but not where one finds serious new reporting. Unfortunately Fox News viewers seem unaware of their daily dose of propaganda. What we used to read only at checkout lines in supermarkets, we can now hear during Fox prime time and read on their web site and social media. Misleading headlines, conspiracy theories, and outright lies for the sake of entertainment and persuasion. Finish the deal with the message that educated professionals cannot be trusted. Thank you Fox News for an unethical, corrupt president.
The lies that Republicans and their media hacks offer in defense of Trump are so blatant, so silly, so clumsily and hastily constructed that it takes no more than a cursory glance to intuit their vile baselessness. But now the electorate won't even bother with a glance.
The very repetition of the lie - slickly packaged and easily digested - seems to give it sufficient credence, whereas the Truth requires too much time and effort; and listening to it might mean having to be contaminated by the presumed tawdriness and complexity of government. Better, then, to be lied to and cheated and do nothing. It's easier and we get to feel superior to boot.
Quaintly, this process used to be called "brainwashing," something we feel too sophisticated, free and modern to be a part of. But that's exactly what it is. And it's worked.
You must delineate wherein "corruption" allowed Mitch McConnell to disallow Obama his constitutional right to nominate a justice to the Supreme Court. What corruption?
That Karl Rove, the senior advisor and deputy chief of staff for the single most incompetent and destructive president this country has seen in 100 years, is ever taken seriously about any political pronouncements is simply laughable on its face.
This article starts to tell the true, insidious story of what led us to Trumpism.
But it neglects to mention the other half of the story: the political strategy of obstructionism and refusal to work in any manner with Dems, pioneered by Newt Gingrich, with Lott, Hastert, Cantor, Ryan, and McConnell being the devil's disciples.
This strategy was a perfect complement to the evil Rightwing Media Cabal.
Limbaugh’s lies, then Fox News, have certainly laid the groundwork for what has become of the Republican Party. Toxic “patriotism”, “religion” and “masculinity” have usurped reason.
Trump seems a logical conclusion.
All true. But why has everything gotten so much worse in the past 25years? First, cable television and the internet. A handful of people read those books on Truman or LBJ. And even the slightly larger readership of National Review in the 1970s, still got their nightly news on network television where it was relatively objective and unsensational.
Second, and no doubt related to the first, close to half the country has decided the ends justifies the means when faced with cultural changes they despise. Sadly, a very large percentage of Americans would rather a huckster like Trump in the White House than a black man. And if that huckster trashes immigrants, retweets anti-semites, pretends to pray with them for “the unborn,” then they are all in with the lying and cheating.
1
The senate trial has turned into the SHAM I feared it might be. After listening to Adam Schiff's impassioned and inspiring speech yesterday, I can't work up interest to see the Senators twiddle their thumbs, spin lies and generally show contempt and unjustified arrogance toward the Constitution of the United States!
Mom taught me to give credit when credit is due, so here it is. These senators are responsible for their behavior, their fealty to a corrupt criminal/murderer, and more complicit than Trump because of the protection they give him. Well gentleman, what bout the People of The United States!?!
Their disrespect they have for their Oath of Office is complete and they are not worthy of even the most menial occupation. I wouldn't trust them to walk my dog; let alone take the garbage out!
Good summary of the role of right wing media, but even without it, GOP Senators could easily follow their forebears' KKK/red state ways, where white juries convict blacks and acquit whites regardless of evidence. Trials are not about evidence, witnesses, or documents. They are for affirming white male supremacy and retaining power.
So really, it’s ok to despise the political media. Mission accomplished. Not only do I despise the political media, I hate the US government, the military, and completely distrust most of my neighbors, coworkers, and fellow citizens generally. All so you so called journalists could sell ads for useless Chinese junk. If I were a journalist... I’d be ashamed of myself.
Of all the awful Fox News "pundits," Hannity is the worst. Carlson, from time to time, puts a few inches between himself and Trump. Hannity's show is simply a nonstop love fest for his hero.
Even worse is his boss, Rupert Murdoch, one of the most dangerous men in the world, and arguably the most dangerous immigrant ever admitted to the United States. His toxic sway over millions could--to give just two examples-- help re-elect Trump and help burn even more of Australia.
I've said this before, but it bears repeating; No Fox "News" propaganda network...No president Trump.
People should be free to believe whatever nonsense they wish. Elective stupidity is not illegal. But rational people should not feel coerced into a pretense that Fox is a legitimate news network. Fox is indicative of a delusional aspect among a major portion of the U.S. electorate, and it should be recognized as such. Fox has forfeited any expectation of respect, and should be recognized as the right-wing noise machine that it is, and nothing more.
Perhaps Hannity is right: none of this will matter.The outcome already is set in stone. Oh, there may be a defector or two, but that's collateral damage. Right wing media are good with this playbook: They sell their opinion...they manipulate their audience, giving them few options. A case in point is the minimization of the House Managers televised evidence: Why watch it? Hannity, and others, does the thinking for his viewers....listen to me...none of this will matter!!! Why would you think otherwise? OK, yes, CNN and MSNBC have their slants. I get it. But there is a more important issue at stake here. What right wing media are doing here is purely ironic. They claim to be Constitutionalists. Listen to Levine, Hannity, Limbaugh, etc...all are self proclaimed constitutionalists. Ironically, however, they are taking away the limits of the presidency and negating the equal branches of power. By not convicting this president, the Senate has negated that time honored law and, subsequently, has begun in the demise of our country, starting with disassembling the Constitution. FOX and other right wing mediums support this! This seems OK...now...to save party, but those who gravitate to believing this playbook are blinded to make their own decisions. This mirrors the language and proclamations of this president: "nobody knows this better than I, and I alone can fix it." This will be the beginning of the end for the Union. This is the first step towards a monarchy or dictatorship.
1
The fatigue that brings apathy is so entrenched in society that it’s sooner than most think that the announcement, “Game over”, will be the NYT headline rather than the apocryphal, “God is Dead”. The irony is that the latter would have forestalled the former.
1
I find the most disheartening aspect of all this is that so many Americans have been duped into believing the rights propaganda. Especially since the early 1990s. I find most right wing in fact most republicans to be incursion of real facts. Q-Anon? Brightbart? Fox? Rush? My goodness talk about visceral over facts. I get this feeling of doom.
I'll say it again. The republican party poses the greatest threat to our democracy that's ever occured in our 250 year history. Greater than any war. Greater than any terrorist or group of terrorists. It's time for a majority of Americans to send them to the rubbish heap of history in Nov.
2
There are two reasons only why any senator will vote no to impeachment: the GOP has something on them, or they're crooks. The one thing good about Trump's presidency is that the Slime stood up on legs to be counted. Now we know who they are.
By lying they are attacking the first amendment. They are exactly like a state run communist propaganda network. There is no difference at this point.
It is imperative we find a way to neutralize them or counter them. Their corruption is what allows this administration to destroy the constitution and rule of law.
1
I understand partisanship, but right is still right and wrong is still wrong. Trump can't be impeached for being a jerk or (probably) even for lying, but it does appear he did something wrong. Yes indeed, Democrats want him gone, that's not really up for debate, but what is despicable in this case is that Republicans want Trump to stay because he's a Republican. There isn't even a consideration that he's done something wrong.
And some of us have been making this same argument, just as long.
The revolution *is* televised. The medium is the message, and the media apparently favors exactly where we are. Panicked, fascist, desperate for new images to chase, shallow, much aware but so very little known.
Intelligence in general, is like an aerosol these days.
We are all Trump's hairspray.
Meanwhile, CNN is already “factchecking” the lawyers who defended Trump a few hours ago. Wish they would have fact-checked Schiff and Nadler or asked them hard questions like why Schiff was still running the show when he was a fact witness (given his contact with the whistleblower and why Nadler fought due process was necessary in the Clinton impeachment but not Trump’s. Fox exists to counter the CNN and MSNBCs of the world.
Fox News has been minimizing the truth since its malign cable news inception on 7 October 1996. Rubert Murdoch's Conservative network is a poisonous spiderweb of lies, fake news and alternative facts. Backed by the support and loyalty of Fox News Donald John Trump has catastrophized our democracy. Trump's colossal ignorance is our disgrace and shame. Our eyes are swollen and red from weeping bitter tears that Trump may be acquitted at his Senate Impeachment Trial. If he's judged not guilty by the G.O.P. Senate and not removed from office, we'll witness one of the most existential miscarriages of justice in American history. Had Nixon been a toady and beloved of Fox News, he might have escaped the Congress's Watergate Investigation of 1973.
When I saw the headline I thought it was honest reporting about Schiff and Co over the last three days.
This article was definitely written before today's Extremely well presented "FACTS" about what a sham on the Democrat Party's side this whole impeachment is....The American people are witnessing a Full Blown Treasonous Coup by the House of Congress Democrat members that runs deep into What was going on with Biden and his Son and the strings have yet to be attached to all the Guilty parties prior to Trump ever even being elected!
Democracy cannot survive in lies.
History shows that once a Dictator takes over they eliminate all that supported them and replace them with lesser people.
That to me is the only redeeming thing about Trump
Becoming a Dictator.
This must be the drug deal Bolton was talking about.
If Trump gets reelected, this country is toast.
The Fox News channel is the modern day equivalent of Pavlov's famous experiment.
At first you ring a bell and provide an appearance of a fair and balanced meal that your subjects are hungry for. You then gradually remove more and more of the truthful substance of the meal and just ring the bell but the subjects continue to salivate anyway.
It's hard to get too worked up over the right wing media these days when the left wing media is equally nuts. Case in point: two years of 24/7 Russian collusion hysteria filled with paranoid conspiracy theories, leaks, lies, speculations, pee stories which all turned out to be completely wrong. Let's face it, Rachel Maddow is no different than Sean Hannity. And until you left wing folks face the facts that you are part of the problem you are in trouble with independents. Because I, for one, used to hate Fox. But now I can't tell the difference between them and MSNBC or CNN. So Fox no longer seems so bad.
Conservatives only want to hear what they want to hear. They are cowards. That’s why conservative talk radio works. Like spoon feeding a hungry baby. They think the economy was in a Great Recession and Trump pulled it out to where it is now.
Feint and retreat, feint and retreat, until they numb the public to mindlessness, and then they steal everything.
On the topic of right-wing media...
Jim Jordan is the latest example of lying to the public with no consequences whatsoever!
Instead he got the record fundraising numbers, according to recent reports:
Raised: $2,397,804 in his district.
I don't believe it comes from small donations, feels very nefarious.
He's the most loud, disrespectful and hateful congressman I've ever heard from both sides of the aisle.
He was insulting to very qualified witnesses, who came and testified, he was throwing tantrums calling Democrats "deranged"
Basically absolutely deplorable with credible allegations against his previous cover-up, that's what we used to call in old times a hooligan!
https://presspage-production-content.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2170/finalredactedstraussinvestigationreport-471531.pdf?10000
Here's the headline:
Jim Jordan Claims Vindication, but Inquiry Says Talk of Abuse at Ohio State Was Rampant
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/17/us/politics/jim-jordan-sexual-abuse-ohio-state.html
I can't believe that his constituency could approve of his behavior.
Here's another headline...
Club for Growth and Koch nurtured Freedom Caucus
Campaign giving helped elect members now deemed the future of the GOP
https://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/freedom-caucus-koch-club-growth-214973
Interesting piece, not as we don't know, no surprise here, the same highly hypocritical names: Freedom Caucus, etc...
"Club For Growth"
Koch Industries
Seats in the House: 32 / 435
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You really can’t ask borderline corrupt people if they think they’re borderline and corrupt. They think that’s how humans should act and wonder what they’re doing wrong. And so lies the dilemma with our president, his appointees and 63 million Americans. Many people are still fuming because they can’t own slaves.
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The key difference with Clinton’s trial . i) The three witnesses who were subpoenaed . ii) As did President Clinton himself appear . iii ) President Trump has blocked key witness testimony in the House and refused himself to appear. President Trump made 16,241 false or misleading claims during the last three years ( Re. The Post Jan 20th ) . If President by his public statements , messages on twits has not become a witness ? “What is a high crime? I think it’s truth. " Said Sen. Graham , the trial of President Bill Clinton . What do you think ?
The problem is that the Democrat followers have no logic., and no knowledge of history.
One sees it all the times in these comments. The actually believe that the Constitution does not measn what it says, and that it means whatever the fartherst-left pundit wants it to.
I have a sneaking feeling that lots of these folks actually
want Communism, despite the disaster it always causes.
They can't understand the reality that the poor really truly don't matter, and that the only way to help them is to "lift all boats", even the $100,000,000 yachts.
When a Fox News "reporter" shaves in the mirror, or applies her make-up, does he or she ever think, "I'm not real a reporter"? Perhaps they are assuaged by their big paychecks and a feeling that they are in "the inner ring," as C.S. Lewis called it. But isn't it hard to look at yourself, knowing that you are merely serving as a modern-day carnival barker, a Lonesome Rhodes of the digital era?
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Yes, the right wing media has been off the scales. But have you seen the mainstream left wing lately? Crazed and misleading. This is why I give money to alternative media.
In 1964, Barry Goldwater won just 6 states - his home state of Arizona, and 5 of the slave states of the Deep South.
Slave State Conservatives were at first following the Republican party platform of smaller government and lower taxes, but over the decades these Neo-Confederates who started the Civil War, assassinated president Lincoln, lynched thousands of black American citizens, bombed black churches, promoted Jim Crow laws and supported poll taxes and segregation are now trying to change the outcome of the Civil War.
Slave State Conservatives are a violent and hate-filled group, supporting a president who found his base by promoting the birther myth about Obama.
Racist would be too kind a word to describe their fundamentalist beliefs.
Stop treating these hate-filled Slave State Conservatives as if they don't exist; they loved the Civil War, and they are only sorry that they lost - and could not keep slavery forever.
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Just because the 'president' is crazy and treats Faux News as gospel doesn't mean normal people need to do the same...The ranting right will always be better 'copy' than reasoned debate between honest people. But the Truth will out in the end. It just takes a while. Keep the faith, baby!
Wow. History does indeed repeat itself.
At the end of the day, this is about race.
Sure, the NYT , WAPO, and the major networks, not to mention all the cable networks, except Fox, have been silent for 50 years, just leaving everything to a bunch of right wingers.
This would be pitiful if it were not just silly.
During the trial in the movie 'A Few Good Men', Jack Nicholson screams out: You can't handle the truth!
This is now an appropriate mantra for the House prosecutors, as they turn to the millions of people that voted for Trump, and find the Senate, eyes turned away, ears muffled.
So here's a little ditty: No Arguing with You
America, keep watching your Sports and your Soaps
No facts to check to there, no turning to Snopes,
Check out FOX News, if you're worried instead
And learn of a fearful Muslim preacher, (thirty years dead)
Or an ancient treasure unearthed in a sewer beneath Rome
Or twelve orphaned kittens that now need a home
So while our democracy hangs on the thinnest of hopes,
Republicans continue to play you for political dopes.
But Trump's your man, I understand, I think that I do
Though he can't finish a sentence, let a paragraph or two
He's the perfect president, so colorful, so red white and blue
Whenever you look at him, you see... a reflection of you...
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Yet another right wing conspiracy? One wonders what's in store after Trump wins a second term.
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Status of country like United States of America any news source uses dis and mis information is for lessor countries (North Korea, Cuba, Russia etc).
Spot on, Ms. Hemmer.
It is so hard to think for yourself, thank goodness we have Fox News to do it for us!
Beautiful piece, Nicole Hemmer. "To write off Mr. Trump’s wrongdoing as run-of-the-mill politics, then, requires both minimizing what he has done and scandalizing what other politicians do. [... The] strategy damages Americans’ faith in government and public service, bolstering the Republican Party’s anti-government agenda. As such, it’s a powerful, effective political strategy — and a deeply nihilistic one."
I'd like to point out that such "nihilism" is not actually a "conservative" position at all in the sense that it diminishes our institutions rather than protecting them. It reduces our expectations and makes us insensitive not only to abuse of power, public resources and public trust but also to incompetence. Rhetoric like this not only protects our President, but it also discourages principled, competent reformers from public service at every level in government. And perhaps most importantly, over many decades, arguments such as these have created a massive constituency, a political culture that actually expects government to run on ideology, propaganda and loyalty rather than those Enlightenment principles enshrined in our founding documents.
The current Administration is not the cause of this culture but a consequence of it. It depends on the silence of true conservatives who know this rhetoric is wrong and recognize that, although it has delivered electoral success for the GOP, it has also produced a lot of collateral damage to our institutions. Speak up!
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Think about all the daily newspapers and magazines that are folding. Think about how right wing media companies like Sinclair have scooped up dozens of local TV outlets. Think about how social media has within it a metastasizing cancer of extremist right wing and neo-Nazi content that is race and war-baiting, and spreads inflammatory content that spews nonstop hate.
This column describes just a small corner of a spreading apocalypse against naive and indifferent population.
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These radical people are not conservative. They are radical. Why does the press call them conservative? They are not.
2
The Conservatives are just gone. They have sold out to tyranny and absolute rule.
Fox News is a propaganda network that would make Chinese Central TV take dutiful notes.
Unfortunately, I am doubting whether a multi-cultural, gender equal society with equal rights for all is possible.
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Once in a while in the car I'll listen in to what Hannity's blathering about, or Limbaugh.
Yesterday Hannity was again flogging the dead horse of illegal FISA warrant to investigate Carter Page.
Didn't check on Limbaugh - the aforementioned was quite enough - but usually he's often on about something so ridiculous as to almost be comical.
I don't think Limbaugh believes a quarter of the things he says. He's made himself a very wealthy man feeding nonsense to those who can't get enough, with the added perk of feeding his monstrous ego.
Both of them, probably can't believe their great good luck at how easy it is to fool the gullible and laugh all the way to the bank.
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I think we have to analyze the entire Trump phenomena from a Russian interest perspective.
The recent recordings made by Igor Fruman at a private dinner with Trump illustrate the fact that Trump is being influenced by outsiders whose motives seem to be to exploit corruption in concert with a Russian oligarch Ukraine to get a slice of the natural gas monopoly there. With that initial tie-in to Russian power interests, we now have two individuals with deep Russian and Ukrainian ties whispering into Trump's ear. This is a perfect setup for Putin as now they can inject any sort of influence they choose to this provably credulous, inept, ignorant, narcissistic and greedy mind.
Using Ukraine to investigate the Bidens was a wheeze most likely originating in Giuliani's mind and told to Trump.
At bottom we have a perfectly unfit person being advised by unvetted, unqualified outsiders.
Add to that a GOP that is fanatically trying to hang on to the last gasp of "conservative" (read authoritarian) policies in America and we have the perfect storm of today.
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FOX: Republican State Television. THE largest single factor in Trumps “ election “. Period. How to fight them ??? Boycott ALL their Advertisers, and INFORM them. Rinse and Repeat, as often as needed. Once the AD Dollars dwindle significantly, so will the GOP propaganda and LIES. Money talks, every single time.
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Ok, here is a partial list of their major advertisers:
Procter & Gamble
Nutrisystem
Liberty Mutual
Expedia
Allstate
Bayer
Angie’s List
Match.com
GEICO
General Motors
Lifelock
Glaxosmithkline
Pfizer
Kraft Heinz
Those are some pretty big companies. They are there because that’s where the eyeballs are. Do you seriously think there are enough people who would support a boycott to even make a measurable difference in those companies’ revenues? No, it is not going to happen, ever. Please try again.
Do the people on the right who engage in this behavior (or support it) sound like fellow Americans trying to do what's right for the country?
They're not. They are the enemy. I wish they weren't, but they are, and the sooner decent Americans accept this fact and cut them off, the better off we will be.
I used to hate going to my grandmother's house because she would have Crossfire on all the time. That all seems so quaint now: true give-and-take on the air. Now the echo chambers are set, and what worries me is the Fox lying machine. So many people buy whatever nonsense they parlay, and it is really scary. Their arrogance and lack of morality is sickening.
Full disclosure: I voted for Reagan and Bush 41, as well as for Clinton(s) and Obama. I am the moderate who both sides are courting, But since I live in Vermont, all I can do is hope that folks in the 5 states that decide these things can sort out the lies that Fox and the rest of DJT's enables are spewing and vote in any of the Dem candidates. Sadly, I think that unless he is unseated by some senators growing some moral fiber in the impeachment "trial", POTUS will see another 4 years, and we will continue our decline as a democracy and the light of the world.
What do you suppose the odds are that we’ll see a college scholar do an expose of media shenanigans benefiting the left? Pretty low.
The "Do-nothing Democrats" managed to brand Trump forever as the 3rd president in history to be impeached.
It's an ongoing strategy, and it seems to be working all too well. Here's how they do it.
1) Delegitimize Democrats and Liberals at every opportunity.
2) Attacks and distort their ideas.
3) Use projection to paint their sins on their opponents.
4) Use deflection to distract away from things they can't/don't want to discuss. (What aboutism)
5) Work the refs - accuse the mainstream media of bias to get them to bend over backwards and transmit right wing talking points into the mainstream. (Cokie's Law)
6) Delegitimize the mainstream media at every opportunity, to neutralize actual journalism. Encourage false equivalence.
7) Use Hissy Fits to over react to any criticism or hard questions. (See Mike Pompeo pushing back hard on NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly.)
8) Push alternative facts when the real ones are inconvenient; repeat loudly and often.
9) Admit nothing, never apologize, embrace sanctimony
10) Lie and keep lying. Never show any shame.
You will see all of this used by Trump's defense team. You will see Justice Roberts ignore it all. This is who they are. This is what they do.
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None of this would be necessary if Trump could summon the courage to stand on his bone spurs and DEFEND himself like man? Stop all the sneaking around, hiding behind others? He should DEMAND an opportunity for his staff to defend him also!
Does anyone have a list of senators or congress people from either side of the aisle who have received Russian money?
How much, and when? How about Mitch McConnell, allegedly the Russian czar getting ready to spend a lot of money in Kentucky...
How much goes into Mitch's pocket?
I think it is fair to say that the GOP has absolutely no shame. They do not know what is wrong anymore. To spout Russian talking points day in and day out their conspiratorial comportment is purely anti national and borderline treasonous. That is how the conservative movement should be branded today.
Thanks you Nicole Hemmer for this very articulate presentation
of the strategy and tactics of Fox News and the Right.
"Conservative media have been scandal-mongering about Democratic presidents..."
The pot calling the kettle black. There is little difference between scandal mongerers on the left and right, as we can see right here. The liberal side is cleverer and subtler, but just as biased in selective omission and commission.
I am astonished!
Lying, duplicity and evasion as a business model for the Republicans?
Who would have thought!
Maybe we need to re-think the notion that they are actual Americans.
We often complain about politicians’ lack of moral compass, but they are only reflecting the will of their constituents. So we should ask ourselves, how can so many people believe in so many insane, completely debunked things (birtherism, pizzagate, etc.)? And the answer is obvious: Fox News and the rest of the conservative media. The NYT needs to focus much more on the conservative media, it needs to expose it for what it is. This article by Nicole Hemmer is a very good step in this direction. She should be a regular op-Ed writer for the NYT.
All true.
And why have the right-wing propagandists offered us seventy years of lies and propaganda worthy of the COMINTERN?
Have liberals destroyed religion? Kept the rich from getting richer or from running the country? Impoverished the Defense Department, legislated universal health care, taken care of the poor, treated minorities as equals to white folks, kept the wealthy from, in fact, dominating publishing, newspapers, television?
Nope. The weirdest thing is that the right-wing has spent seven decades fighting against a threat that doesn't exist.
Liberals are willing to do a little bit more for average Americans than "conservatives," (one is more than zero) but the notion that there's some "left-winger" coming for your guns, your privatized health care, your subsidized corporations, or your money is a hoax, a grand way to keep the uber-rich writing checks for Regency, the Heritage Foundation, National Review, and advertising on FOX. The "left-wing" is a fiction, the Big Mac of the right--a cash cow.
The right hasn't been fighting FOR anything, but against something--and that something is democracy, political and social equality. The idea of democracy is terrifying to these people, and they will do all they can to destroy it.
They've been doing a great job.
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Mister Hannity is not a "newsman," by any stretch of the word. He is a propaganda tool -- a talking head -- of the Republican party. Let us not forget that the GOP, among a lot of other things, does not care about or for America's natural heritage. Of all the organizations on Earth, it is the polluter's best friend.
This article suggests that the Obama’s and Clinton’s are squeaky clean characters. This is complete balderdash. Has the author heard of fast and furious ? The IRS targeting conservative groups? Susan Rice lying to America about origins of Benghazi on eve of election? And of course there is the doozy called the Iran Nuclear deal where palettes of cash had to be delivered by boat rather than through federal reserve banking system. Nothing to see hear. With respect to Schweitzer’s books, it’s hard to argue with bank records and public filings. You may not like what you are reading but that doesn’t make it untrue.
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Democrats are pursuing impeachment and conviction, not because they hate Trump, but rather because of his attempts to usurp all power to himself. Wake up, read the Constitution, read the Federalist papers that right wingers love so much! Don’t be a tool for DJT, unless you are already independently wealthy and have no need for the common man!
"Scandalization worked, so they returned to it again and again."
What does it say about our society when scandalization works so effectively? Isn't that the real problem that needs to be addressed?
A nice capsulation of the real practitioners of unamerican activities.
In recent times, it's been just more evil spawn of "The Swiftboat Veterans for Truth", a group which had little to do with veterans and nothing to do with the truth.
Both sides are echo chambers
Let’s make sure we on this side have open minds and listen to all points of view
What range of media do you read and listen to? How to make sure you don’t have just the progressive version of truth ?
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For those republicans who have remained republicans from the Access Hollywood tapes until now, this is for you:
Imagine you hired an architect to design a room addition onto your house. She presents the drawings to the planning department to have the plans checked and given a permit, but the guy at the counter says he wants $1000.00 under the table and will give you the permit after you pay up. Then, your architect calls the planning department and reports the guy who is trying to cheat and extort money from you illegally - and all of a sudden, two days later, your plans are approved.
This is what trump did. He only released the money, which was approved by the House, after the whistleblower reported the reason for the hold. The hold...which was to force the leader of Ukraine to announce an investigation into the Bidens because Joe Biden was at the top of the polls and looked to possible win the 2020 election.
Thank the whistleblower, pay attention to your country, vote in November, protect our children, save us all.
It's painfully obvious that right wing media and democracy are incompatible.
The right will not be happy until we have a right wing dictator ruling with an iron fist and personally destroys the social safety net created by FDR which they with a passion as they represent the rich and entitled who have achieved power by inheriting wealth and being a demagogue like Trump.
The Fox News channel is the modern day equivalent of Pavlov's famous experiment.
At first you ring a bell and provide an appearance of a fair and balanced meal that your subjects are hungry for. Gradually you remove the truthful substance of the meal and just ring the bell but the subjects continue to salivate anyway.
Fox News didn't even cover Schiff's final address on Friday night yet after it finished it repeatedly attacked him.
So to their viewers it didn't matter what Schiff said just that Fox News said you know what ever he did was a lie.
Congress has failed us.
The answer: Abolish the Washington Congress, send our state Reps and Sens once a year to meet to settle national issues.
The simple conclusion ends the putrid purchasing of favoritism for corporations, ends the endless posturing over issues, and oh my God finally, makes the elected official reachable in his home office and home state!!!
A natural question for Ms Hemmer is how does the Republican propaganda machine compare with the Democratic one. In absence of a public one, it seems safe that this reinforces her "scandalize, minimize" theme. Maybe the Republicans just do propaganda better than Dems that it gets noticed . . . or maybe there's just so much more of it to hilite.
In short; all you have to do is fool enough of the people enough of the time, to gain and maintain power.
But it takes a lot of organization and money. Not only do you need a venal press, but an ignorant population kept perpetually in the dark, with an illusion of knowledge - and in a constantly-fueled state of outrage and of, course, fear.
It won’t end well.
The tactics were laid out as part of a book written in the 1920s by a veteran of the WWI German army.
1
Eh, political parties and their sympathetic press allies are attacking their opponents? Some of their assertions stretch the truth? (Still waiting on Adam Schiff’s “secret evidence” of Trump’s Russia collusion).
Right wing media grew in size and popularity because many people grew tired of the “mainstream” media’s increasingly leftward drift and partisan tone. Some of their reporting is a needed counterbalance to CNN and MSNBC, and yes, to The NY Times. But some of their editorializing is outrageously partisan and spins facts (again like CNN and MSNBC).
But this too shall pass. The current press may never recover its reputation, and other sources will emerge. But then again it is always prudent to view what is reported with some healthy skepticism.
The "do-nothing Democrats" have presented hundreds of bills which are gathering dust under McConnell's leadership.
It is all too typical that Republicans obstruct and blame the obstruction on their opponents.
Victim blaming is fashionable.
Merrick Garland, among others.
2
When one considers the anti-right bias of the main news media, it seems very odd to concentrate on the one right-wing network. Fox has its full share of bozos, I grant you, but it is rather lonely against the conformity of the rest of the field.
1
@Bob Roberts: Anti-right sentiment can hardly be called bias. The purpose of legitimate media is to report the facts and expert interpretation based on same when that is appropriate.
Right-wing media has never, ever, done this. It's a propaganda and true disinformation machine.
It is correct that professional journalists, who care about factual reporting, should express very strong disdain for what the right-wing media does. It's known as being intellectually honest.
Most likely, Trump is now supported, in terms of his major requirements, even those who have been very critical of him in
the past, because he has 'dirt on all of them. I've been informed that this was 'the art of the deal' when he was a real estate developer. This was how he avoided paying contractors, etc.. His premise is that everyone over the age of 5 did something or was involved in something that they're not proud of & fear social ostracism, financial loss, or something else they depend on for their well-being. Then he
sets about finding out what it is & using it to control the other person. That's his MO. So simple. So sleazy.
A bunch of years ago when Rex Grossman was QB for the Bears, everyone knew he was bad at the game. But coach Lovie Smith kept playing him. When asked why, Smith would simply repeat: "We are ten and one with Rex at quarterback."
Reporter: "But coach, what about the fumbles?"
Smith: "We are ten and one with Rex at quarterback."
Reporter: "He keeps throwing interceptions!"
Smith: "We are ten and one with Rex at quarterback."
Reporter: "But what about the lies, the corruption, the racism, the broken promises...?"
Republicans: "We have gotten judges, de-regulation and a massive tax cut with Trump at quarterback."
1
We need Proper labeling on these shows!
Its Junk Food info-entertainment. Hannity’s show (also Maddow) should have “Opinion” flashed across the screen periodically. Or the host should have to state that this is opinion based coverage. We label sugar, Fats, salt, etc, on our food so why not this! Its time for America to know what its consuming.
Maybe we need an exception to free speech, that forbids anyone from publishing anything about any politician.
@Sean Fulop: Er, no. Really, NO!
with trump there is no shame in being corrupt at the highest level. That seems to me relatively recent. Maybe I'm being naive but corrupt as some of them were get over it would not have been an acceptable answer in previous presidential administrations.
I don't think that Trump actively conspired with the Russians in 2016, because he didn't need to. The Russians were perfectly capable of throwing the election to Trump with just a little help from his hangers-on.
It's certainly true that Republican/right-wing smears against Democratic/liberal politicians, and cynical nihilism in general, are nothing new, and it's important to remember, too, However: Obama, despite everything, was elected twice (though John Kerry wasn't). This seems to suggest that something may have changed since 2008. It may not be pleasant to contemplate that what has changed is that an overtly racist, misogynist candidate came to the fore--running against a woman with strong support from minorities. But if that's NOT what changed, how do you explain what has happened?
It has been obvious to me for years that Fox, Rush, and the like are the real enemies of democracy in this country. Fear- mongering, scape-goating, smearing, cherry-picking of facts, half-truths, disinformation, and demonization are just a few of their tools. Were it not for them, truth might stand a better chance in this country
I believe they are an impediment to the re-establishment of any sense of unity in this country. Certainly, they run daily cover for all the lies, deceit, and immoral legislation of the GOP. The current treason of the GOP would never be accepted were it not for Fox and similar outlets.
Unbelievable how Fox portraits this coverage. That is not an objective news group. Ad entertaining group just like Bravo or E! La
Thank you, Ms Hemmer, for a short but incisive look back at the right-wing media and its chicanery since the late 40's. Shameful and, yes, nihilistic do come to mind.
1
yes, yes, yes. But what do we do?
1
Democracy is dying. The conservative "movement" has been trying to kill it for decades. Now they have traction with this impeachment and their ability to give absolute power to Trump by declaring him not "guilty".
In short the right wing media and the right wing politicians have laid the groundwork for the decline of the US as a role model for the world.
I propose we discontinue the use of the phrase "right wing media" and replace it with "the right-wing propaganda machine."
Continuing to refer to it as 'media' legitimatizes it, when there's nothing even remotely legitimate about what they've been doing to this country.
1
It would serve the "conservatives" right if every single moderate and liberal could leave the United States so that the only ones left living here were the right-wingers. Not only would they stew in their own vile juices, they'd have to actually live on what they earn without parasitically sponging off of the blue states that actually are economically productive.
If such a thing took place, I guarantee that in five years this country would be just like Medieval Europe, only with electricity.
Why is Senator Chris Coons saying that President Trump and his legal team need to present evidence to exonerate the President?
Perhaps this Democratic Senator is not aware that the US legal system of due process indicates a person has to be proven guilt and not the other way around....
This is why this Impeachment Trial is a charade...
The Walter Cronkite Republican can understand the feelings of persecution voiced by conservative Christians since he is frequently lumped (mistakenly) with them. However, do they realize that they have aided and abetted a demonic tyrant who promised to impose the values of their political minority upon the majority of society by political chicanery? This is undemocratic tyranny. The Tempter delights in subverting the self righteous who pledge their allegiance to a paper pope.
Fox News is valued at $23 billion, that is what this is all about, ratings and profits. It has nothing to do with the truth.
1
can we just divided it up the country? Seriously. The right needs the left. The left doesn't need the right. Can we be free?
How seriously can you take an impeachment that began even before Trump took office.? Not much.
There are two countries now. That much is clear. But you Trump voters have lost any right to complain even when your air and water becomes unsafe, public schools close, bridges collapse, there is no affordable health insurance, and your children will face climate change, a massive deficit and a hollowed out democracy. You made this bed, now lie in it.
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"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists. This is really nothing more than a sales pitch.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberal more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
1
"Conservative media have been scandal-mongering about Democratic presidents..."
The pot calling the kettle black. There is little difference between scandal mongerers on the left and right, as we can see right here. The liberal side is cleverer and subtler, but just as biased with selectivity of omission and commission.
2
For those who are genuine about conservatism it must pain them to see the lies that underpin their current public face. Yet they don’t speak out. I believe they see Mr Trump as someone who has shown them how to gain power and they are willing to risk the serious and lasting damage to democracy, truth and trust that the President represents, in exchange for keeping them in power as a good deal. It is a deal with the devil.
Ms. Hemmer superb editorial reads like the pages of political historian Richard Hofstadter's essay "The Paranoid Style in American Politics" which appeared in Harper's Magazine in November of 1964. That said, there are states in the midwest in which you can drive and listen to conservative talk radio and that is the only listening on your radio dial regardless of the FM or AM dial. Hannity, Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Laura Schlessinger and at one time Bill O'Reilly are nothing more than demagogues which make the radio conservative shock jocks Franklin Roosevelt had to seem tame in comparison. This drivel is what fills the minds of tens of thousands of Americans especially west of the Mississippi. No doubt the same toxic radio signals fill the airwaves of the Deep South as well. Fine editorial Ms. Hemmer. I look forward to reading your book "Messengers of the Right."
Propaganda has emanated from corporate, Profit-seeking corporations, so if you object, let them know that you will boycott their products. Vote with your dollars, speak out as soon as citizens.
The marketing analysts catch any slight wiggle in branding and sales. Turn their profit-seeking into an advantage.
But isn’t America just reaping what it has sown in other nations around the globe for 100 years?
“Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views, but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views.” ― William F. Buckley
Political scientists have demonstrated that the ratio of liberal to conservative journalists is somewhere around 4:1, with Democrat vs Republican donation splits rising as high as 90%/10%. For whatever reason, maybe even simply education levels, journalists are overwhelmingly liberal. That is reflected in the media. And that media is split, catering the confirmation bias of two deeply divided sides of the political aisle. Partisan scandalization is how everyone gets clicks.
With those ratios in mind, please do not act as if scandalization is a one way street, especially after Russiagate. The liberal media "mistakes" throughout that period were legion, peaking with the Buzzfeed retractions enforced by Mueller. Please, liberal media, take the plank out of your own eye before pulling the splinter from from someone else's.
Democratic leadership has been asleep at the wheel for many years in not addressing these scandalous attacks directly. Hillary may be smart as a whip with a deep knowledge of government and policy, but she allowed her personal narrative to be co-opted by the crazy right and could not regain control of her own identity. Sen. Warren defended her family history vis a vis Native American heritage, which is a step in the right direction, but got attacked by both "liberal" and conservative media for doing so.
Part of the genius of conservative media is in knowing that responsible media like the NYT must cleave to journalistic standards of fairness, which often creates false equivalencies for egregious conservative behavior.
When Fox News began, it appeared to me to be a glossy, televised version of the National Enquirer. "Is this a picture of a two-headed alien baby? Many people think so" It never occurred to me that millions of my fellow Americans would tune in for what they consider to be the only truth being told in America.
Leaders on the left better figure it out. The assumption of moral high ground, interviewing on MSNBC, and trying to behave like the only grown ups in the room is not working. There is a megaphone center stage in the country that vilifies education, secular life and science, and glorifies ignorance, nationalism, and obedience. It is pushing to have one religion forcibly interjected into government, and they are carrying the day.
1
Just wait until the Republicans go after Joe Biden next week. They will regurgitate conspiracy theories and innuendos. It will be a trying week for Biden, and right before Iowa.
1
When the Trump presidency ends a new law needs to be enacted. The oxymoron of President and Trump should never be allowed to be uttered in the same sentence. The respect, honor and responsibility of the highest office in the land and the word Trump representing a family of salacious grifters is so contradictory it is mind numbing.
For a very smart country in the U.S.A you are held ransom by the quirks of the electoral college process, optional voting and an election held on a Tuesday and the result is President-the orange skinned guy.
I can't say it.
1
If the right-wing campaign of misinformation and malinformation has been going on since the 1940s, why they were they relatively ineffective until the last couple of decades or so?
I believe that much of the explanation lies in the left's unilateral disbarment: acquiescence in and support of the end of the fairness doctrine, and Bil Clinton's signature of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which I believe he has since said is what he regrets most in his presidency. It's been downhill ever since.
15:25 EST, 1/25
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists. This is really nothing more than a sales pitch.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
This is why we no longer speak to the republicans in my family or have republican friends, we saw this unfold in the 80’s through today. My parents became brainwashed on Faux News when it first came on air. Life is much more pleasant without them in it.
fox news is biased, but so is the ny times and many other news outlets. i read everything involving politics with a grain of salt and sort things and fact check things that i can. its like being a juror of information published by the media in some way. i think most independents are like me and can vote either democratic or republican.
The idea is to destroy the concept of a "loyal opposition" and, instead to equate any opposition as treason.
This is the downside of a free press that has enough money behind it to constantly search for official wrongdoing and a competitive, for-profit news and publishing industry that profits from scandal and conflict. There is endless wrongdoing. If too much of it is brought before the public, we become numb to it and then cynical. General cynicism encourages even more and worse wrongdoing and contributes also to "tribalism." "We're not bad, YOU're bad!" Finally, many people just tune out and drop out of the democratic process and leave it to the extremists and "the powers that be." For them, government becomes irrelevant to their lives. I don't know how to break this vicious cycle as long as "bad news" is a money-making activity.
Should Trump be acquitted be prepared for an even more divisive future. A corona virus outbreak here may see resources going to Arizona and not California, Virginia and not Delaware. When enough people raise their voices, Gerrymandering will have done the rest.
Note. To the Democratic voters who demand "radical" change now!
Barry Goldwater lost the 1964 election by a landslide. He won his home state of Arizona and five deep south states. That's all.
Because nationally, the vast majority of American people weren't ready to abandon the party of the "New Deal" for the conservatives ideology.
So what's different today?
Conservatives got smart. They planted the seeds of modern conservatism, nurtured them, watered them with unlimited campaign contributions and watched them grow.
Rupert Murdoch and Fox News. The end of the "Fairness Doctrine." Issuing broadcasting licences that achieved market saturation of conservative radio. The Courts. The media. The rise of the political Christian Evangelical Fundamentalists as conservative allies. Attacking the "loyal opposition" and free press as corrupt and unpatriotic.
"Drip, drip, drip....until the American people were ready for a Ronald Reagan.
Ready to vote "against their own best interests."
For union busting. For globalization. For profits above people. The "Share Holder Economy!
Corporations didn't become people overnight. Money didn't equal free speech in one election cycle. Goldwater proved that.
Radical change won't work. Take a page from the conservatives playbook. Keep your eyes on the prize and bring the American people along one degree at a time. Until they're ready to vote for their own best interests again. Or be prepared to live with the permanent Conservative majority.
There is one simple, easy way to demonstrate just how sleazy the Republican spin machine has become, and to show who is correct and honest in this. Release the people who have been subpoenaed, so that they may testify.
Given the consequences of perjury, they will tell the truth.
And that is exactly why Trump & Co. have blocked those subpoenas. Trump and his henchmen are not about to risk testifying.
Only a complete fool is fooled by these White House machinations. The other people not pressing for those testimonies prefer to support or allow the cheating. They can do this solely because the Senate majority can ride it out.
1
More important to note is that the entire GOP is now Putin’s propaganda arm peddling the narrative that it was Ukraine and not Russia who interfered and continues to interfere in our elections.
Even Senators Cruz and Kennedy admitted in two separate live TV interviews that the GOP is getting its talking points from the Kremlin.
FOX News is nothing but an amplification machine, a sock puppet.
Putin’s real propaganda arm is the
Republican Party.
It all really started with Ronald Reagan. The slow dissolution of the middle class while the rich took more and more began during his presidency. Voter suppression? Check. A tax system rigged to help the wealthiest? Check. Inflict pain on the Democrats? Check. Fairness in government? Forget it. Call honorable government workers losers and liars? Check.
And all the while elected Republicans sit in silence and do nothing. Spineless sycophants silenced at the alter of a con artist trying to act like a president. There have been many low points in our history. Slavery, the eradication of the native people, women considered second or third class citizens and a host of atrocities we promoted in regime change and interference around the globe. We have a constitution that has been amended in attempts to right some of the wrongs, but we never have had a president supported by a huge media that has brainwashed a third of the population with lies and half truths.
I first observed how wily and deceptive Republicans were when they ran the Willie Horton ads on TV against Democratic presidential candidate Michael Dukakis. Dukakis ran against George H.W. Bush in 1988.
But the slick Republicans bested themselves in the 2004 presidential election when they ran ads depicting a real war hero, Democrat John Kerry, as a fake and a coward, while making his opponent, George W. Bush, look like a hero. But Bush never went to Vietnam; Kerry did. And Kerry is a decorated hero.
Republicans (and conservatives) have the ability to make me believe that my mother is really not my mother. The Devil must be so proud of their handiwork.
Yellow journalism by Hurst, Pullitzer and others preceded all that is mentioned here and invented scandals have always been a part of our democracy. What is unique to our moment is that large swaths of Americans are literally having their brains hacked by the right wing extremist, Rupert Murdoch.
Video is a more powerful tool than print and conservative media is now empowered with a much higher level of understanding of how to influence minds than only a few decades ago.
When citizens can be easily convinced of what should be obvious lies, such as climate science denial, democracy cannot function.
Unfortunately, a constitution over 200 years old was penned by patriots incapable of seeing the future, so it's beginning to seem that American democracy is doomed.
Boycott all sponsors of FOX. Make America better.
It was expected that Fox wouldn’t show Adam Schiff making his case. I actually tuned in for a few minutes to see what Fox was showing and can confirm Hannity was screaming at the TV while Schiff was shown in a little screen on the corner. That was Fox’s version of real time TV. What a sham, what a scam!
However, what’s really shameful are the over the air TV networks that, instead of showing the impeachment as it happened, it preferred showing “reality” shows, police dramas, etc.
Unless network TVs and Americans watch a real court with a real defendant and get upset by a predetermined jury result, instead of prefer being entertained by a fake court, fake defendant, and a fake jury that is made to look real, there is little hope for America.
This is a corporate "Hostile Takeover". America has fake elections. Almost no way for Americans to choose who gets to be "President". Voter suppression. Hacked-over electronic voting machines. Only a tidal wave of human beings can overwhelm the puny 1%.
Right wing media is a marriage of convenience taking place at the intersection of ignorance and capitalism. Together, they create a hatred at an exponential rate that's tearing our country apart.
1
Back in the Al Franken, Air America days, I'd listen to Mark Levin to hear how the other side was regurgitating the days talking points. Someone called that made Levin instantly switch gears. It was an eleven-year-old boy, who agreed with his right-wing parents but was very nervous and upset with what he'd been hearing on talk radio. Levin calmly told the boy that his show and others were primarily entertainment. That they gin up the rhetoric to hold onto their audience to sell advertising. Levin was honest and forthright and realized the effect he had on this young listener. What he did at that moment was write a disclaimer. Levin, a lawyer, handled the boy in a mature responsible way. I wish I had the audio of that.
These programs all need disclaimers recited and posted many times. That they are commercial first, they are not news, they do not confirm their stories and that opinion is not fact.
You can draw a straight line from today's corporate SCOTUS wins to the Lewis Powell memo of 1971. All of this "us or them" media/internet nonsense is a great national distraction to what is the real harm behind the scenes: voter disenfranchisement, unlimited and anonymous campaign finance which leads to court stacking which gives you Gorsuch and Kavanaugh.
The Right is using the courts and the media against us with one of our favorites, the First Amendment.
28
@Mike B Thank you, Mike. That much of the right wing messaging today, including Trump's, is mere bias-confirming, conspiracy enhanced, fact devoid entertainment seems obvious, but propaganda research shows that sustained repetition, even of known falsehoods, can move emotional conviction and political choice.
8
The Republicans may be a minority party but they have an outsized reach because they are ruthless in the pursuit of power. The Republican base is well organized and well funded by the moneyed interests. They have a few bumper sticker size positions: stop abortion, no gun control and tax cuts. The rest of the agenda is skewed to their benefactors, the oil and gas, defense, health insurance and other old economy industries.
The Democrats seem to always be playing defense instead of going on the offensive. The Sanders supporters may be the only Democrat faction with the passion and unity to challenge the cadres of right wingers. Its passed time to fight fire with fire. The simple, consistent position coming from Sanders is a coherent direct action message that is giving progressive minded folks a counterpoint to rally around.
Ms. Hemmer closed with, "As an added bonus, the strategy damages Americans’ faith in government and public service, bolstering the Republican Party’s anti-government agenda. As such, it’s a powerful, effective political strategy — and a deeply nihilistic one."
Yet, isn't it funny, the Republicans are willing to do virtually anything to hold on to the power they have for their own benefit, and a huge part of their base, which suffers, never seems to notice.
Another nihilistic trend that the political right has been pushing for just as long is disrespect for science, higher education, and expert opinion as critical elements in crafting public policy. People who possess expertise in any given field are "those elites" who "don't care about you." The degree to which this is driving us down the road to ruin, at ever increasing speed, cannot be overstated.
I wrote the following several years ago, and it continues to apply ever more so as time progresses:
"The GOP has spent the last 40 years or so carefully cultivating a voter base that is actively antagonistic to fact and expert opinion and trusts no one but the wild-eyed messenger of anger du jour. What we are witnessing now is the entirely logical result of cultivating a benighted mob and believing you can control same."
And the result, in the lyrical words of the Talking heads, is: "We're on a road to nowhere."
And yet I have met so-called Independents who, like Trump’s “two sides”, insist that both Democratic and Republican parties today are equally bad.
Certainly there are the usual power struggles and a certain level
of corruption that comes with
any political party, or any organization, but only one is currently anti-science, anti-woman, anti-health, anti-environment, anti-immigrant or rather anti-non white (as immigrants from, say, nordic countries are welcomed if they actually wanted to come here), and most of all, as laid out in this article, anti-truth.
no contest.
Yet a large swath of Americans side with this life-denying, but self-proclaimed ‘pro life’ party. And when even independents can’t make the distinction, how far have we fallen ?
Today the crimes of Nixon pale in comparison to that of Trump and as the National Review had hoped in a 1970's article that, "After running through the litany of Johnson's sins, the editors expressed hope that one day people would look more kindly on Nixon". It's not a "kindly" view of Nixon people have today. It's that his crimes were not as serious as those committed by Trump and his cohorts in the administration. Throughout my life all that I have ever heard from Republican's is the same redundant negative rhetoric designed to exacerbate the dark side of human emotions. Their message, watch out white men of America they are coming for you. In other words, keep the playing field uneven and you will continue to dominate. Fair play is very scary to those who possess less. They often make a case for a free trade while they shoot down the notion for a free and openly competitive society were all people have an equal chance to succeed regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, or creed. Their tactics include but are not limited to the following references: communist socialism, anti-christianity, and multiple conspiracies theories that are so outlandish and weird that it appeals to the extremist view shared by many who display anti-cultural traits that keep them mentally disconnected from the rest of society. As an older white male, I believe that truth, fairplay, honesty, open-mindedness will prevail in the end tho we may go through a dark Trumpian period.
Am I missing something? Let’s face it, if the Democrats held the Senate, President Trump would be convicted, but since the Republicans hold the Senate, he will be acquitted. The same rationale will be at play when the next Democrat President is impeached by a Republican House and the Democrats hold the Senate. Simple politics, not complicated at all.
3
Except it is.
It is all about power over truth. Maintaining power is what counts above all else.
2
As educational content,foci and processes are
changed to better prepare people to
more effectively cope, adapt and function in a
complex globalizing world,
personal accountability for harmful
words and deeds continues to BE an
enabled, promoted and sustained outlier.
Isn’t education the solution to this problem? I keep thinking that we cannot make any progress politically without education. What saddens me is the acceptance of “low information voters” and low engagement and turnout as opposed to a serious investment in public education and engagement in the political process. There is a need for the influence of Hollywood and Madison Avenue on our civic consciousness — perhaps in the form of political theatre that better engages the general public in the soap opera. After all, it is scandalous. Don’t we love scandal? The theft of democracy is a scandal that should lend itself to this tragic period in our history.
1
This is superb. Thank you, Nicole Hemmer.
3
This is so accurate. Demagogues operate on the cynical premise that since all individuals, societies and governments may be flawed, all are equally corrupt. If Clinton accepted large fees for speaking to Wall Street, or if Biden failed to stop his son from serving on the board of Burisma, that make them as venal and compromised as Trump.
5
Good analysis of the context that provides for Trump. What is missing is the analysis that American psychiatrists have provided in the multiple works entitled "The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump." The testimony of Michael Cohen supports the findings of Americas psychiatrists, namely, that Trump's behavior of paranoia, narcissism, and pathological lying makes up the criminal mind and character of the con-artist. Cohen was conned into delivering the hush money to porn stars Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels. Checks signed by Donald Trump to cover up his relationships with them during his 2016 campaign. As a former chaplain serving in a forensic mental health prison, I know well that the con-artist's mental illness if like a virus that infects the minds of their believers. And this is what we are witnessing in the defense of Trump by his team of lawyers and the GOP Senate. Yes, right wing media created the context for Trump. But Trump himself is criminally insane. And herein lies the crisis. A defense team will obfuscate and replicate his pathological lying for him to the detriment of our democracy and nation. In the meantime, the danger of his personality will continue to do real harm and damage to people, and the earth itself.
9
It's important to discuss how FOX News was enabled to get so big. America now has its GOP state media. We didn't have that in past decades.
FOX has gotten so big and powerful, that other media are put on the defensive by Fox's constant attacks on it as too liberal. Fox has helped redefine our political spectrum of left, right, center.
Dem Bill Clinton and the GOP passed the 1996 Telecommunications Act.
For generations laws had regulated how many outlets a media company could own in a given area. Clinton/GOP dismantled these sensible laws against media monopolies. FOX News radio/TV could grow huge to influence Americans across the nation.
Also in the 90s Clinton/GOP repealed long standing regulations on Wall St banks. This signaled a green light that the banks could do whatever they wanted, which led to the Crash of 2008, the worst since the 1930s Great Depression.
Deregulation of the media and of Wall St and banking set in motion destructive trends. Enter Trump and GOP radical extremism. Where is a NYT column devoted to explaining this cause effect?
12
I guess the Senate will acquit and we will elect kings. The role of president will be obsolete. No “President” will ever need to provide a document to Congress. Impeachment is no longer an option, only voting will end the reign of the new American King.
5
Not to worry, once Social Security and Medicare are repealed by the Republicans, the watchers of FOX will no longer have enough money to pay the cable bill.
22
I thought that LBJ's electoral corruption was well established and accepted by historians of all persuasions.
And he was still a great president.
4
At the beginning, the article acknowledges the influence of Fox News personalities but then it shifts to books, effectively documenting the long history of Republican screeds against Democrats. However, books are relatively elitist and their influence is slight compared to right-wing talk radio (in contrast to think radio, e.g., NPR) and, most damaging, cable TV "news".
Fox News is a firehose spewing lies and misinformation into homes and public gyms, lobbies, lounges, etc, 24/7/365. This has corroded public understanding, thinking, and discourse. Worst of all, they (and other MSM) promoted the lies told by the GW Bush administration about Iraqi WMD, which when exposed, gave generations valid reasons to distrust government. This oddly rendered them even more susceptible to the scandalize! minimize! cycle, described here, and exploited by micro targeted FaceBook ads.
5
This goes way beyond scandal. The Republican Party and its allies, notably FOX News, have worked for decades to create an alternate reality in which "facts are silly things." In this alternate reality there is no climate crisis, bigotry is a positive good, helping rich folks to the detriment of others is great public policy, breaking up families and throwing innocent children in cages is no big deal, and people can promote hatred and still piously claim to be Christians. In such an atmosphere, how does one argue, successfully, for good public policy or even for civility? I do not know the answer, but I do know that reality has a way of catching up with all of us, sooner or later.
8
Ah, sweet irony. The grandfather of modern conservatism once fielded a question of African Americans being allowed to vote.
He responded by stating he was more concerned with too many whites being allowed to vote.
The holy grail of American Conservatism is built on an elite class of well-educated Ivy-League scholars (preferably from Yale), deciding who among them will govern. His fear has become our reality. That when those with the least amount of intellectual curiosity, with little or no comprehension or appreciation of institutional norms, with no interest in history, global affairs, governing (beyond the Second Amendment), in short, the dim-witted fools easily swayed by three-word catch-phrases, we would end up with someone like Trump.
The party that once stood for the intellectual elites of the time who took pride in public debates and one-on-one forums as a way to display their intellectual might, is now lead by a man who seems unable to construct a single cohesive sentence. His most recent interview in Davos was embarrassing beyond belief, though the upside may be the world isn't laughing at Obama anymore.
It seems perfectly logical to imagine Buckley's disdain for Trump would be even greater than he held for liberals.
3
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
4
@Raz Not so fast Raz. Are we to assume any media outlet or publication that assesses events and persons with critical thinking that may or may not be favorable the the subject is somehow "liberal" and biased? Nonsense. There is no "liberal" equivalent of FOX, which provided an estimated $2B in free media to the Trump campaign, and has continued as the administration VoA. There is no "liberal" network. And since FOX claims a 70% penetration, it is the 800lb gorilla in the room.
The new right dominates talk radio, with mouthpieces like Limbaugh exercising out-of-proportion power over pols and policy. There is no "liberal" equivalent.
Lastly, local media may be the worst. Clear Channel provides and dictates conservative content for every local station under its control. And just this week a story broke on how the White House is utilizing hundreds of local radio personalities around the country by providing talking points and other content. It wouldn't be unreasonable to imagine Hannity having a role in what will be said.
Yes, there are progressive pubs such as The Nation, Mother Jones, and maybe Harpers, but none carry the weight and influence of The New Republic. The Times? Yes, it supports progressive thinking, but is that "liberal" and does being progressive nullify a neutral voice on events and persons of interest? I think not.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
1
Good essay. But what I find illuminating is the loud silence one hears from the usual right wing media suspects when it comes to Trump's subservient knee bending to Putin. It's the elephant in the room that they can't get a handle on. So they ignore it. But what do conservative pundits really think? I'm sure it's not prettyIf it were any Democratic President doing exactly the same thing, Hannity et al would be vomiting on air and a Republican controlled Congress would be brandishing knives.
3
In the early 1990's I was interviewed for a job at Fox. I'd worked in a lot of newsrooms. They were gritty and dirty. There were piles of newspapers, takeout containers, coffee cups and yes at that time overflowing ashtrays. Almost everyone (except the anchors) looked frazzled and late for something. It was exhilarating. When I arrived for my interview at Fox, the receptionist looked like she was wearing Channel. I remember the clicking her spectacularly high heels made as she lead me to my interview. Everyone (including myself) seemed to be blonde. The newsroom was pristine. Each desk had a smiling family of other blonde people. No one seemed busy, or harried. I did the interview and then was asked to write an essay on Roger Ailes...which I emailed in. I was offered the job, but just could not reconcile working for the Stepford Wives of News Network. I've driven across America a couple of times. In the middle, if you stop for food or drink, there is a TV on and it's always tuned to Fox. If you try to explain the world to people who watch Fox, they will change the subject to gardening. I'm in Australia at the moment, and the same is happening here. When a minister was asked a direct question about the loss of wildlife in the bushfires here...she talked about feral cats. It was like listening to Kelly Ann Conway. I can't believe Murdoch believes this garbage, but it made him a ton of money. People are gullible.
15
@thewriterstuff When John Kerry accepted the Democrat nomination in 2004, his fatal mistake that cost him the election was saluting and asserting he was reporting for duty. He tried to represent himself as a war hero despite having spent his entire career anti-military. His followers represented that Kerry's active duty service was superior to George Bush's four years in the Texas Air National Guard.
Had he not tried the inauthentic war hero representation, he could have picked up a few percentage points in the election and defeated Bush.
The reason he did not release his educational or military record until after he lost the election is multifaceted. He wasn't as intelligent as Bush: Bush got straight "C's" as a partying student. Kerry got straight "C's" as a hard working serious student. Bush got substantially higher grades on the officer's candidate exam than Kerry, an IQ exam equivalent. Kerry does not have an honorable discharge from the Navy, having failed to honor his two year enlistment obligation. Bush has an honorable discharge.
Kerry effectively suppressed the truth about his background, the voters were able to clearly see how dishonest and inauthentic he was.
Where was the vast right wing conspiracy that detected Kerry's intentional lies and other misrepresentations? Oh, that's right. They were following the Dan Rather school of journalism that published fabricated documents.
It's amazing that that the zombie myths perpetrated by the right and left have lasted this long despite ample evidence to the contrary. Republicans only want less government and spending when the Democrats are in power. Democrats talk a good game about helping those who most need it but once in power are almost equally inept are really solving jobs lost to global trade and continue to dig their heads into the sand about sensible immigration reform and 'sanctuary city' nonsense.
This 'information age' was supposed to slice through this veil of propaganda for political and personal gain and instead it's weaponized it. There is big money in perpetrating this battle between left and right; it's a perpetual Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, (quoting Greta Thunberg at Davos), "You say children shouldn’t worry. You say: “Just leave this to us. We will fix this, we promise we won’t let you down. Don’t be so pessimistic.”
And then, nothing. Silence. Or something worse than silence. Empty words and promises which give the impression that sufficient action is being taken."
4
Projection (a psychological condition wherein someone "projects" onto others actions and attitudes that they themselves do or hold) is clearly then an affliction endemic to the GOP.
It begs the question of why conservatives are so much more susceptible to projecting their shortcomings? My guess is it comes from their blind certainty, narcissism, and closed minded attitudes towards change and others. Trump represents the culmination of that particular neurosis.
4
A few years ago the idea of peaceably splitting the nation into two (West America and East America?) would have been unthinkable. Now, it’s starting to feel almost inevitable. What else do we do about living with 100 million people who want to live in the kind of right wing post-democracy soft dictatorship that Trump is trying to create? How else can we work it out?
5
@Tor Even a few months ago that idea would have seemed preposterous to me. I'm on board with it now.
1
The GOP is doing a magnificent job of finding flimsy loopholes to exculpate Trump.
They deserve applause. [I'm impressed by the effort!]
Possibly it works for "the base". Or maybe audience embarrassment nullifies their brilliance?
And to think it is all so they can have a corrupt US President who, while acting like a 7-year-old (see any one of his latest name-calling tweets) can fleece the middle and lower classes of America in plain sight and strip Americans of their rights, all in the name of Freedom.
6
Since moving to Canada ten years ago, I am continually amazed at how much healthier the political culture is here and how much less dysfunctional and better working the actual government is. It's been a true eye opener. Americans are taught to believe their system is the best, that they are the world's strongest democracy, and that their government, with its unique combination of federalism, separation of powers, and republicanism, is brilliantly constructed. For the past decade I have been amazed at how much more service-oriented the Canadian government is and how much better it works, whether under Harper's leadership or Trudeau's. Looking back at the United States, I see nothing but gridlock, conflict, failure—and, now under Trump and McConnell, what I can only call degeneracy.
I think distance has given me a clearer perspective, and having lived 49 years in the US and 10 in Canada, experiencing both systems firsthand, it has become obvious to me the the American Constitution is highly flawed and out-dated and that the system of government it establishes is completely dysfunctional and utterly inadequate to the needs of a modern democracy. If the US can't somehow radically revise its Constitution and change its system of government, I am afraid its future as a democracy is bleak.
12
@617to416
It is easy to see how you could feel that way, having moved from Massachusetts, the home of the gerrymander, to Canada.
Massachusetts is the state that routinely elects a Republican to statewide office but hasn't elected a Republican to the House in decades.
1
@ebmem
I missed the Elbridge Gerry administration, but I confess to having a soft spot for Bill Weld.
1
"As an added bonus, the strategy damages Americans’ faith in government and public service, bolstering the Republican Party’s anti-government agenda."
"Anti-government" or "states' rights"?
The Party of Abe Lincoln is now the Party of Jeff Davis. Can the union hold together?
2
@Jim K.
I don't think it can. And I'm not sure it should.
3
I especially liked seeing Greg Gutfield on Fox's "The Five" arguing that the charges against Trump are just "opinions" and therefore should be disregarded. Arent't these are the same people who wouldn't accept a birth certificate as proof that Obama is a US Citizen? Shouldn't suggestions that he wasn't a citizen have been dismissed as a matter of opinion also?
It just goes to show that facts and evidence mean nothing to these "pundits." It's about keeping their guy in office so he can advance their agenda, nothing else. They don't have a majority, so they have to resort to rabble-rousing to gin one up. Unfortunately, there is always a fertile field of rubes, less-educated, and haters that fall for it.
Isn't it time to for the center and left to stop debating these people using facts and evidence, which they will not acknowledge no matter how conclusive? Instead of focusing on the outrage-of-the-week, maybe the press and the opposition should concentrate on the tactics used by these right-wing hacks: lies, specious reasoning, name-calling, etc. They behave like 3rd graders and they should be called out for it.
16
It is without a doubt the duty of all journalists to inform their viewers/readers with factual accounts at all times, now if you have noticed I stated journalists, we know for a fact that Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Tucker Carlson, Jeanine Piro are definitely not journalists, therefore most facts coming during their timeslots should only be viewed as "opinion pieces" and or entertainment, for many years I have watched throughout the world many elections and have concluded that if you look carefully enough to all major candidates there can always be a case made, due to interpretation of statements for minor discrepancies, that could fall under the guise of impeachment, this most likely comes from whence the Constitution was established. however, there has never been as blatant an effort to not only disrupt but destroy a Republic and it's Constitution as seen and done by this corrupt President Trump.there is no denying that Trump has focused not only on people who feel that their voices, their values, their lifestyle, their ability to make a living or a difference have been ignored, but Right-Wing Media, most notably Fox News has seen an audience, not that they respect, but whom they can manipulate in thought, in anger, but mostly to benefit the financial successes of the Corporations, which if you look at many Trump Supporters they despise but have yet to realize that they are pawns in this media-driven chess game. we could say legislate truth but legislation already exists
9
"As an added bonus, the strategy damages Americans’ faith in government and public service, bolstering the Republican Party’s anti-government agenda. As such, it’s a powerful, effective political strategy..."
Even more ironic is the actual performance of government in terms of efficiency, service to citizens, and even that well-beaten horse, deficit reduction when Republicans have dominated government so often in recent years.
Hate bad government?
Then keep electing Republicans, who not only don't believe in effective government, but who show repeatedly they are incapable of delivering it.
9
Okay that the right is energized; why would they not be. Trump is offering them their dream; white males dominating everyone and everything; rich owning everything, everyone 'out' living in fear.
But rarely have I seen the center left so disengaged. No phone calls to elected leaders. No demonstrations. Just low intensity whimpering followed by complete tune out. I can hear them with their refrains: "well, how do we know that Trump knew that this was wrong? Did anyone tell him? Write him a memo? Who knows? What do we know anyway?"
3
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
1
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
1
I think “nihilism” means that republicans are willing to destroy democratic governance, and might not even believe in it at all — unless they’re winning.
It really has nothing to do with “bias,” as in “journalists actually have a liberal bias.” A lot of what’s called “liberal” are better known as “facts.” The second order of republican nihilism is in their refusal to accept facts that don’t support their ideology. That’s what the author is describing— not legitimate disagreements.
The point of the article here is that the right wing (not the liberals) have created a media propaganda machine explicitly because facts don’t support their ideology. Thus many of their sources are explicitly dishonest and lacking in journalistic integrity and a commitment to honesty, truth, and the good of a democracy. So when you make the false comparison between “liberal bias” and “conservative bias,” you’re actually reducing the difference between fact and fiction to a supposed legitimate partisan disagreement. If it’s a disagreement, it’s better understood as one between a modest witness, fallible but committed to truth, honesty, and the public good, versus a pathological liar committed to saying anything regardless of truth and honesty, that has nihilistically forsaken integrity and the collective good in public life. I think that’s why the author uses the term nihilism. “Bias,” that little word of right-wing propaganda, explains nothing. “Bias” is a keyword of that propaganda machine.
I find it interesting most of all that the corporations are going along with the coup. It seems to me that once people realize that Trump really does plan an overthrow of democracy that things will proceed to fall apart economically. Right now there are a lot of people who just can't believe it's going to happen. What happens when these dolts finally see the truth? And I am not talking about the GOP, I am talking about the democrats who are thinking they can get rid of Trump in an election. They are deluding themselves.
"Nihilistic" political strategy...give me a break. You'll have to explain that one.
It's worth noting that Ms. Hemmer has also written a book (published 2017) about the how conservatives have been trying to undermine the influence of liberal journalists.
Construct sometime, as an edifying exercise, a comparative list of liberal and conservative influences in the media...two columns.
List all the newspapers, TV networks, books, radio stations, etc. that you can think of.
I think you'll find that liberals more than hold their own.
BTW, I'm an independent, so I utilize sources from both columns (In addition, there ARE some neutral sources, including LOCAL media).
1
While it's hard to ignore the lies and vicious attacks, Adam Schiff's closing in the impeachment trial gave me hope there's at least one honorable person in Congress, a statesman among the GOP sycophants. He said:
“Here right matters. ... If right doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter how good the Constitution is. It doesn’t matter how brilliant the Framers were. It doesn’t matter how good or bad our advocacy in this trial is. It doesn’t matter how well-written the oath of impartiality is. If right doesn’t matter, we’re lost. If the truth doesn’t matter, we’re lost. The Framers couldn’t protect us from ourselves if right and truth don’t matter. And you know that what he did was not right.”
10
Scandal-mongering and voter disenfranchisement are proven ways for the GOP to maintain its power over uninformed citizens. Sadly, the pursuit of knowledge is now seen as something that only those “liberal coastal elites” practice...
8
The President's illegal non-compliance with the House subpoenas in this impeachment, with the full support of the Republican Party, pave the way for the President to remain in the White House no matter the results of the next election. And to do anything else he wants.
4
Are we still a democracy when Fox, with the largest viewing audience by far, feels no public responsibility to cover the impeachment of the president of the United States? Whose commentators talk directly, frequently, and privately by phone with the president? Commentators the president brags are an important source of information? When facts on the station have become irrelevant?
Is it a democracy if the president primarily communicates with the majority Americans through random tweets ranging from incomprehensible to critically important? Conducts most interviews standing next to his running helicopter rather than prepared news conferences? Whose Secretary of State feels free to yell at a reporter and lies about what arrangements had been negotiated for an interview?
Communication in our nation is very close to being totally under control by and for the Ever-Trumpers. Isn't that when we are truly under a One-Party rule?
5
I'm only surprised that Trump hasn't appointed Hannity to his legal team--the lack of a law degree would not be a problem as long as he parroted the White House line.
7
Incredibly well-written. It's rare to see a writer who is able to link the current strain of conservatism to where it rose, coming to a boiling point at the passage of civil rights. The penetration of conservative talking points into AM radio and then national television has continued to shape our nation for the worse. Individuals are, put in incredibly simple terms, convinced to sacrifice large chunks of their lifetime net worth and quality of life in exchange for promises of short-term benefits. It's not uncommon for individuals to wish the stock market would go up 10% each year, rather than getting a 10% raise each year - until I have them do the math. There exists one - and only one - dominant strain of thought in America, and it is harnessed by the Republican party and used as a cudgel to pass/remove legislation, ultimately harming the average America, and ensuring the upward transfer of wealth accelerates at the greatest possible pace. Since the entire system is essentially a giant pyramid scheme for the wealthy, those at the intersection of wealth and power have, for ages, conspired to control the media, minds, actions, laws, and politicians. Only 7% of the country decided on who would run for president '16. Continuously moving the overton window has always been the goal of the conservative party, and they've been brutally successful.
2
It says a lot about the conservative voter that they lack the natural curiosity to seek information from multiple sources and not just conservative sources.
15
Can't we sue Fox News for polluting our minds and our discourse with lies the same way we can sue industries and corporations who pollute our air and water? I know victory would be very unlikely, but it could at least draw more attention to the problem.
3
@Christopher if you don’t watch you can’t be polluted. My guess is you think CNN Is a non-polluter.
Tools of the GOP, politics of personal destruction also include, voter suppression, voter role purges, gerrymandering and piles of dark money. These tools plus the excellent NY Times article "Why Democrats Still Have to Appeal to the Center, but Republicans Don’t" all lead to a country ruled by minority, for the rich.
8
The Republican Party no longer has any interest in governing. It has a much higher objective. It wants to rule.
25
@Steve Strong : And steal. And harm the most vulnerable among us in order to fete the most powerful and wealthy among us.
2
Should we still be following the doctrines written by men of their time, (no women or people of color), in the 1700's, when even the CATHOLIC CHURCH is reconsidering that values, prejudices and practices have changed in the last 2,000 years?
6
@angelique
The NYT would have you believe that the Catholic Church is evolving to secularism. Catholics, not so much.
I've come to realize there is a narcotic as powerful as any opiate, natural or synthetic, and equally addictive. It is power. In the hands of many they seek the rush it brings when it works and go again and again for the same return they got the first time they enjoyed its administration by them and consumption by their adherents. The cure this affliction of the mind can have comes with the first foundation of any twelve step recovery. That being the capacity to be honest.
6
@sly creek
The desire for power motivated Democrats to use official authority to have the IRS target conservatives in its desire to allow moveon.org and Media Matters to pursue progressive values while denying same to people wishing to promote conservative values.
The same lust for power encouraged the Clintons to solicit foreign government funds to empower their Foundation and to also provide $30 million per year in taxable income for consulting and speaking fees to raise them from "dead broke" in 2001 to membership in the 0.1%.
The Clinton lust also made them conspire with Russian oligarchs and Putin to fabricate the Steele dossier.
Democrats desperate need to retain power motivated the Justice Department to lie to FISA courts in order to spy on the opposition.
If not for the voters in three swing states, Democrats would today be suppressing any evidence of their profound corruption.
1
Does anyone but an old codger like me remember the Fairness Doctrine? Back in the dark ages, we believed that the airwaves were public, and that the government should manage them for the public good. That meant that opposing views HAD to be presented in such a way as being honest, equitable, and balanced.
The Fairness Doctrine was removed in 1987. Sean Hannity hosted his first talk show in 1989.
29
Minimize! Scandalize! It works! Americans represent low-hanging fruit when manipulating what they think. That could be because too many of them don't think about what they are told. Putting responsibility on right-wing media is misleading. Those Americans who don't carefully think about what they are told shoulder the other half of responsibility.
8
I have to admit that the scandal machine or the larger phenomena of negative advertising is very powerful. I just ran down the list of candidates in my party and I have to admit I know--which is to say, am aware of, not that I accept or agree with them--much more about the characteristics, real or imagined, for which they are attacked more than their positive characteristics. Or at least they come to mind very readily. I assume this is because they are injected into the discussion about these candidates constantly and quite prominently, and on several fronts by several actors (conservative media and politicians) and then they are repeated in the objective media (so-and-so rips so-and-so for so-and-so) because the attacks are deemed newsworthy or must be put through a public but often ineffective debunking process. And sadly, these attacks are quite popular topics for the objective media to report, and perhaps even more popular topics for "news analysis" and for ordinary opinion commentary, two categories of "news" which have rapidly overwhelmed and crowded out factual journalism. It's depressing.
1
Media consolidation is another problem that should be dealt with. One company should be limited in the number of media outlets it controls. Anti-trust laws should be enforced.
18
Hardly have only Republicans been infected with the scandal-mongering pox. While such has always been a genre of politics nowadays the drive to scandalize has become possibly the prime mover in political life. It seems not terribly well understood that Trump's immunity to scandal stems not from the efforts of Fox News and like outlets but from having been vaccinated by the toxicity of the political ecosystem itself.
2
For over two centuries Constitutional lawyers, politicians of both parties and historians have understood that the framers of the Constitution established impeachment in the case that a president would attempt to use the power of his office for personal gain. Now when a president has done this , admitted same, had recorded evidence of his admittance and of his chief of staff, his legal staff is trying to make the case that such a crime is not in violation of the Constitution or anything. In my 84 years I never thought I'd live to see such a day under the Stars and Stripes.
21
@Karn Griffen
Obama did not act for personal gain when he declared DACA, or announced in 2012 that he was not going to collect the employer mandate in 2014 and 2015? He did not act for personal gain when he asked Putin to hold off on invading Ukraine until after his re-election when he'd have "more flexibility?"
Obama poisoned the well toward providing meaningful protections for dreamers; damaged Obamacare by denying the 2014 and 2015 state exchanges of the young, healthy workers who were supposed to be dumped by employers; and appeased Putin so that he would be re-elected in 2012.
Only in the eyes of a leftist is it possible for the Trump delay of military aid to Ukraine for six weeks as he attempted to leverage American taxpayer dollars to guilt the EU into upping their support of Ukraine to be interpreted as an impeachable offense.
It's more than nihilistic. Nihilism is basically passive, a rejection of the ideas of a moral universe and that life has meaning.
The modern conservative movement is anything but passive. It doggedly seeks to destroy constitutional and societal institutions and norms, without which the universe is a Hobbsian state of nature in which "life is nasty, brutish, and short. It attacks American principles such as the rule of law, equal economic opportunity, racial justice, and universal access to the ballot. Its support for oligarchies must have Republican President Theodore Roosevelt spinning in his grave. Try to imagine Abraham Lincoln's reaction to his party's drive to divide America along racial, geographic, and religious lines.
The outrage machine described in the article is but the tip of a right-wing iceberg that very well may sink our democracy. There is no rule of political science that says a democracy must survive. Democracy requires the ability to lose an election and believe that one can live to fight the next one. The right is on the attack against pluralistic democracy in which power transfers peacably according to elections fought on policy differences. In their future world, only white men will have power gained through disqualification of potential opponents on account of gender, race, religion, or wealth. We live at a historical inflection point and the portents are dire.
18
Yes, Virginia, I’m afraid there is a right-wing, not conspiracy, but gentleman’s agreement (not that the Nixons, Atwaters, Trumps and McCarthys of the world are gentlemen, and recently they’ve added some not-gentlewomen to their game).
The agreement: place power above oaths, democratic principles and the rule of law.
For some it’s money; others, raw power, still others a warped personal “morality” that places sex and accidents of birth - like skin color, religion or socio-economic standing above overall humanity.
Once we had two parties, center-right organizers for the Agreement and the disorderly masses of everyone else.
Not Republicans and Democrats - Richard J. Daley, the Dixiecrats, and William Marcy Tweed were for orderly power in the hands of a few.
Today’s GOP has taken on the role of the few looking to control with money and misuse of power the disorderly, all-inclusive everyone else, and have conned too many of everyone else that their way beats the messiness of American Democracy - name another largely successful country with No Head of Government.
Leaving the Democrats the preservers of the Rule of Law and the rule of democracy - the rule that attempts to bring about equality, ignoring personal quirks.
Bill Clinton believed in the Rule of Law, but was impeached for doing tacky things.
Donald Trump is on trial for using raw power to increase personal wealth, at the expense of the law, truth, our nation and its allies.
Which one has harmed our nation?
Our future?
16
Since all of their policies, foreign and domestic, are wrong and continually fail, Republicans had to come up with another way to appeal to voters. Don't watch us in Nicaragua, Iraq or Afghanistan, trickledown works, deficits only matter when a Democrat holds office, paying a lot for college means you'll value it more, etc. etc.
Lying! It worked, and works, beyond their wildest dreams. Which means that eventually they arrive at the conclusion the truth's irrelevant and find candidates that cheerfully believe it. It's not just Trump.
Listen to this morning's opening of their defense as they solemnly repeat the same lies they've spouting for months. Forget about the evidence, testimony and witnesses because they couldn't care less and have said so repeatedly.
They'd rather play with their spinner toys than do their job. Let's elect some people who will.
40
This is very well argued. We have to recognize this for what it is: a kind of asymmetric warfare. Slurs and innuendos are easily fabricated and impossible to catch up with, as Herblock observed over 60 years ago during the height of the McCarthy period. When one side decides to make that its modus operandi, the other side has a decision to make: respond, or find a way to change the rules.
Well, responding is a fool's errand. It just results in endless discouragement and exhaustion, which happens to be the precise result desired by the right wing donor class (not to mention the Russian disinformation machine).
The way to change the rules is to defeat Republicans up and down the ticket. We can't make the right wing noise machine shut up, but we can change things so that they are hollering from the outside in. This is not a small task given the fatigue we are dealing with after three years of this, but it is the only way out.
20
@Bill Levine
How do you define the attack on Kavanaugh other than slurs and innuendo. Feingold didn't even believe the allegation was credible, so sat on the report for six weeks while they investigated to no avail. So Blasey-Ford went to the WaPo n desperation and they ran with it despite zero corroboration.
Perhaps the saddest part of Adam’s Schiff’s address to the Senate was his plea for a fair trial and his exhortation of the need for free and fair elections. It seemed like he actually believed that those values would resonate with his audience. The Republicans could care less about those things. This sham trial, the gerrymandering, the voter suppression, the support for Trump in his repeated solicitation of foreign interference, the bogus election fraud commission, all prove that the only thing they care about is retaining power, period. They will do anything to achieve that, and once they do the needs of ordinary people are of no concern to them. So if you care about social security, if you care about having affordable medical care, if you want a government that actually addresses the needs of ordinary people, you had better show up and vote them out of office at every level, en mass. Otherwise you can look forward to an even stronger plutocracy, not unlike what Putin has brought Russia.
49
There is nothing "reasonable" about the Republicans as they attempt to frame out their arguments and doubts based on emotions and assumptions and a mindset that the president has never done anything wrong.
They assume by merely stating Trump's innocent long enough and loud enough, that will make it so.
16
The "everybody does it" defense, which was trotted out by The Don himself only about a month ago.
9
I enjoyed hearing the GOP's lame defense of Trump this morning. Made my day!
It is impossible to hold out hope that a GOP Senate, of which Susan Collins is the exemplar of morality, would ever act appropriately. However, watching them play at indignant righteousness is delightful.
9
This context needs to be broadened. The right-wing fringe groups had been at it at least since the Cold War, but they took on a new turn after Johnson's election made some on the right hysterical about the prospect that the Democratic Party could create a permanent Democratic majority. It was then that they set out to create a new conservative movement that consolidated the previously separate conservative groups and to "turn the country back from liberalism." Initially funded by people associated with Reagan's "kitchen cabinet," the "New Right" as they were called worked through white Christian fundamentalist and evangelical groups and Christian broadcasting. These are the groups in 1973 that settled on acid, amnesty, and abortion as their themes and later God, guns, and gays. They mobilized support, especially in the South, by fighting school desegregation. The creation of "Christian academies" made public schools their target. They also endeavored to reshape the Judiciary, the media, and every other institution. Bill Clinton was a target because he was so successful in building the Democratic coalition. The Koch Brothers set out to build on these efforts to take over the Republican Party, to undermine democracy, and to make it impossible for the majority to win elections and vote for redistribution. Their goals are to change the rules so they always win. They explicitly do not support democracy. They want a strong executive branch they control to over rule the majority.
25
State TV. This is by and far the most impactful change to our society in the last 10 years and it has completely reshaped the American electorate. This for profit television is incentivized only to make more money. They do that by outraging people with manipulations and over simplifications of complex nuances issues and it is funded by large corporations are benefit from those policies. Fox News has made our government a plutocracy.
16
@Dan But what is wrong with all of us (present company excluded), that we keep falling for it?
3
@sandy because it’s all so indirect. We pay our fuel, electric and cable bills. We buy groceries and appliances. But those companies fund Fox News through super PACs and corporate deals we never see. Only government regulations can expose it.
9
Americans are trading democracy for a tax break that gives most people less than $1000. Think about that.
31
@Deirdre
$1000 that will be taken back again with higher costs for just about everything ...
2
The only recourse is the ballot box, I am hopeful that when played out, the fact they don't want to hear any facts and hang on to conspiracy theories propagated by Russian trolls on Face book and any other gullible media, will be seen through by those that vote in 2020. Either we will survive as a nation, or the division will be greater. I just can't see how 42% rules for the 58%, but in an alternate universe, where the GOP apparently live, I guess up is down, permanently!
8
@Jim Michael How? He already said he would rig the election again. And as we know the Republicans will stand by him
“Political parties don’t exist because of political visions, and don’t need them to survive. They exist because they represent interests, and they can represent those interests reasonably effectively — especially in a system that empowers minority parties — without an overarching vision of the common good.” Ross Douthat, NY “Times” 7/12/13
The basic problem with today's conservatives is that they take to heart the "godfather" of American conservatism William F. Buckley, Jr.'s, mission statement in the first issue of “National Review (1955) that his mandate was to stand “athwart history, yelling Stop.”
The world does NOT stop. To stop is to die.
The word politics comes from the Greek word, polis, which means community. Politics, or government, is how communities function. By claiming to be anti-government and pro-community conservatism shows just how empty and self-serving the conservatives’ intellectual argument really is.
9
I am a liberal, possessed of a state of mind that does not fear questions to which I do not know the answers. But evidently there are many, many, others in this country for whom there are answers that can not be questioned.
14
The conservative media’s rise is a result of the liberal media’s constant drumbeat of their progressive agenda. The news was mainly one sided and it favored the liberal viewpoint while giving short shrift to the other. And that other side that was mainly ignored was the conservative side. People were given a daily dose of liberal talking points with no other choice. This is how Fox News came about. People were finally given a choice other than the progressive point of view. Fox News became an overnight success outperforming the other networks. They have only continued to gain viewers who want fair and balanced news coverage. The one main difference between Fox News and the other cable news networks is that they report the news from both sides of the aisle. Then you can judge for yourself. What a novel idea.
4
As a Canadian, I wondered why you would require a counterpoint to progress. So I had a novel idea and went to Merriam-Webster.com and looked up the word progressive. I scrolled down to "Synonyms & Antonyms" and, lo and behold, found my answer to why Fox News exists.
2
@KMW - As an FDR Democrat, I don't see anything progressive or leftist in the non-Fox news media. There one rarely sees news reported as it is in publications like "The Nation", "The Progressive", or broadcast on "Democracy Now" with Any Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.
@KMW
When the Truth doesn't adhere to the right-wing world view that's skewed towards loud mouths who harbor in innuendo and conspiracy theories, then the right labels Truth as "Liberal." And nothing riles up the rabid right like the "L" word.
So tell me, if Fox news is so fair and balanced, why did they mute the broadcast of the House managers stating their case during the Senate trial and not allow you to decide for yourself what was relevant and what you agreed/disagreed with? You're free to mute the TV, or not watch it at all, but seems Fox made that choice for you and used that time, instead, to rant about the Democrats.
1
The Constitution is designed, in many ways, to protect minorities against tyranny of the majority.
In this case, the democrats have used their majority in the House to instigate an entirely partisan attempt to unseat a serving President, because they don't like him.
The fact that the Constitution has provided the mechanism to defend the President, and the country, from this assault and dismiss the charges, does not mean the end of democracy in this country.
This is our democracy functioning as it was designed.
8
@Raz
If they dismiss the charges they are saying (as the defense said today) that a president can run foreign policy with no oversight and even as a personal benefit using a channel of friends (e.g. personal lawyers, family, business people etc.) and do what they please, spend tax-payers money as they wish, including getting foreign countries to investigate American citizens in secret, smear officials who get in their way, control deals, and even control who gets to access foreign resources and investment with no oversight.
And because it is not through the State Department there is no paper trail, no details, no information. No one will know what is going on. There will be no transparency at all. No US foreign policy per se. And even that will no longer be a problem if details are discovered because the acquittal rendered all of it as being within the remit of presidential power rendered absolute.
It's a dream scenario for a dictator or mobster or maybe something more akin to the Holy Roman Empire, it's reach and control and meddling in every country during medieval times, or the Pope's power at that time over sovereign nations.
This is not about the president, it's about deciding between absolute power vs. democracy.
6
@Raz Up is down. Day is night. And of course greed is good and there were very fine people on both sides.
Newsflash, @Raz ... Most people in this country don't like trump. 40% like what he does but think he's obnoxious and bombastic. And the rest of the 60% sit in horror as he trashes our country with his debasement of our civic norms by his inane rallies and speeches, and tweeting his puerile, vulgar trash far beneath the level of decorum that's expected of the presidency.
The House impeached the president because he committed high crimes and misdemeanors by using the power of the presidency to further his own political agenda by: 1) withholding congressionally approved military aid to our ally Ukraine at war with our greatest adversary Russia, and 2) denying President Zelensky a much sought after Oval Office meeting, for the sole purpose of pressuring President Zelensky to announce a bogus investigation into trumps political rival, Biden. This selfish act endangered our national security. To cover up his crime, trump then obstructed congress by ignoring lawful subpoenas issued during the impeachment investigation.
Ask yourself, Raz, if trump is so innocent, then why not turn over documents that would exonerate him and allow witnesses to testify on his behalf? Why risk impeachment by breaking the law? There's only one answer, that's he's guilty as charged.
That's what this trial is supposed to be about. Not the popularity contest, or in this case the fear of reprisal from a bully, it is.
1
This editorial neglects to mention the many relevant facts omitted from the Dem's testimony which were subsequently exposed by Michael Purpura's excellent testimony. Those omissions, by themselves, severely undermine the Dem's case and illustrate its strong partisan nature.
7
@Stanley Gomez. What was left out was testimony of key Trump administration officials and documentation from the Whitehouse and state department. All because Trump is refusing to comply with legal subpoenas by the house and the support of Republican Senators who really would like to ignore facts and prefer not to hear more.
20
@Martin
The testimony to which you refer is not what Mr Gomez was referring to. Instead of addressing his point, you are diverting attention by changing the subject. Another instance of partisanship.
@Stanley Gomez
A specious argument from Michael Purpura.
Relevant facts to the defense's case were omitted from the democrats presentation because the democrats were laying out the prosecution's case.
Have you ever watched a court case?
Have you ever seen a prosecutor laying out the defense's case for them or vice-versa?
The 'sharing burden' was laughable, lawyerly dressage for Trump's rants against the EU. Who btw: gave far more to Ukraine than the US (Trump's lawyers omitted that fact). It is a fact - you can fact check it. The democrats did mention it, just not through rose-tinted lenses like Trump's lawyers did.
Check out the hearings, all the testimony and documentation is available. Nothing was hidden except by Trump, and he hid key testimony and documents.
Very interesting, pointed and frightening analysis. Unfortunately, also very true.
7
A deep understanding of the right-wing propaganda machine can NOT be understood without facing two points that the author does not:
1. Abrogation of the Fairness Doctrine, and
2. Rise of Fox News, directly facilitated and protected by #1.
Fox News, in turn, became a shield and buckler for all other emerging right-wing outlets. Its constant rain of brazen lies, however, probably did the worst damage. When the truth no longer matters, anything is possible. And that is where we stand today.
41
“But if every politician is corrupt, then Trump deserves no real punishment.” Interestingly, the right-wing conservative media propaganda program described here is straight out of Putin’s dis- and misinformation playbook. Rather than work on improving Russia, Putin has spent the majority of his time and efforts attempting to make other nations, including the United States, just as corrupt, compromised and venal as the Kremlin, thereby bringing them and us down to its level. Similarly, the right doesn’t pretend to bring forward the best possible candidate; rather, they try to smear, tarnish and denigrate the opposition, and then argue that Trump’s behavior is no worse than the opposition’s. As Mick Mulvaney suggested, transactional, quid pro quo bribery of foreign leaders is routine. “Get over it!”
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@Steve Griffith Yes, but don't worry, not only does Putin appear to be winning this war of misinformation, but Trump's base doesn't seem to care that Trump WANTS the US to be reduced to Russia's level, so that he and most Reps can take advantage of the power and wealth they can accrue much faster under a corrupt authoritarian regime.
And should that become the new standard, watch closely as the Dems make little change should they take power. Such is the price of letting money buy political influence.
18
@Pubert Gaylord III Not so fast, Trey. Most Democrats would welcome getting rid of Citizens United, and having fair elections laws. Seattle’s solution is pretty tidy; I don’t know how it could be applied across the country, but it shows the willingness of our best politicians to counter the toxic effects of dark money and PACs. Not all politicians are cut from the same cloth.
20
@Steve Griffith
It was obvious that the Democrats: Biden, Obama, Kerry the Clintons were corrupt in their foreign policy. Hillary had to win the election in 2016 or their treason would be revealed.
When, stunningly, the four times as much money Hillary spent compared to Trump didn't buy her the election, the narrative was shifted to the bizarre notion that the private citizen Trump candidacy had conspired with foreign governments to steal the election from Hillary.
Even if Putin had wanted Trump to win, who would launch such an enterprise given the impossibility of Trump defeating the anointed one?
Think about it. Had Putin endorsed Hillary, she would have lost many more votes. The pretense that Putin liked Trump was the best thing Putin could have possibly done for Hillary.
It is highly likely that Trump has, over the years, profited by supporting Democrat politicians. But Hillary was one of those politicians he supported, and all of her wealth is derived from selling government influence.
This editorial attempts to represent that Trump is corrupt and Republicans are using the argument that all politicians are corrupt and so it is a meaningless defect on the part of Trump.
The reality is that Trump is not and never has been a politician selling government authority for cash.
It's not helpful to deny that LBJ was corrupted by money, and that he lied. Robert Caro details all of this in his excellent biographies. One can think LBJ did lots of good things (as I do) while still recognizing that he was a flawed person and the politics of his era were not pristine. We will never get anywhere if we insist on believing that politicians (or anyone else) are all good or all bad.
12
It's just so very difficult to avoid being cynical and simply give up, with this kind of disinformation abounding on the right. I guess the Founders were at least a bit naive, thinking that, while there might come along a few bad apples (hence, impeachment written into the Constitution itself) *most* would be upstanding individuals.
The liars will eventually get what they think they want, I suppose, but it won't be exactly that - it will be someone without conscience, extremely narcissistic and pathologically sadistic, not able to process accurate information from expert advisors, lacking in empathy or concern for anyone but himself, doing whatever it takes to put himself first. Oh wait....
246
The founding fathers were indeed naive, or at least unable to foresee how future changes would compromise their best efforts at maintaining a healthy republic. Examples abound including the current interpretation of the second amendment, which disregards it’s “well regulated militia” preamble; The Citizens United decision, which gives corporations vast powers to influence political decision making; the electoral college, which at one time was thought to prevent someone like Trump from becoming president; gerrymandering; primaries; and even the popular election of senators, which, if I’m not mistaken, came about sometime later and compromises senators’ willingness to put the nation’s health ahead of their own political futures.
29
The founding fathers had just fought a violent revolution, in which many of their brothers and friends died. They sincerely believed that their successors would treasure the same principles they fought for. Yet here we are, more the 200 years later, rich, fat, and secure in our freedom from foreign rule. The very concept of Liberty has a different meaning now. We had a republic, but seem intent on losing it in favor of a plutocrats.
It’s time for a constitutional convention to bring the original one up to date. Let’s clarify the second amendment and adjust it to our current reality where there is no need for militias to fight oppressive foreign powers yet guns needlessly kill thousands of us, let’s declare once and for all that corporations are not people, let’s adjust the Senate to proportionately represent the population, let’s establish direct election of the President, let’s put severe limits on the concept of executive privilege, let’s impose term limits on Congress, let’s define a strong right of privacy enforceable against private interests like Google and Facebook, let’s set mandatory retirement ages for Judges and Justices. The list can go on. The mechanism exists to address these issues. Let’s invoke it.
26
@Douglas Evans, - Our nation is not prepared to "adjust the Senate to proportionately represent the population", based upon what the Senate has done to adjust the Supreme Court; however, a new idea about the appropriate size of the House is very long overdue. Maybe we can fix this in the next 50 or 60 years?
9
My Father, a two war veteran buried at Arlington, a true Patriot, left his beloved Republican Party in the late 90’s due to their relentless degrading of our constitution with the tactics pointed out in this article.
He astutely picked apart the behind the scenes agendas that Newt Gingrich and the Southern Baptist Oil Coporate led right wing were orchestrating for decades. He pointedly repeated that their ability to weaponize Christianity was going to ensnare their vulnerable Christian followers into a political takeover with delusion at its core. It has come to pass. The Us and Them phrasing through their mouthpieces took good Christians and turned them into the opposite of what God through Christ intended.
If I can reach a brainwashed Christian I ask first: “I walk in and out of my Church every week unimpeded. No one is there trying to stop me, how about yours?”
57
It is argued that Trump did not commit a crime. That's correct. Those convicted of crimes go to jail. Trump is merely in the process of getting fired. He's not going to jail (well, maybe in NY). The bar for firing is much lower than a criminal conviction. Bosses can fire people at will. It doesn't take a trial and jury.
What a wonderful irony that this is happening to the person who used to shout "You're fired!" on TV.
Many other countries fire their chief executives simply through votes of no confidence. Here we ask for much more. Trump should be grateful that we need to go through so much to fire him.
But we need to go through it completely. If the Republicans stonewall this process, then they do not deserve to be called public servants; and should all be fired as well.
52
Much worse than the groundwork for Trump's acquittal, they are the well organized and well funded propaganda engine of the radical right's movement to destroy our democratic institutions. As Nancy MacLean eloquently exposed in her book Democracy in Chains. Better read it before it gets banned and burned.
16
It’s a shame the Democrat’s don’t fund a vast army of underemployed college graduates, at living wage, to fan out across the nation and win hearts and minds locally, oh right, Democrats don’t pay anyone, their jobs are prestigious perches for the children of privilege.
Good luck.
Modern fiction missed out on a tremendous resource when these political hacks sold out to the highest bidder. May their remaining time on this plain be miserable, their ultimate destinies cause for the most prolonged and authentic feelings of regret.
8
When you think about Clinton Impeachment over what? Infidelity? and not to his Country--Republicans are Preposterous. Nixon at some point showed remorse. Trump doubles down. His Team tomorrow will peddle conspiracies ad nauseam rather than admit the truth--Trump Did Something Wrong.
25
@That's What She Said This is all very, very sad, but saddest of all, is that Republicans have a huge following of uninformed voters who are voting. Democrats should be campaigning heavily *now* for the next election. We need a massive "Get out the vote." effort to appeal to African Americans and other minorities. They need to understand that their vote is more important than ever. We need them now and not only when there is a person of color at the top of the ticket. We need you now, my friends.
15
Their fate has been long self-scripted.
Each will be fired on television.
3
And left wing media have not only prepared, since the 1800’s for President Trumps removal they perpetrated the removal of President Nixon.
Thankfully right wing media has grown strong and powerful enough to counteract the lefts monopoly on the media. Together with the birth of social media the right now has the capability to speak to the people without the leftist filters of the past.
6
@John Gilday Yes! Now they can spread misinformation at the click of a button!
So incredibly spot on. I worked as a bartender in Georgetown during the Reagan era. We got a lot of Republicans in there. Early on during their 3 martini lunches or at happy hour, they towed the Chamber of Commerce party line: freedom from government interference in business, strong military, individualism, patriotism. But man, after that 2nd lunch martini or 3rd afternoon scotch, they dropped all pretense, and the truth of their hearts came out. They hated minorities who spoke out against an unfair legal and economic system; they hated the federal government because of programs like welfare and food stamps; anybody who disagreed with Reagan’s disastrous bungle in Beirut was painted a commie or a liberal stooge. They hated a lot of things. But they reserved their deepest hatred for Democrats; left or moderate, it didn’t matter—Dems were evil. The Republican Party has not been debased by Trump, it has been liberated from the twin yokes of phony morality and false patriotism that, at least in the public arena, constrained its true nature for so long.
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@Michael Judge
This is interesting because I thought it was Fox News that drummed up hatred of Democrats, but Republicans have hated them all along, eh? Alrighty then. I guess that's more reason to avoid them like the plague.
Excellent piece!
Any ideas on how to defeat right-wing media propaganda or even minimize it?
They are becoming more contemptuously brazen & dishonest in covering public matters. A deliberate program as you've well presented.
22
@Samuel Owen Easy! Ensure that the truth gets out and debunk their misinformation. Trump supporters are responding to propaganda made up of lies and misinformation; it's not that hard with truth on your side.
We have met the echo chamber. And it is us.
7
It is important to remember that in addition to wanting to win politically and keep the power and money in their camp, “conservatives” at their core are scared out of their wits. They are scared of women, black people, brown people, intelligent people, gay people, environmentally concerned people, and people who speak a different language or practice a different religion. Anything the slightest bit different from what they’ve always believed and known is an existential threat. Fox News and other “conservative” media know very well that if you keep people scared all the time, they will do whatever you tell them to do. These people are are also terrified because they know the culture is changing, they are losing, and the only way they can win is by cheating, so they cheat all the time.
46
Commend author for fine writing , getting published. However, she underestimates intelligence of the American citizen when she speaks about influence of the "right wing media." As a former educator, 25 years as dean of a zone school on UWS, I want people to read, be conversant with different points of view, to learn at least 1 foreign language since we live in a multicultural world. Times newspaper well, 1 reads headlines, news analysis that 1 would never have seen a half century ago, and we see pol. operatives posing as journalists, not enlightening us, but anxious to convert us to their point of view. Quality of the writing overall has deteriorated, no disrespect there. Why is it that William Safire, formerly Agnew's speechwriter, who invented alliterative catch phrase,"nattering nabobs of negativity," first to call HRC a "congenital liar,"could make you like him,could endear himself to you, even if you were a far left Democrat?Times have changed and the paper has changed, with a tendency to pander to the hard left, and that is a shame. Author targets Sean Hannity, tiresome at times, but I also confess an admiration because he has found his handle, his nitch in life, and despite having barely a B.A. if that,he has been a successful talk show host and political commentator for well over a half century. What is that reprehensible?
2
@Alexander Harrison
An educator? That explains so much about where we are today.
This storyline is so “Genesis” in its descriptive narrative. As if a lump of clay molded by Atwater, Ailes and Rove. The stylus shaping by Gingrich, DeLay and a Guild of artisans, craftsmen.
Gen.1
[1] In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
[2] And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
[3] And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
Smears, innuendos, character assault are the signature, personality strikes of drone warfare in todays politics, writ large.
1
“As an added bonus, the strategy damages Americans’ faith in government and public service, bolstering the Republican Party’s anti-government agenda.” This is a tragedy, because the objective reality is that we have no other way to work together on behalf of our country.
21
It's more than all of that. It's more because it also includes misrepresentation of the facts. A case in point from this morning: One of Mr. Trump's lawyers, Pat Cippillone. At least 5 times he accused House Democrats of trying to overturn the results of the people's ballots.
He is wrong on at least one count. First and foremost, is that the people's ballots were overturned by the Electoral College a few years ago after Hillary won the popular vote. So, if Democrats are successful (which we know will not happen and why) in overturning anything, they will be overturning the Electoral College's usurpation of the voice and vote of, "We the people." Just to be clear, there are other lies and fibs I will cover separately, later.
22
@Glenn Thomas I just want to mention that if Trump gets removed that the Republicans would still have the White House and the Senate because Pence would graduate to president. Hillary would not suddenly become president and that is the real lie in my opinion.
One sign that this was an excellent article is that I would've preferred *not* to read it - why afflict myself with a well-reasoned accounting of the right-wing propaganda machine we've been living with for so long? So, yes, a well-written and necessary essay.
I think the other side of the propaganda coin is the Republicans' love of wedge issues, certainly since the time of Reagan. Let's see, which is the party of "family values"? Meaning, you can imagine what that other party believes in! The list of issues include abortion (big time), guns, immigration, health care (how did they get away with that repeal-and-replace baloney???), and certainly all the many LGBTQ issues. It's been a sadly effective way to divide-and-conquer, and made Americans into an us-versus-them culture. I'm quite proud to be a "them", but saddened to be living with the "us".
35
Agree with everything you’ve written. But the Republicans & the right wing propaganda industry could never have achieved the success they have without the complicity of the “MSM” & the Democrats, who have met the Right’s barrage of misinformation & demagoguery by telling their own followers to cooperate & compromise with the liars. It’s all about serving the powerful, and a political debate between extremists without integrity and moderates begging to work with them is just what the powerful want.
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@Martin Yes, so why only blame the moderates, the extremists are the ones fighting? By my informal counting, 99% of the people would be responsible for the situation you describe.
1
@Martin I disagree with your assessment only in that the complicity you see from the MSM was in response to the few times when their coverage was actually biased. It was a brilliant scam played beautifully in that the Right would cry about liberal bias and the fact their stories weren't being covered so to appear balanced MSM started giving them time and space on their platforms. But as I have always said mixing raw sewage with clean water is still a toxic mess.
Democrats failed because they bought into the Right's narrative. Instead of pointing to reality they moved right to appeal to those attracted to the simplistic message of conservatives. Our country was never just about the economy, our goals were never to be about GDP and a booming stock market, cracking down on criminals and denigrating the weak.
Sadly there are generations now who embrace this narrative as the only one they know believing universal healthcare is impossible, that the wealthy are overtaxed, that it is only a matter of character that keeps people poor. We have become ignorant because they want us ignorant, they want us beholden to them, they want us divided and resentful of the other, and they want us oblivious to the fact that we are the government and that when you want the government weak and small you are talking about the American citizenry weak and small. There is so much evidence out there, it is time news organizations report it and break the corrupt hold the Right has on so many of us.
12
@Martin
But isn't this sort of reasoning a tad unfair and inaccurate? If the "MSM" and "the Democrats" have promoted "compromise with the liars", isn't that in large part because the voting public keeps telling them that it's precisely what they want? And isn't that the rhetoric that voters consistently reward?
It seems to me that your analysis leaves the electorate off the hook for their own bad choices, and for incentivizing the very behavior that you're criticizing. It seems to me that the problem doesn't lie with the "MSM" or "the Democrats", but with the voters, who've been buying into neo-liberal and conservative propaganda for decades now, and routinely reward politicians who parrot that propaganda.
3
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a lie repeated and reiterated in dozens of ways through a variety of speakers, through various media, and over a period of time, must be ... in fact, true ... (apologies to Jane Austen). The Right simply cottoned onto this a while before others did.
12
Guilty! Guilty! Guilty! Get this obnoxious traitor out!
10
Let's not forget that the Republican party has actively pursued minority control since the Civil Rights Act of 1964. They have propped up every undemocratic feature of the constitution, and implemented every means available to effect voter suppression, in an effort to retain a base of disaffected citizens who vote against their own interests.
35
The right will do virtually anything to retain control of this country and our lives, and it certainly seems to be working. Millions of Americans vote Republicans into office so that they can have their rights taken away while their money flows to the rich. It would appear that a country does indeed get the government that it deserves.
32
If Donald Trump is acquitted I wonder if John Roberts can set the ruling aside. I'm not a lawyer but considering Congress is a jury, so there are legal thing-a-ma-bobs like Motions to Set Aside Judgement and Judgements not Withstanding Verdicts.
5
@Hypoteneus What would make anyone think that John Roberts would want to set an acquittal aside?
This history is an important piece we need to understand the way minority rule and anti-democracy is working in America, alongside gerrymandering, rightist voter suppression, hate radio, and fox lies. There is no "convincing" rural white voters of Republican bad behavior, just as there was no way to persuade white Southerners in 1850 that they should abandon slavery or vote for Republicans. But it's also true that Dems play into Republican hands. The Clinton administration was definitely NOT a big move to the left, as the rightists claim. But it was guilty of corruption, enough to give their enemies a nice foothold.
2
Wonderful summary of the right-wing lie machine. It depresses me though since it show how little critical thinking Americans are capable of. Guess we need more charter schools and home schooling for our children. Maybe get them each an iPhone or iPad, too. That’ll improve things. Oh well, off to Netflix...
5
Having to make up faux outrage about your opponents essentially conveys the message that your policy prescription isn’t good enough for the populace.
Winning involves generating a winning policy narrative, or at least it should be, IMO.
4
This was a very helpful piece. I have long been puzzled over how republicans can be so unified in their support of Trump. His lies and crimes are all too obvious. But I guess it really is all about enshrining a conservative judiciary and then tearing down the social safety system first built by FDR. All the self-aggrandizing statements about supporting the Constitution really are a hypocritical farce, as became clear when Garland was denied even a hearing. Should RBG indeed die while Trump is in office of course her replacement will be installed in a nanosecond. And then the deed will be complete.
We are due for a true constitutional convention. So many things are wrong with what the Framers crafted more than two centuries ago. I’d like to see a true equalization of representation in the Senate (which absurdly grants all of California the same number of senators as North Dakota), abolition of the electoral college, outright repeal or at least a redraft of the nonsensical second amendment), a true right of privacy enforceable against private entities, an abolition of the absurd notion that corporations are people, substantial reduction in the ever expanding notion of executive privilege, term limits on Congress, etc. etc.
311
@Douglas Evans, In this social-network dominated era when any comment can be spreaded without screening,
simple and very basic teaching is needed from younger ages.
"Information is as valid as its reliable source."
17
@Douglas Evans, I suggest a law be written that fast tracks Congressional subpoenas. What with "Fast and Furious" and Don McGann subpoenas should not happen again. Congressional conflicts with the Executive should be litigated by the parties involved instead of letting court delays make subpoenas obsolete.
26
@Douglas Evans,
"I’d like to see a true equalization of representation in the Senate (which absurdly grants all of California the same number of senators as North Dakota)"
More specifically, "which grants California's 40 million people the same number of senators as North Dakota's 762,000 (or Wyoming's 580,000)".
43
Two observations:
1. Every single time a Democrat is found to be corrupt in some way - like when the DNC was found with their foot on the scale to favor Hilary's nomination in 2016 - it plays into the right wing narrative. The more squeaky clean the behavior of Democrats, the more difficult it will be for this dishonest right wing narrative to take hold. And yes, it is grotesquely unfair that the Left has to maintain such high standards while the Right gets a pass for all sorts of corruption, but that's where we are.
2. Call out the dishonesty and keep calling it out. The only weapons we have are facts and logic. Trump will most likely be acquitted, and when that happens we know very well that he will be prancing around like a victorious Caesar, boasting about "winning" and mocking the Democrats' efforts to hold him accountable. This does not mean that the Dems erred in doing their constitutional duty. We cannot stop trying. As in the McCarthy era and the Nixon presidency, we must keep hoping that the truth will finally win out.
16
The Democrats in the progressive wing are calling Democratic politicians corrupt for accepting corporate contribution which helps the Republicans convey the idea that politicians are corrupt. Bernie Sanders pretty called into question Hillary Clinton's integrity for he acceptance of corporate money, including very large fees for speeches she gave. In fact, Democrats who are center left are labeled as corporate Democrats by the progressives. So all in all, it is fairly easy to see what politicians are perceived so unfavorably.
4
You know the bias problem with Fox. So I address the problem with the left.
In the past 10 years, many legal challenges have been brought to court. And when the cases are pending, the liberal media consults legal experts who evaluate the prospects of success.
The experts quoted are mostly liberal and generally wrong. Two cases challenged the ACA. The experts thought Obamacare was doomed because of the conservative majority. But the Court upheld the ACA in both challenges.
The experts were divided on gay marriage, which the liberals won. On religious rights, the liberals lost in Hobby Lobby, in which they expected a victory. Masterpiece Bakeshop was supposed to be be a winner, which it was not.
On voting rights, the experts were confident that political gerrymandering would go down, which it did not. Admittedly, it is some consolation that they foresaw victory in the census question case. But not much consolation. The the good guys won 9-0.
Finally, the most flagrant bias, in immigration -- the experts told us Trumps travel ban was doomed, Instead, it survived in a compromised form. And DACA, in which the experts have been very optimistic, awaits decision. Only time will tell, but the lower courts in DACA have not favored the dreamers.
In the critical matter of court cases, liberal experts have excelled in wishful thinking. I have stopped reading these experts and go to the Associated Press and PBS, where middle of the road rules.
4
@michjas In many of those cases there was a different make up of the supreme court then what exists now
There’s one major, if not determinative difference between what occurred in the 50s, 60s, 70, and 80s, and that is, FOX News. In those decades, the vast majority of Americans got their news from Cronkite, Rather et al, and journalists with principles and morals. Now, there’s a major informational source that slants and distorts truth, disguises biased editorializing as news, and regularly fails to mention stories that don’t fit their narrative.
112
@JS from NC: For the sake of historical broadcast accuracy, if you watched the CBS evening news in the '50s, you got it from Douglas Edwards. Cronkite succeeded him circa 1962.
While this is all true, Democrats are also pretty good at doing ‘fauxtrage’, as are countless other groups: farmers being victims of thoughtless government, ranchers who are victims of plots to steal land, university students fauxtraged by the presence of some scandalous right or left wing speaker. The list goes on. It’s scandalous.
6
@Dr if this is a bit rich in a time when small farmers are losing their lands right and left in the wake of trumps trade wars.
23
@Michele Underhill @Dr if Funny when the ranchers in Texas are suing Trump over taking their land to build a wall
I wonder if they understand the creature they have been creating for so many decades. Their blatant lies, creative avoidance of facts, and constant harping on wedge issues in the most destructive ways imaginable has made it impossible for Americans to trust any politician, not just the Democrats whom they want us to distrust. Do they understand that this creature will turn on them and bite them back? It's called uprising, revolution, and leads to some most unpleasant consequences for the fomenters of it.
Here's the reality of America. Whites are going to be a minority in the country. If we don't start to spend/invest in our country we will lose what makes it a place worth living in and for. Trump and the GOP (and to a lesser degree the Democrats because they've been hindered by the GOP), have not bothered to invest in our national infrastructure, basic or advanced sciences, the land we share, or in America unless it's rich America.
Lincoln said it best in his second inauguration: "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.
11
@hen3ry
Thank you. I always look forward to your comments.
Today’s hearings on the Senate floor may be the last time we enjoy real freedom of speech in this country. Trump is about to be given the power to destroy anyone, at anytime.
57
@EW
It’s only a matter of time before free speech goes. Anyone who reads a little about history knows where the politics of propaganda leads.
I had it pegged at happening soon after the election. But your comment came with a chilling sense you may be right.
If Trump wins in November, something like the Inquisition will soon follow.
31
I see the modern era of Republican propaganda as an offshoot of Jim Crow suppression and intimidation. Look at where the power centers of the modern republicans exist. Yes, the former Jim Crow states. Because so many African Americans tilt towards the democrats it seems a natural fit that all democrats no matter what their color, should be demonized and lorded over at an cost. In the era of fox propaganda, it is the truth. The truth is pliable and can be used as a weapon in this era of super information. It is no longer an ideological difference. It is now labeled a culture war. It is not surprising really that trump wants to bury president Obama by any means necessary and to lock up Hillary Clinton and engage the Russians as comrades in arms. I think Nancy Pelosi had no choice. If our democracy is to thrive. If our democracy is to survive.
54
@Will when the disconnected left rises (usually in rage) it smashes the political right, whose constituencies are naturally limited. 2018 was just a warm up for the 2020 election, which will I believe be very well attended. When most people vote, republicans lose.
22
I was thinking about this topic the other day, noticing that the Shabab attack in Kenya, killing 3 US service members, slipped by unnoticed; compare that to the insanity over Benghazi (2 government officials and 2 contractors died). Or compare the fact that President Obama personally directed and approved the high-risk elimination of Bin Laden, and was still called "weak" and "unAmerican" in right wing media, while Trump's ordering of a remote control assassination shows how tough he is. The rise of right-wing, for-profit propaganda has caught many of us by surprise. How to overcome it? Not with counter-propaganda: victory at the expense of principal is not worth it. Keep telling the truth, trust that voters will come around -- and remember that the demographic that wants so badly to believe the Fox narrative is dying off day by day. This too shall pass.
95
@Cal Prof
Let me bursted your bubble. People lean liberal in youth but tend to turn conservative as they mature. So, yes, nature will take its course, but others will replace us.
At some point all the divisiveness the Dems have been cultivating for the last 50 years will grow old, too.
3
@Pat - you make the classic conservative assumption that society is basically stable and subsequent generations will follow the same path as your generation did.
The youth of today will face challenges that are difficult to appreciate from the present. Who knows how that will shape their political beliefs as they get older, but they will not be the same beliefs as today's conservatives. The world is changing whether we like it or not.
11
@Pat : The Dems have created divisiveness?????? Oh, please! The entitled, elitist, racist, greed-and hate-driven bigots who are republicans are the ones doing that. I have been a Democrat since I first voted at 18, and I remain a Democrat, many, many years later, so do all my friends. The only thing that will grow old is tyranny, despotism, and Fascism.
2
"The Russian disinformation slogan is 'if everything is possible, nothing is true' so the scattershot of nonsense is ultimately a war on truth."
It is important to note that the Russian disinformation campaign being waged against western democracies is lifted in its entirety from the GOP political playbook going back to Richard Nixon's first campaigns—for the House in 1946 and Senate in 1950—both managed by Murray Chotiner.
23
In my political lifetime (I first voted in 1965.) Democrats, the liberals/progressives, not the southerners, have viewed politics as a collegial exercise with an expected rational and reasonable debate and discussion between rational and reasonable people.
Republicans, on the other hand, have long viewed and practiced politics as a winner-take-all, take-no-prisoners, scorched earth political/ideological version of war. There is a sole victor with unconditional surrender and disregard for the defeated. Capitalistic and Social Darwinism writ large, if you will.
That modern politics has devolved to politics reminiscent of the 19th century should not be unexpected, or a surprise, as one of the major political parties has also returned to 19th century for its principles and policies.
Republicans have not forgotten the Gilded Age...
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@HapinOregon
"Republicans have not forgotten the Gilded Age..."
No, they most certainly have not. And they've done pretty well in in their attempt to re-create it. We're pretty much there.
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Nixon would never have resigned if Fox News existed. It seems that the lessons the GOP, Murdoch, and Ailes learnt from Watergate wasn't that they shouldn't be corrupt cheats, but that they needed a propaganda machine to help them get away with it.
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@A If Fox News had existed, there would have been no Voting Rights Act or Civil Rights Act. The entrenched southern bigots would have had a way to convince tens of millions of Americans that Martin Luther King, Jr. was nothing but a Communist. And those same tens of millions would never have seen vicious dogs unleashed on non-violent demonstrators.
American conservatives of the far right very much like the idea of being on top all the time instead of turning governing over to their
political rivals every few years. They have been working toward permanent control for many years and now they
smell victory.
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Something else has happened to the US since LBJ's landslide. The increasing urbanization of the US coupled with the electoral college, the make-up of the Senate and the increasing sophistication of gerrymandering have put the future of this nation largely in the hands of about 35% of the people. Those right wing attacks would not have purchase without these factors. Sadly, these factors will never be changed or ameliorated as long as minority control prevails in this nation.
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America is an open society that allows our adversaries and enemies to walk among us. And they do. They call themselves "conservatives."
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so conservatives are the enemy. And they cal intolerant.
Love Alan Dershowitz letter to NYT-especially this part
"Now that the primary issue is whether criminal conduct is required, I have done extensive original research and have come to the firm conclusion that Justice Curtis was correct and that criminal-type behavior akin to treason and bribery is constitutionally required, and that vague terms like abuse of power and obstruction of Congress did not meet the criteria."
Vague terms like "abuse of power and obstruction of Congress"?
Right
Unlike Vague terms like "extensive original research"
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@That's What She Said Abuse of power and obstruction of Congress are high crimes and misdemeanors only if done by Democrats. Its OK for Republicans.
Excellent work. The blizzard of lies and innuendo don''t have to convince anyone that they're true if they spread doubt, nihilism, and a belief that "they're all corrupt". The Russian disinformation slogan is "if everything is possible, nothing is true" so the scattershot of nonsense is ultimately a war on truth. I was involved in the 2008 Obama campaign and can testify to the utter decency and good intentions not only of the campaign itself but of the thousands of Americans I spoke to on the phone or in person. We're a fundamentally wonderful people and shouldn't let anyone tell us otherwise.
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@Peter Quince apparently only 50% of us are.
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@Ala
I don't believe that. I think many Trump voters believed they were doing a good thing for the country, they just didn't know any better. Let's hope they've gotten smarter this time around.
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Laying the groundwork for many Boomer(ang) effects on themselves? Most likely.
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A reflection of what we are currently witnessing - the complete corruption of the Republican Party.
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What a timely and well written article. We forget how far this goes back and how it just keeps happening! Should be required reading for all Americans. N.Hemmer, you are helping to save this great country of ours. Love and hope to you.
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The willingness to manufacture and promote lies about opponents is a Republican trait. Democrats are usually far more interested in discovering truths and exploring differences.
It makes me think we are observing in real time the differentiation of homo sapiens into two sub-species - one that excels in free thought and one that does not think beyond the dictates of an authority figure.
Unfortunately, in our political system this seems to put the thinkers at a serious disadvantage.
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@Kenneth Brady I agree--but we can't forget that Trump was beaten by 3 million votes! Three million. . .we must repair a system that allows three million votes to count for naught.
@Kenneth Brady Looks like I am not the only one to wonder if the Human species has split into two branches with one curving backwards.
The information in this article should be old news. But far too many people still don't quite grasp how pervasive, and organized, this propaganda process has been. Chomsky has been writing about it for decades. He concludes that it has been going on since the end of WWII, is organized, fabulously well funded and accelerating for the past 40 years. He indicates that the plethora of Conservative "Think Tanks" are, in fact, places that hatch tactics to persuade Americans to vote for the best interests of those on the very top. And, sadly, that the right wing has already won the messaging war.
Hence, anyone to the left of Ted Cruz is a Communist in American parlance.
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@Jerseytime Read Nancy McClain: “Democracy in Chains” if you have the stomach. Republicans have been working on the destruction of the Constitution and the federal government for decades. It isn’t just FOX; it’s all of America’s great capitalistic companies that battle against government having any oversight in business.
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@Jerseytime
You are absolutely right. Nancy MacLean wrote a very interesting book on this called 'Democracy in Chains'. I highly recommend it (better read it becomes illegal).
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@B. Rothman
No, it is just Fox.
Those companies depend on Fox. The Republican party depends on Fox. Trump depends on Fox. Fox has created an alternate universe that millions of people inhabit. A divided house will not stand.
Fox is the most dangerous thing our country has ever faced. If the last three years have not convinced you then you haven't been paying attention.
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“These twin tactics are not inventions of the Trump era. They are part of a decades-long strategy by the right to secure political power — a strategy originating in conservative media.”
And, it’s working.
I don’t want to live in the same country as these people anymore. They can carve out half the states for themselves. They can write their own Constitution, make some flavor of Jesus worship the state religion, carry guns everywhere, make Fox the state media horn, install Trump as dictator for life - whatever they want. But I can’t bear to watch them do all of this to our country. They’re destroying everything that makes America great (yes, I see the irony of that sentence). There is no living with these people, and fighting them forces us to betray all that is good and principled. Let’s agree to a divorce - irreconcilable differences. Just make them go away.
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@John Ranta:
The impeachment "trial" is rolling like thunder in the background as I find myself at the Google checking into how long one can visit Canada legally. Really. Then on to Homes for Sale in Montreal. Can this be real?
No spring chicken here, I have made a good life for myself, finally coming home to roost in NH only to feel the anxiety of doomsday upon me.
If the "divorce" comes to pass,they won't want New England. Should that be comforting? Not really... because they will want theirs, yours, and mine. No secession, just oppression.
How long can I tread water?
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@John Ranta:
The impeachment "trial" is rolling like thunder in the background as I find myself at the Google checking into how long one can visit Canada legally. Really. Then on to Homes for Sale in Montreal. Can this be real?
No spring chicken here, I have made a good life for myself, finally coming home to roost in NH only to feel the anxiety of doomsday upon me.
If the "divorce" comes to pass,they won't want New England. Should that be comforting? Not really... because they will want theirs, yours, and mine. No succession, just oppression.
How long can I tread water?
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@John Ranta I made the move south almost 20 years ago. Seems somehow prescient these days. On the occasions that I have to drive to AZ, I see the Nogales wall, now covered haphazardly with countless tons of razor wire at taxpayer expense as make work for US troops assigned to the border, and I think sadly of a time when the US was a welcoming nation. No longer. Mr. Ranta, you will be warmly welcomed in Mexico.
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The fact that about 40 percent of Americans have embraced and continue to embrace these fairy tales makes it all the more amazing that people like Kennefy, Clinton, and Obama hsve managed to get elected president. We have to accept the reality that a lot of people make decisions based on information comparable to the level of supermarket tabloid stories on the Kardashians. With so many people having such poor critical thinking skills, it is no wonder that the future of constitutional government is in doubt.
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@arp Even people who otherwise have strong critical thinking skills can fall victim to confirmation bias. And the right-wing media and Fox News’ tactics of brainwashing their viewers can make seemingly intelligent, reasonable people believe conspiracy theories and propaganda. I’ve seen it in my extended family members and friends.
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@arp "It is certain, in any case, that ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have." -- James Baldwin
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That’s why Trump loves the poorly educated.
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Lindsey Graham today was in front of cameras calling for investigation into the Bidens--a clear deflection from Trump's corruption. Their strategy is a good one, as the writer says. If every politician is corrupt, why should Trump be held accountable? If there is no real difference between Democrats and Republicans and they are all inherently selfish, corrupt people, then what difference do elections make? We know that depressed voter turnout favors Republicans.
Their strategy is an effective one. A GOP-led Congress and White House delivered deficit-financed tax-cuts for the rich in 2017 and regulation rollbacks that harm the environment but boost corporations' bottom lines. Trump has stacked the lower courts with young, unqualified, right wing judges who will issue decisions on our most precious rights for years. Politics is a dirty game that. Unfortunately, if the Democrats played on Republicans' terms, they would cease to uphold the party's values and probably further alienate some voters. The right wing's strategy was "win-win" and dare I say they are succeeding.
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@Jen
The presidential election goes thru the heart of the minority communities. Minorities know who to vote for and it isn't for bigots or traitors.
Minorities will uphold the Constitution and we will ensure that Trump, the GOP senators all go the way of traitors out of office.
WE have no control over how white people are going to vote but the majority of minorities who are registering people to vote know which way we are voting and it is not for bigots and liars.
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Thank you for this timely article.
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These people have no shame. Never have, never will.
The front page this moment reports that Lindsey Graham wants a "Mueller-type" investigation of the Bidens.
We need a Mueller-type investigation to locate Graham's ethics, but I'm afraid the world lacks sufficient resources to complete that task.
I would enjoy meeting Senator Graham in an undisclosed location for a little "chat."
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@Barking Doggerel
I'm old but I'd live to join you. The room might get crowded.
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Maybe, and it seems weird for me to say it as someone firmly on the left, they have a point.
The so-called centrist media reports what the centrist beltway wants to hear. There's more to the news than that.
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The rise of rightwing media means we will have an impeachment hearing in which Democrats on the one hand prove convincingly that the conspiracy theory that Ukraine hacked our election and has “the servers”, which theory is Russia propaganda, and then Republicans on the other hand will double down on that Russian propaganda among other irrelevant distractions from Trump’s abuse of office that only those in Fox world understand. They miss and dismiss truth and carry on with their disinformation and distraction campaign. Watching the Republican case will be like watching Fox News where facts don’t matter and only Democrats may be investigated and impeached. It is, in essence, obstruction of justice, just like Republican lies that the Mueller report exonerated Trump. It may not be new, but it’s so pervasive that it’s brought our country to an abyss across which we can’t connect. We are lost.
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@Sherry
Well stated. The really sad part is that a large part does not want to read through boring information, they want someone to condense it and tell what it says, and means.
Conservatives have been taking advantage of that to plant their own ideas. The only defense is civics education, and that has been under attack in many parts of our country.
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Democrats still don't understand they are on the losing end of a propaganda war in which they are not participating. While Trump has been running millions of dollars of targeted Facebook ads protesting impeachment, Democrats sit on their hands lamenting the unfairness of it all.
What they don't realize is that many Trump supporters simply don't know the facts. Yes, it is rue that facts won't change the minds of most of them -- but they will for a few, and that would be enough: if only a fraction of a percent had changed their minds in Michigan, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin, Trump would not be President.
Democrats like Bloomberg and Steyer should be buying micro-targeted Facebook ads aimed at the same voters Trump targets.
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@PJF There is a reason why Pennsylvania is nicked Pennsyltucky.
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Rupert Murdoch's media companies relentlessly promoted the policies that led to the Australian wildfires yet are allowed to operate unabated, so they're free to work convincing viewers in this country that Trump somehow isn't a Russian stooge.
There's got to be a way to balance the demands of free speech versus pure propaganda, particularly when it's aimed at damaging our country to the benefit of foreign powers and a couple of old rich people. It's obvious that waiting for people to become sophisticated enough to sniff it out on their own is a losing strategy.
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@Steve M
There is, in Murdoch's case. He was given the special favor of U.S. citizenship, for which he would not normally have been eligible at that time, so he could legally own U.S. broadcast and cable. His citizenship should be revoked.
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@Thomas Zaslavsky
We don’t want him back.
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Outstanding summary of how right wing media replaced conservative sources to lay the groundwork of over 50 years to move the GOP and the country rightward.
It paved the way for the demagoguery of a Donald Trump to step forward on the national stage with a talent for retail politics never seen in the United States on the conservative/right wing side.
It demonstrates how personality and timing can make all the difference in propelling a movement. George Wallace, Pat Buchanan, Sarah Palin and others tried but never succeeded quite like Trump.
This column portends the great danger ahead if Trump wins re-election.
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@JT FLORIDA
I believe you are too optimistic.
The dismantling of America is going to pick up speed now that the “adults in the room” are gone, replaced by yes men. November is likely to be too late.
And yes, I do feel like Cassandra.
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@JT FLORIDA
Yes, but right-wing media did not "replace" conservative sources. They are the same.
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@JT FLORIDA
Good points. With the propaganda machine the Cons have now, Sarah P. might very well win if she decides to run. Assuming of course we still have a representative government after this Fall.
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Fascinating article. It was interesting to me that she chose to focus so much on books, though. For the 40s and 50s it makes a lot of sense, but are there really any Republicans who get their inane conspiracies from books these days? The perspective here with its focus written work is definitely worthwhile analysis, but I'd argue that some big parts of the story are left out. I think about the shift to cable tv, end to the fairness doctrine, the creation of Fox News, and then proliferation of dubious internet/social media news environments, these also go a long way to explain the horror show that is the present.
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: Also to note is the role that talk radio has played, Julia.
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@Julia
Yes, there are books and they are important even for the people who don't read them. They are cited on radio, TV, and the internet as "evidence" for the crazy conspiracy and fear theories.
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@Bob Gardin Very true! Totally slipped my mind but the centrality of talk radio to republican strategy 90s-2000s can't be forgotten. Rush Limbaugh reminds me of Trump in so many ways.
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Unfortunately, Mr. Hemmer lists the right wing claims about Democrats' corruption but makes no attempt to show that those claims were/are pure fiction.
What is needed is a careful, fact based rebuttal of right wing lies, but instead he offers just a variation of "we're right and they're wrong". The result: right wing lies are not seriously challenged and a "centrist" reader may conclude that there may be an element of truth to them.
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@Benjamin II Yes, it is important to challenge the false premises of right wing media. But in this piece Ms. Nicole Hemmer's objective is to provide historical context for the strategies of Fox News in conservative political media of the 1960s and 70s.
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@Benjamin II
Right Wingers have long recognized the value of the rhetorical technique now known is the Gish Gallop.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gish_gallop
Essentially it is the idea that it is far easier to sling mud than it is to clean it up.
@Benjamin II
Correction -- Ms. Hemmer.
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Before he was CEO and Chairman of FOX News Ailes was a media consultant for Republican presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush, and for Rudy Giuliani's first mayoral campaign.
No head of a news organization ever came to the position as a biased political operative without a nanosecond of experience as a journalist.
Ailes choice of "fair and balanced" as a tag line is a corner stone of conservative medias' "all lies all the time" operating principle.
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@Mary Elizabeth Lease
The disconnect is so in your face. No self respecting white women should of worked for Ailes without going to the media and blowing the whistle. No job is that important to lose your self respect.
That is the difference between those blonde Barbie dolls and the women who testified before Congress, Those were real women. they put everything on the line when they saw a wrong to America being committed by a white man who thought he was above the law. they came willingly knowing how much they could lose.
Barbie dolls' are sexual objects and submitting to a fat old man. It takes two to tango and three to develop a massive cover up. Ailes just did what he knew he could get away with just like old man Trump.
Those same Barbie dolls are on CNN acting as if there experiences at Fox didn't happen, now they are serious journalist. They have the nerve to question the creditability of a Nancy and the ambassador from Ukraine. The women of Fox need to take off the heavy make up and stand up for this country. If they dont they are going to have a difficult time getting another position because the taint of the Fox News will follow them wherever they go.
Ailes is dead but the culture is still the same at Fox News. Megan Kelly is a female version of Ailes, when she went out into the real world on NBC she couldn't function without bringing in blackface and pretend she wasn't racist. She is a perfect student of Roger Ailes. A credit to Fox News
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This is a great analysis. But sadly, everyone should already know it but they do not.
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The writer neglects to mention the 1987 repeal of the Fairness Doctrine. This was huge in the rise of right-wing media and is central to understanding how we got into this mess today.
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@Richard S., thank you for this comment. There are great difficulties in being "fair and balanced" in the face of falsehoods and spin and less than ethical behavior.
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@Richard S.
The dominant voice among right wing media is Fox News. As a cable broadcaster it would not have been subject to the Fairness Doctrine if it still existed.
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@Benjamin II
You're right. However Fox News didn't happen immediately afterwards; it took another ten years. In the interim there was talk radio, completely dominated by conservative voices. Undoubtedly technology -- especially the Internet-- would have made the Fairness Doctrine obsolete eventually, but its repeal certainly let the genie out of the bottle.
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