Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Fake News
When we talked about denialism on Tuesday, it inevitably reminded me of what is currently happening with President Trump. He completely denies the legitimacy of news sites that make him look bad, thus giving himself the ability to control what news he involves himself with. He is able to create an image of himself that is completely free of any fraud or wrongdoings of any kind. However, this is completely unjust and allows for mass spreading of propaganda. When he or one of his cabinet members are asked to clarify a lie/item of propaganda, they simply deem them "alternative facts", which implicates that they are indeed true. In conclusion, Trump's relationship with "fake news" ultimately perpetuates denialistic tendencies in history and politics.
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I agree with the similarity you point out in your blog. For me, the very first thing that I thought of was the book 1984. I reread it this summer and really enjoyed the fictional world of Ingsoc, which had shocking resemblances to many countries today. Mr Stewart made a reference to the book when he mentioned doublethink and 2+2=5. I think that book is what made me realize how much power comes with control of history.
ReplyDeleteWhen we discussed this topic in class I also thought of Trump and Fake news and I agree with you. It is quite bothersome that a leader of our country will deny anything to make himself look better.
ReplyDeleteI actually have a separate view point when it comes to the relationship between Trump and fake news. It is a very superficial interpretation of the issue of fake news to suggest that Trump is denying every mistake just to make himself "look better". While it is obvious that he is using lies as a tool to further his political standing, it is intriguing how he is doing so in a way which obviously will weaken the people's impression of a strong leader. I am sure there is some sophisticated reason behind his irrational actions, because he is able to act in a way which restricts the media and the world to have (basically) only one interpretation of him - a crazy, irrational and stupid leader. Honestly, it takes actual skills to be able to do this, and from his commercial war with China, I am seeing some clever strategies being implemented that are weakening China's commercial standing. (e.g. monopolization of beans) The Chinese government didn't expect such a strong reaction from Trump due to his media appearance, so I believe there may be more to his "denialist tendencies" than we expect.
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