My weird theory is media format influence is playing on human psychology in a weird way. Or looking at it another way, this is how humans were before literacy. The printed word media had a major effect on how people think probably making them more individualistic and much less tribal. At the very least, reading was more likely to encourage objectivity and better comprehension as you intake information at your own pace and not on a pace set by an anchor on TV or Radio or especially News / Entertainment personality.
Some of what is going on is a mix between the format and how the personalities conduct themselves. I was thinking of this old ass show from the 60s to the 70s called Firing Line hosted by William F. Buckley Jr. as well as Charlie Rose from PBS. In this format, the sponsors are mentioned all upfront at the start and then afterwards, uninterrupted discussion usually with just one or two guests, and maybe a few audience questions. The reason this old format comes to mind is because it's come back, but in the Podcast world. Maybe strangely pioneered by Joe Rogan, but picked up by some serious intellectuals and they are getting views and subs. This format is much better for parsing complex topics.
EDIT: One more comment is what happened between Firing Line or similar shows and now say during the 80s? Rush Limbaugh or people like him ruined talk radio and sane discourse and of course he set the stage for FOX News.
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Sorry, I don't subscribe to that train if thought... Why not use your voice when you have an audience? Same for athletes. You don't have to listen if you don't care for them.
... furthermore, in the age of social media, everyone has a voice. What are celebrities supposed to just not have a voice on Twitter, while Mr Beer, Barbecue, and Freedom does? That doesn't even make sense.
"Party In The U.S.A.", "Bye Bye Bye" suddenly charting for some reason
Miley Cyrus' 2009 hit "Party In The U.S.A." and NSYNC's "Bye Bye Bye" are both suddenly charting today—as is YG and Nipsey Hussle's "FDT."
news.avclub.com
I can see we're on completely different levels of reality, that's fine.
Too bad Twitter didn't exist in the 1930-40s or we might've gotten that Austrian guy's vision on an even grander scale.
I've lost a lot of respect for him over the past two years, he wants to be part of the story and he loves the attention. He goes on Wendy Williams to talk about gossip for her audience of bobbleheads, he gets wasted every NYE on TV and he just seems like his ego has gotten out of control. I can't imagine a respected journalist from my youth doing that.
Twitter and Facebook are going to be what brings the planet down....well that may be extreme but I do think they are societal poison. They encourage people to try to get sympathy and attention so everyone has to play the biggest victim, the most outraged and the most righteous, there is no humility or perspective left on those platforms. Thankfully only 25% of American adults even use twitter but you wouldn't know it by the power the twitter mobs have over the media and corporations, you just piss off a small vocal group on twitter and you are history.
Except in this case, people were using their voice to compare Trump's disinformation to that same guy. Celebs like Zach Braff included.
You are talking about 2 different issues at once here. 1 being social media having a part in creating social divides through tribalism. Nobody's arguing that. That's a scary place we are headed there. I don't think that this is something most people aren't frightened of, and many do realize that this is how we got to Trumpism in the 1st place.
Saying that people shouldn't use their fame as a podium is an entirely different subject. If you would have asked me what I thought 15 years ago, I would have said the complete opposite. As it stands now, that idea has been completely turned on its ear by social media, for good or bad. Asking someone to not speak their mind because they are famous is just not only not possible, but IMO, would also be irresponsible in this day.
Keep in mind that we live right now, in a time where those voices actually probably made something of a difference in actually dumping Trump. I think it's quite obvious that the reverse of what you said is possible, too. Actually, I'd say that this election has been a pretty good case for that. I saw many people of much higher fame levels than Zach Braff speaking their mind on how anti-Trump they were, like Mark Hammil, Stephen King, etc. They weren't doing that out of selfishness, imo, but out of desperation to connect with their fans on something of great importance. Some will obviously think that I'm giving these celebs too much credit. Personally, I don't understand why people are so starstruck in the 1st place. I do NOT hold them in higher value than my neighbor, just like I don't for wealth, color, gender, orientation, etc. All I know is that these voices weren't muted, and they helped encourage people to vote out a really bad human pretending to be a leader. That's all I want to say on that. This time, it made a lot of sense for some of these guys and gals to speak up. Seems like a really weird time to think that this is the underlying problem. Maybe social media itself, OK, of course!
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That's not a good quality you're embracing there, but OK. Thanks for keeping it respectful.
They do love their victim mentality. Now they want to come together? ROFL.
If Trumpers want back in? The answer is easy - admit you made a mistake the past 4 years. That doesn't even take much courage. Admit that you chose divisiveness purposely in the name of "party loyalty".
If Trumpers want back in? The answer is easy - admit you made a mistake the past 4 years. That doesn't even take much courage. Admit that you chose divisiveness purposely in the name of "party loyalty".
On my FB memories today all of the hate, vitriol, threats (not physical, emotional) I received because I voted for Clinton are there for everyone to see. Same when I voted for Obama. I made a post saying to those that are snowflakes and are upset at what I've posed the past four years, or so, with it building and building, they created the monster.
At least for hockey I'd say. I can't even think of another team's mascot off the top of my head.
Now that the dust has settled we really do need to examine ourselves. You can't deny that Trump, the horrible despot he is garnered more than 70 million votes. That is an increase from 2016 where he had around 63 million. More people voted for him, and while he will be out of the White House in January, this would seem to indicate that by and large nearly half the US population agreed with him.
Now you can say alot of Republicans agreed with his agenda and not his rhetoric , but you also have a more sinister breakdown of that group; alot of them agreed with his tone and way of thinking so much so that they were willing to vote for him despite his moral failings.
As Shakespeare so eloquently stated "The fault dear Brutus is not in our stars but in ourselves" serious inflection needs to take place. Trumpism is here to stay unfortunately, and there needs to be some commonality in basic human interaction.
Now you can say alot of Republicans agreed with his agenda and not his rhetoric , but you also have a more sinister breakdown of that group; alot of them agreed with his tone and way of thinking so much so that they were willing to vote for him despite his moral failings.
As Shakespeare so eloquently stated "The fault dear Brutus is not in our stars but in ourselves" serious inflection needs to take place. Trumpism is here to stay unfortunately, and there needs to be some commonality in basic human interaction.
This is why its hard to listen to people who say we should be nicer and more understanding to them. They have no willingness to be reflect on what happened at all. How Trump acted or treated people. He didn't care about being President for the whole country. He couldn't pretend to be the President for the whole country. We couldn't even get a second stimulus because f*** the blue states. We let the pandemic out of control because its New York and they get what they deserve.
s*** on Hillary for being a bit slow to concede and being bitter but saying f*** all about Trump not conceding at all and undermining the country's democracy and peaceful transition process.
The problem facing the US is the same facing the UK. An archaic old system of two party politics sustained by a first past the post voting system which ensures minority rule, wasted votes, stifles political diversity, power contested in marginal seats and doesn't represent the population. The US and UK (along with Canada) the only western democracies in company with countries like Azerbaijan, Yemen, Liberia etc who practice this archaic form of voting. It needs to be binned. Winner takes all zero sum politics needs to be binned. Alternative forms of voting practiced in modern democracies better represents the populace, governing by a coalition because democracy is too precious to be handed to one party.
Man featured at Giuliani press conference is a convicted sex offender
Trenton political insiders watched with bemusement as Brooks took the podium.
www.politico.com
