Fear is alive and surging. Americans are more afraid today than ever before. Polls show Americans constantly worrying about becoming victims of terrorism, crime, and war. Since the 2016 election, widespread fear has skyrocketed. Concerns as to why have sparked curiosity in media influence, the GOP/DNC and even the President of the United States, Donald Trump. When we allow fear to prevail our emotions, thoughts, and actions, we are left with an irrational view of political concepts which fuels the fire for a fearful America. Donald Trump imposes and utilizes fear as political rhetoric. In his bid for the Republican Nomination in 2016, Trump generates an unexpected statement concerning America and Mexico. "When Mexico sends its people, …show more content…
In addition to Trump, his affiliated party, the Grand Old Party (GOP) imposes fear. "The end of the DACA program threatens all the things that the young people he works with have achieved...You see in their eyes the fear, that's the heartbreaker" (Sanchez, par. 1,2, 2017). Just recently, the GOP propositioned for the repeal of DACA, a program that allows illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and become eligible for a work permit in the U.S. (“Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals,” par. 1, 2018). Threatening to take away something so helpful yet unhelpful in the eyes of many presses tremendous anxiety on hundreds of thousands of immigrants living and working in the states. When fear is near, the capacity for control is even more prominent, therefore the GOP successfully benefits from using fear factors to get immigrants to sign or agree or in return for being granted amnesty. I personally believe and have second handedly witnessed the GOP inflicting fear upon immigrants, as for example, of hearing horror stories of families being …show more content…
It is of my judgment that broadcasting stations are fixated on the words, "breaking news." It seems today that any circumstance holds as current breaking news as highlighted by Psychology Today. "News programming uses a hierarchy if it bleeds, it leads. Fear-based news programming has two aims. The first is to grab the viewer's attention. In the news media, this is called the teaser. The second aim is to persuade the viewer that the solution for reducing the identified worry will be in the news story" (If It Bleeds, It Leads: Understanding Fear-Based Media, par. 1, 2011). Our emotions guide us through our anxieties and most of the time, things seem worse than they actually are. All the discussion regarding Mexicans are taking our jobs (PBS NewsHour, 20:48-20:54, 2015), and North Korea missiles heading for the Pacific border of America etc., are all heightened by the kind of media we consume. The intention of news is to inform us of what's occurring around us and possibly suggest solutions to how to cope or resolve them. However, the real question that should be asked of ourselves is, is it sensationalized or real news and does it seek to benefit or instill fear in its audience? Editor of the Atlantic, Molly Ball uses news outlet, The Guardian, in agreement and opens up about how the media is like a cloak of protection for Americans. When the anxiety is high, people crave protection (Ball, par. 9, 2016), therefore concise reasoning is almost
In The Influencing Machine, Gladstone argues that the media focuses on putting out news that remotely threatens viewers. In the text she states, “emphasizing bad news is good business…world [seems] more dangerous…actually is.” It is good business considering that it keeps the audience on their toes and makes them think about what is going on. When you visit news sites or look at news stations
Wang’s studies have shown that news industries are now tabloidizing news because it elicits the attention of their viewers. Now the only thing considered as “entertainment” in the news is “crimes, accidents, and disasters”. Wangs writes “News that bleeds seem to still lead the primary broadcasts” (Wang 722). People nowaday only tune in when a disaster has occurred and anything other that is not “interesting”. Unfortunately, people would rather watch Isis in action then heard about Obama releasing innocent victims from prison. The reporter in “Gray Noise” proves Wang’s words true when he records on his lens about a mother who had just lost her
Politics is dirty and competitive and has not changed between 1879 and 2018. It is a complex system of jargon, charm, facts, and lies. Mark Twain’s “The Presidential Candidate” satirically expresses the essence of both old-world and modern politics as a presidential candidate who blatantly tells the truth of his wrongdoings. As a politician, one must be an open book. Their life must be truthfully written on the pages for the readers to analyze and evaluate their credibility as leaders. “The Presidential Candidate” resonates both in 1879 and 2018 with his use of humor, use of diction and use of subtlety.
Bernie Sanders is running for President of the United States of America as a democratic candidate. His competition for the primary elections is Hillary Clinton, a well-known politician with plenty of experience under her belt. Bernie is running as a non-traditional candidate, which is a main factor of why his campaign is extremely successful and popular with the American people. A recent political ad released by Sander’s campaign team called “Real Change” emphasizes his family values and dedication to the working class, fighting for the votes of the average American. The ad implies Bernie is the right man for the job due to his long history of experience and commitment to the issues he believes in. This political ad illustrates how Bernie
"Culture of Fear" is a book that describes that it is our perceptions that dangers have increased, and so much the actual level of risk. Glassner explains in all of his chapters how people and organizations use our fears as a way to increase their profit. Glassner also states about the prices we pay for our panics and all the time and energy we spend worrying. Americans are afraid because of the media's broadband expose of crime, violence, drugs and diseases.
President Trump’s inaugural address was a speech many have called short, brutish, but effective. While being shorter than the average inaugural address, falling nine-hundred and two words behind President Obama’s second inaugural address, it took only those one-thousand four-hundred and thirty-three words to reach out in an attempt to unite the divided American people. Trump’s speech effectively offers a new vision of our government, by connecting to people emotionally and logically, however lacking many facts and playing more off his credibility, many people questions his point in saying “empty talk is over.”
...de Americans on September 11, 2001. Now we are being told this number is possibly three times higher than originally reported, adding to the horror in America’s citizens. Society has been indoctrinated in the belief that there is continuously a worldwide threat. Paranoia and anxiety has been the key focal point and the American way of life.
Donald Trump, a current Republican front-runner, is well known for his presidential campaign and its harsh policies on illegal immigration between Mexico and the United States, which are largely similar to the 1930’s repatriation movement. His policy on Mexican immigration states, “The influx of foreign workers holds down salaries, keeps unemployment high, and makes it difficult for poor and working class Americans… to earn a middle class wage.” This is almost identical to a claim that was made during the Great Depression, and his plans for solving the crisis are also identical to the efforts made during the Repatriation; welfare refusal to immigrant families, job denial, and mass deportation of roughly 11 million Mexican immigrants. Though the thought of these plans going through may seem unachievable, history shows that they can be --and have been --
Rhetorical Analysis Presidential Debate Clinton and Trump The presidential debate was an event where most of the population not only of United Stated of America but the whole world was waiting anxiously for. The first of the three presidential debates was developed in Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY. The first debate drew a record of the audience being one of the most watched debated in the history of United States of America.
Sadly, Bradbury’s predictions about the effect fear have on erratic decision making is shown in society today. An egotistical businessman named Donald Trump, who was to our dismay was recently elected to be our president. He is very controversial and makes a lot of rude and sexist remarks, so people are still confused unto why America has chosen him to be their president. The answer is simple. People did it out of fear, fear that the refugees coming from a very dangerous place will harm them. Statistics have shown that “31% of Americans specifically say the new immigration policy will keep them safer…. [while only] 26% fear the new rules will make them less safe” (Ropeik). This shows that some Americans find Trump's fear of terrorists beneficial and think that it would keep them safe from the immigrants or outsiders from other countries. Ignoring the fact that they believe he is under qualified, they made this rash decision purely to be protected from what they fear. Some Americans fear that the immigrants from other countries will come in and end up being terrorists or will come into the country and take their jobs. This fear instantly invokes them to try and find protection from it. Trump's remarks are beneficial in the way that it could bring safety against the immigrants who we fear, but also brings in a detrimental effect. Trumps Muslim Ban is detrimental because of the hate crimes that would follow Donald Trump's
In Benjamin Radford’s essay “How Television Distorts Reality” the author contends that television newscasts distort reality by focusing on sensational events. Radford claims that news broadcasts devote inordinate amounts of air time to crime coverage, and avoid more critical subjects such as race relations and geopolitics. The mainstream media benefits from these divisive tactics due to the rationale that sensational headlines are much more attention-grabbing, and they believe that they are being “democratic” by offering the masses prepackaged information that can be easily consumed. In reality, the media is forcefully increasing the viewer’s feeling of vulnerability, leading them to
Newspapers and nightly news shows have become a business. They no longer go by the public services values they once stood by (Sensationalism, 2005). Instead of being the fourth branch of government, they are just like any other money making business. It is no longer a race to put out the truth; it is more a race for dollars and control. Sensationalism is purely fueled by money and popularity. If a news outlet garners a large amount of popularity, they can swing votes, and influence voters. Sensationalism has already affected many political situations. Sensationalism has proven to spread like a virus. If sensationalism is not controlled, there is no way the news outlets can be the advocate for the people.
People use many different sources in order to gain knowledge about current events. In America, historically, mass media and television have been the most dominant sources for information. Over the last decade, internet-based news sites and talk-radio shows have emerged as viable alternatives to the traditional media. While, obviously, the latest forms of news media are very different from their “elder” counterparts regarding the conveyance of the information, they share some of the same issues regarding the reporting of the news. News coverage can be, and usually is, influenced by many factors including, but not limited to: personal political ideology, religion, culture, and economics. The “inner” influences of political ideology, cultural values, and religion are not limited to the writer or reporter of a story. Editors, managers, and owners are also subjected to these pressures, in addition to the need to turn a profit, and, therefore, also influence the reporting of the news. Because of these influences, the final product is rarely an objective reporting of the facts. News sources convey their subjectivity, sometimes subtly, other times blatantly, through many methods. Listeners, readers, and viewers of all media should consume all information with a grain of salt.
“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear”. Fear is a vital response to physical and emotional danger if we didn't feel it, we couldn't protect ourselves from genuine threats. But often we fear situations that are far from life-or-death, and consequently hang back for no good reason. Traumas or bad experiences can trigger a fear response within us that is hard to suppress. This is why it can be such an incredibly important tool for others to wield especially politicians. Often they are able to manipulate the general population and push upon us their agenda due to it. “Fear is a mind killer” an evolutionary trait with a purpose, an emotion for survival and in recent studies an inhibitor of knowledge. The media also plays a vital part
In many cases, organizations have motives for spreading fear. In Lepore’s It’s Spreading, the response of the media to the “crisis” is a fantastic example of journalists working to create publicity rather than to inform the public. The Washington Post published Parrot Disease Baffles Experts on January 8th, 1930 despite the fact that many experts already had an idea of what they were looking for. A few days later, more news outlets published responses to the death of Percy Q Williams, one of the few victims of the parrot fever. The Chicago Daily Tribune published a story titled Baltimore Woman Dies and the Associated Press “announced that the country’s scientists had declared war [on the disease]” (Lepore). As a result of the media’s exaggerated stories, people felt a greater need to keep up with the “dire” situation. This began a trend that allowed media outlets to sell more papers. This tactic is still around today. A great example of this is the aspect of “urgency” most 24/7 news networks convey to their audience. Making viewers feel like the future depends on a story makes them more apt to follow