Monday, November 22, 2010

The Media Narrative or Reality? Was it really a Landslide?

t r u t h o u t | What Landslide?: A Closer Look at the Midterm Election Results:

"In reality, higher deficits are more the result of a weak economy - both in terms of decreased revenues, increased demand for government benefits (unemployment insurance, Medicaid, Food Stamps, etcetera), and the political necessity of stimulating (or at least maintaining) aggregate demand. One can see how some voters, lacking a clear understanding of this reality, might easily misread the causality and opt for new 'managers of the economy.'"

There is much more to the recent election than meets the eye. The media narratives say one thing, the reality speaks a different story. The "analysis" of the media leaves out almost everything that doesn't fit their mutual consensus (the infamous narrative).

There was no landslide. The American People have remained silent once again. The Honkers and Squeakers have stolen the show. Sadly, our apathy, and our collective willingness to be swayed by this minimalist narrative delivered with breathless vigor by a zealous minority has brought us this political nightmare.

The election was about the economy. The narrative says that the Democrats have mismanaged the recovery. The reality says that the economy is recovering slowly, despite the consistent and stubborn attempts to continue its decline on the part of the Republican minority. The narrative says that Republicans are the fiscal conservatives and good managers of the economy, but the reality says that Democratic policies have been much more effective at job growth, expansion of GDP, and deficit reduction.

Collectively, we must learn to look past the narrative and find the voices in the media that bring the realities to light. Peel back the narrative and see what the real issues are. As the 2012 election cycle approaches, will the narrative win the day? One thing's for sure, if it does, the country will be much, much worse off than even now.


No comments: