July 1, 2008
Smears & Straight Talk
This season’s political blockbuster brings us a mediated brawl fought with logos, banners, websites, email spam, online videos and doctored images. Amused by the strivings of the righteous and desperate, we already know the campaign catchphrase will be something akin to, “It’s the YouTube video, stupid.” We also know that no one will ever know for sure whether or not anyone else knows for sure about anything.
Barack Obama said something or stood too close to someone else who said something. He wore something or didn’t wear something. He went somewhere or didn’t go somewhere else. His wife also said something. She might also have gone somewhere.
John McCain said something and then said something different. He stood apart from someone and then stood next to someone. He is this old or else he is that old. He called his wife something. She might also have called him something.
Who has time to triple-check the counter-claims? It’s far more expedient to be political fans the way we’re sports fans—mindless, rabid—and we have the logos and T-shirts to prove it.
Full essay at Voice.
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right on.