Is Donald Trump’s administration straight out of George Orwell’s dystopian novel “1984”? Or is the U.S. mainstream media in an anti-Trump frenzy?
The logo of Ingsoc, the political ideology of the totalitarian government of Oceania, in George Orwell’s novel “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” (Wikimedia Commons)
The opening pages of George Orwell’s novel “1984” acquaint the reader with the Two Minutes Hate, a daily ritual profoundly effective at unleashing anger, derision and obscenities from the audience.
The object of their deep-seated and primal animosity is a figure identified as Emmanuel Goldstein, the Enemy of the People. Day after dreary day in the fictional Oceania, Goldstein is trotted out as a symbol of all that is wrong with those who fail to believe rightly. And every day, enmity is unleashed toward him anew.
But, as the novel’s narrator observes, although bounteous vitriol is spewed daily, Goldstein’s “influence never seemed to grow less. Always there were fresh dupes waiting to be deceived by him.”
As the narrator reflects: “The horrible thing about the Two Minutes Hate was not that one was obliged to act a part, but that it was impossible to avoid joining in.”
For the American press, it is de rigueur to offer comparisons between Orwell’s “1984” and the American political environment of 2017.
The media that is engaged in efforts to whip the public into a frenzy.
Writing in The Atlantic, an enthusiastic high school teacher argued that in the age of Trump, “1984” is more important than ever. A commentator in The Huffington Post authored a piece titled “Orwell, Hitler and Trump,” connecting “1984” and the authoritarianism he fears Trump will impose over the land.
And following the dust-up about disputed attendance figures for the inauguration, the trickle of “1984” references turned into a deluge, with recent headlines announcing that Orwell’s dystopian novel is surging to the top of bestseller lists.
The implications are clear: If one wants to avoid the fate of those in Orwell’s Oceania, one should fear and actively militate against the Trump Administration. And the media will lead the charge.
Indeed, the mainstream press has been raging its own Two Minutes Hate against Donald Trump, spanning his entry into the presidential race, his securing of the Republican nomination and his unexpected victory in the general election.
Recall the smug assertions that Trump’s campaign was a joke. Recall the knowing declarations that he would lose badly in November. Recall the condemnations of an inaugural address that wove themes from the campaign into a call to prioritize national interest above all else.
Contrary to the current narrative that the Trump Administration is practicing Orwellian double-think in its press briefings and interviews with journalists, stop for a moment to consider an alternative interpretation: It is the media that is engaged in daily efforts to whip the public into a frenzy in an increasingly crazed effort to delegitimize the President of the United States.
The media’s approach suggests a tone-deafness to public cynicism.
To be sure, the Trump Administration is offering numerous opportunities for hard-hitting journalism and scathing commentary. But the media’s current approach that models Orwell’s dark, daily struggle sessions risks overwhelming an already distrustful public.
Indeed, the throw-everything-against-the-wall-to-see-what-sticks strategy is poised to backfire. It suggests a continuing tone-deafness to the cynicism with which the American public views the very institution of the media.
Take for example, approval ratings: According to Gallup, the president-elect had historically low approval ratings at inauguration, a fact that the media gleefully reported without any hint of self-awareness or irony — despite the fact that Trump’s 45% approval rating was twice as high as the percentage of Americans expressing confidence in newspapers or television news in another Gallup poll (20% and 21% respectively).
The media appears so blinded by its hate for Trump that it is increasingly unable to focus its attention, its resources and its megaphone on truly consequential issues for the country such as nominees for the Supreme Court, treatment of refugees or the care and feeding of key relationships with strategic partners around the world.
Journalists need to choose their battles wisely.
How many people actually attended the inauguration is not consequential. Who got called on first at a press conference is not consequential. Definitions of fake news and alternative facts are not consequential.
It is a slippery slope, some argue. Let small things slide and suddenly the United States will be unrecognizable as a democratic nation, they say.
But the current mainstream media frenzy is both destructive and unsustainable. Journalists and commentators need to start choosing their battles wisely.
When every development is another step toward authoritarianism, fascism or some heretofore unseen abomination of democracy; when everything is unprecedented; when everything is outrage, the only thing to be delegitimized is the messenger itself. To channel Orwell’s Newspeak, when everything is consequential nothing matters.
(The views are the author’s.)
A former U.S. diplomat, policy analyst and newspaper columnist, Emily T. Metzgar is an associate professor and director of the honors program in The Media School at Indiana University. Her research focuses on the role of media in society and her commentary has appeared in Columbia Journalism Review, USA Today and elsewhere.
I think this article is garbage. The examples she gives are news stories about inauguration crowds and approval rating. Both rightly stayed as news because the Administration chose to contest the reports. And both quickly slipped away from the focus as new stories emerged. And the press has done a great job on focusing and writing extensively about the issues that matter, such as the Supreme Court pick, such as the immigration ban and other executive orders, such as the unprecedented attacks on the Judiciary, such as the Cabinet picks, such as the contacts with Russia, etc etc. I recognize this is an editorial, but it is so biased and so ignores the facts around its subject that it falls into the category of “Fake News” and thus I am very disappointed that you chose to publish it.
You’re very very wrong, Bob.
Trump himself whipped up the crowds with his racist, sexist misogynist rhetoric during the campaign. He told his supporters that “in the good old days” protesters were treated in the manner they deserved. Those of us who protest (and I have been to three since January 21) are motivated not by the press, but by our own fears that Trump is trying to take us down the road towards fascism and totalitarianism, and that we will do whatever is necessary to prevent that from happening.
This editorial is so biased as to fall into the category of fake news and so I don’t see why this media gives it press. The stories about the size of the inaugural crowds and Trump’s approval ratings received continued attention in the press because the Administration chose to contest them. The effort Trump gave to defending the size of his inaugural crowds legitimately deserved press coverage on its own. In fact, once the Administration stopped trying to spin this story, the story ended. Same with the stories about Trump’s approval rating. Stories about who got called on first at a press conference? Sorry I simply have not seen them, and I receive a lot of news feeds. More importantly, entirely contrary to the premise of the editorial, the news media has focused extensively on issues that matter…and there are many such issues, including the executive orders; the judicial review of the executive orders; Trump’s statements with regard to the Judiciary (his unprecedented Presidential disrespect of the Judiciary); his cabinet appointments (especially in the context of his campaign promises); his Administration’s extra-legal contacts with Russia; his misguided and dangerous approach to regulatory reform, the stalled (and hypocritical) efforts to revise Obamacare, and other substantive and important issues. There has, in fact, been a lot to criticize in the actions of this Administration and journalists are doing their job.
Bob, I think your points are well taken apart from “fake news”; there are no actual lies as far as I can tell.
I think it’s remarkable that this article fails to distinguish between reporting and opinion columns, that it does not cite examples or quote from the writing she attacks, and that it does not discuss the conduct of Trump and his coterie that the press finds so appalling. I was going to say it read like David Brooks column but even Brooks is getting into specifics these days.
Good spelling, though.
Wow – her column almost anticipated Trump’s weird press conference today.
This was written in 2017…and look at the vitriol and bitterness of those commenting. Unbelievable. It’s like they absolutely, literally CANNOT “stop for a moment to consider an alternative interpretation:” – I was so impressed to finally, FINALLY find an article that acknowledged this side of the 1984 comparisons. Trump was demonized for five years – it was HIS face that made us scream and yell at the “telescreen” and shout bitter hatred towards. If anyone can be compared to “Big Brother” it is most definitely the media (especially social media today). These people commenting above, THEY are the sheep, bleating along to the music of their comfortable crowd, following Big Brother to the edge. Way to go guys. Ya dumb! 😉
DUDE. YES. and now look what’s happening ????????. Crazy. In this scenario right now Trump is Goldstein. Wild.
Not only what you have mentioned, but America is following dangerously close to how Hitler seized power in the 1930’s. Some of the order is mixed up, but we’ve seen all the major parts: appeasement, inciting looting and riots then blaming the other side, burning of the Reichstag, and democratically electing a dummy leader who will be overthrown and thereby take away our democracy. Appeasement has happening for a long time with all of the SJW’s, political correctness, queer storytime, name any leftist ploy for “equality” and it falls into this category. Especially BLM, none of it is actually about equality or tolerance, it’s to get more money in their pockets and keep the public distracted over the idealism rather than fixing the problems. Leftists’ demands are being given into and normalized and it will reach the point where it’s completely insane (if not already) and there will be precedent that they can argue. Then there’s the painting America out to be the enemy in colleges and creeping it into high school and before, erasing history and overemphasizing the flaws of the people who built our country. Tearing down statues is part of this, removing access to the actual truth and telling people what to think rather than presenting unbiased fact and letting them decide. (even in the case of the Confederacy, if we all knew what actually happened instead of what Leftists tell us is true, there would be no argument over historical fact such as the Civil War was not fought over slavery and American slavery wasn’t original and how the Native Americans were massacred and betrayed and possibly an even more controversial opinion, where would the world/those races of people be now if those two things had never happened?). As for the Reichstag analogy, the way the coronavirus pandemic has been transformed into a economy-breaking power seize for democrats is exactly like how Hitler used emergency powers as Chancellor to become the Senate and remove power from President Hindenburg. These recent events of voter fraud from mail-in ballots (then denying all evidence) and Joe Biden becoming president, Impeachment and screaming about the protest at the capitol is probably the last step of the Enabling act where we finally vote ourselves out of the democracy. Also, the looting and destruction should have been condemned in all cases, not just turning around and blaming it on “white supremacy” at the capitol when blacks have destroyed more in BLM protests in the past 7 years and they should be allowed to “express themselves”. Hitler, Stalin, and Putin especially would incite peaceful protests with agitators like Antifa, and in my mind they and BLM are terrorists groups so far removed from their actual starting “ideal” if there were any that are just being allowed to exist. Joe Biden is clearly President Hindenburg, the only question is who will rise to take his place once he’s out of the picture and the Senate, House, and all 3 governmental powers are in their possession.