REALITY DEPENDS UPON WHO IS TELLING THE STORY
After the murder of 17-year-old school girl, Masa Vukotic, in Doncaster this year the chief Detective Inspector Mick Hughes told ABC Radio National that parks are not safe for females. “I suggest to people, particularly females, they shouldn’t be alone in parks”. Likewise, in the wake of attacks by ISIS, the government plastered posters at Southern Cross Station from floor to ceiling reminding us, “if you see something, say something”. Evidently, the ability of governments, law and order officials and the media to control the story and the message becomes a useful tactic to channel our thoughts and feelings in “desirable” ways.
In many cases, the official narrative colours our perspective and shapes our emotional and intellectual response.
Often people in a position of power and authority control the story and manipulate the elements to suit their agenda.
This evident in Wag the Dog as the president prepares his election campaign against the backdrop of the sex scandals. The fact that this looks back to President Clinton’s own sexual philandering as well as ahead to President Bush’s own miscalculation of war suggests that those who do control the story are able to penetrate deep into the psyche of a nation; they are able to hijack public opinion and control the terms of the public debate. We are reminded of Conrad Brean who warns, or rather, threatens the CIA Agent Charlie Young to make sure the spy satellites are favourable: “And if your spy satellites don’t see nothin’, if there ain’t no war, then you can go home and prematurely take up golf, my friend. ‘Cause there ain’t no war but ours.”
If story telling is enhanced by the numerous elements, then the Hollywood special effects used to construct an idealistic war as a diversionary tactic, are very successful. In this case, reality is literally constructed on the Hollywood stage set. War becomes a Hollywood by-product as the studio manufactures the sound effects, the burning bridge, the running stream, the white kitten and the burnt-out buildings in the background to create an authentic experience of war.
In this case the President of the United States is caught making inappropriate advances to an underage “Firefly Girl” less than two weeks before the election. Conrad Brean, a spin doctor, is engaged to divert public attention away from the scandal. In turn, he engages Hollywood producer Stanley Motss and together they construct a fake war with Albania. Bream uses subtle psychological powers of persuasion to influence, control and define the terms of the debate. Reminiscent of what Aldous Huxley (Brave New World) labels the suggestible powers of the scientific dictator, Bream plants the seeds, nurtures them and then distracts, denies and obfuscates in order to simultaneously douse and inflame each issue.
Does the government have a B3-bomber?
Indeed, the language and slogans used by government are critical to their ability to penetrate and subconsciously control people’s thoughts and feelings. In George Orwell’s 1984, O’Brien predicts that by 2050, the language will be reduced to such an extent that no one will be able to understand a typical 1984-conversation. When we hear slogans such as “the age of entitlement is over” and “we all have to do the heavy lifting” , “stop the boats”, and “budget emergency” one wonders if we, too, are living in the Big Brother state of 2050.
Because of the wealth and power of people in a position of influence, it is important for citizens to tell their own stories, especially those with first-hand experience. For many, social media and the internet can help spread an alternative narrative. Raif Badawi’s wife has a heartening tale to tell, as does Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning. See endings.
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