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   mekka okereke :verified: (mekkaokereke@hachyderm.io)'s status on Saturday, 06-Jul-2024 01:49:12 JST mekka okereke :verified:

   👴🏻Poor Biden! It's not fair that newspapers are running this "he must step down" provocation!

   🧔🏿♂️Yes it is fair. When the news was making up a Black crime wave that he knew was fake, he was pouring gas on that fire instead of putting it out. When the news was promoting fake anti-DEI rhetoric he was fanning those flames instead of combating them. When the news was lying about student protests he amplified those lies. Or is it only fair when it happens to Black folk (his base!) but not to him?

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   • Paul Cantrell repeated this.
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     mekka okereke :verified: (mekkaokereke@hachyderm.io)'s status on Saturday, 06-Jul-2024 01:49:12 JST mekka okereke :verified:

     in reply to

     We keep pretending that newspapers only *report* public opinion, when the reality is that newspapers *create* public opinion. The primary reason that most US folk have an entirely incorrect understanding of what police do, how crime works, and who does it, is because the news industry shapes that opinion. The objectives of the news industry are a vicious combination of profit motive and political objective (racism).

     Well, now we see the news industry shaping public opinion on Biden's age.

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     icastico (icastico@c.im)'s status on Saturday, 06-Jul-2024 02:10:23 JST icastico

     in reply to

     • Orion Ussner kidder

     @OrionKidder @mekkaokereke

     A key to this the fact that “journalism” has shifted the focus of political narratives (which they’ve always largely created) from “government/leadership” to “popularity/perception.” Both have always been part of the story, but in this century the coverage of government has diminished in comparison to popularity. These stories on Biden’s age don’t ever talk about the consequences of electing an old man. How would him slowing down change what his administration is doing? How would it affect the country? How does that compare to the effects of electing a slightly younger, also cognitively declining fascist? This is particularly true when it comes to something Mekka has pointed out repeatedly - Harris. One of the reasons for Biden being the head of the ticket is the dubious assumption that Harris is unelectable - a narrative the media has created. Racism and misogyny run deep in this country, but I recall Harris being on the ticket as one of the reasons it was acceptable to vote for the old white guy in 2020. That’s the perception story. The governing story is that Harris is part of a successful team that can continue with the current policy agenda that has been largely successful (yes there is lots to criticize, lots).

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     Orion Ussner kidder (orionkidder@mas.to)'s status on Saturday, 06-Jul-2024 02:10:24 JST Orion Ussner kidder

     in reply to

     @mekkaokereke I think we can reasonably say that all of those falsehoods are "unfair." The problem is not objecting to the support of the "he's possibly too old" narrative. It's that (a) as you say, he failed to object to those other narratives, and (b) it's weird as hell to see that take over the news and drown out Trump's many manifest deficiencies, including very plausible claims he has dementia.

     Paul Cantrell repeated this.