The magician-in-chief is Donald Trump.
I believe that Trump is more aware of how to manipulate the squirrel-like attention spans of the new and “legacy” media to his advantage than any US president since Ronald Reagan.
Reagan and his skilled advisers almost exclusively relied on television to choreograph flattering set pieces to guide his retrograde plans and maneuver around a few prickly scandals.
Trump is well aware of the methods and methods to infuse himself into the American consciousness thanks to the “boob tube,” having established his ubiquitous star via “reality TV” and countless appearances on ephemeral “chat” shows.
Trump has still honed his signature trick, misdirection, using social media, which is now primarily Truth Social. He understands how to divert the public’s attention from what is important, just like any experienced illusionist.
His goals are twofold: to advance his revolutionary agenda and to conceal the harm it causes.
Trump dismissed the COVID-19 threat, pounded unproven treatments like hydroxychloroquine, and even suggested using disinfectant as a potential remedy when a new, lethal virus emerged and spread quickly as the death toll grew.
Trump’s bizarre provocations were well intentioned and intended to halt and deflect a thorough examination of his administration’s slow, chaotic response.
Trump is aware that anger is the lifeblood of the digital era. He controls the tone and pace of public discourse by provoking conflict and controversy at a relentless rate.
Trump can change the conventional “news” narrative and use it with the aid of a cellphone, likely bearing the presidential seal, and a glint of inspiration.
He accomplishes this by flashing opulent, fleeting baubles to further his exclusive interests, while more pressing issues pass by unnoticed, like a passing cloud, causing the hard, complex stuff to fade into disrepair.
Trump is the equivalent of a 24/7 cable news outlet that, admitted or not, happily consumes content that the real cable news channels are addicted to.
So Trump pulled out of his top hat and created a fantastical “channel-changer” in the disconcerting face of Elon Musk’s untimely, abrupt split and a ferocious uproar in the Senate over his signature “big, beautiful” budget.
The president of the United States “reposted a baseless claim on Truth Social that former president Joe Biden was executed in 2020 and replaced with clones or robots,” according to NBC News.
An NBC correspondent was required to contact the White House to find out the following given that the president of the United States shared the “conspiracy theory” with his 10 million followers and, consequently, the rest of us:
First, was it “believed” that Biden had been put to death in 2020 by the US president.
Second, why did the head of state of the United States refute a claim that a Biden had been executed and had been a clone?
Let me assist NBC News and the dozens of reporters who felt compelled to pose the same absurd questions in search of “clarity” on the White House.
I can confidently say that Trump does not “believe” that Biden was executed in 2020 despite his, ah, bluster and eccentricities.
Trump trumpeted this absurdity to sway NBC News and other scribes who are focused on the most recent shiny object rather than to examine how his “big, beautiful” bill will dilute the US deficit and reduce the number of Americans who have health insurance.
I believe it is too easy and simplistic to dismiss Trump’s ability to “train” the world’s gaze as a “distraction” because we should have already figured out how to use it.
Trump’s weapons are much more common and pernicious. He doesn’t just distract; he rewrites the story in real time, making the serious seem trivial and the trivial seem epochal. Oh, and he already realized that the majority of political observers are much more enamored by personality than by policy.
Trump also acknowledges that power is not the only factor in the presidency. It involves stagecraft. He doesn’t care about accountability or nuance. He enjoys the spectacle. And it always triumphs over the spectacle.
Trump continues to beguile and enthral with his meticulous performances, grounded in the gravitational pull and opulent prestige of occupying the Oval Office.
The president’s point is repeated in the Beltway press.
By presidential decree, Trump made it known that the White House attorney and attorney general would look into allegations that Biden’s advisers “covered up” his “cognitive decline” and authorized him to approve important decisions without his knowledge or consent.
Biden, who expressed his anger on his part, claimed that he made the “decisions during my presidency” and that his calculated gambit was a “distraction” on Thursday.
The “investigation” follows a book that CNN host Jake Tapper co-authored that details Biden’s alleged waning mental capacity while in office.
Since, according to their claims, he and CNN previously poo-pooed reports of Biden’s faltering mind and body, Tapper has been accused of revising the record as a sop-wing personality.
The manufactured rant and the deepening, vitriolic rupture of Trump-Musk sex have, in contrast, made the reinstatement of Trump’s racist travel ban a secondary consideration.
It was once the subject of ferocious legal and moral opposition, and now there isn’t even a hint of resistance. This is yet another illustration of how Trump’s theatrics smother the dangerous intent hidden beneath the alluring noise.
How should I proceed?
A trustworthy newsroom must steer clear of Trump’s cynical schemes by doing everything in its power to avoid serving as marionettes.
That means abiding by the need to treat every insult, incendiary outburst as urgent or newsworthy. Whose interests are being served by this coverage, according to editors and producers?
Pause or make a refreshing pass if the response is Trump’s.
Journalists should focus on the truth rather than stunts. What is hidden behind the vibrant camouflage, in addition to patience and the discipline to pose another crucial question?
Detachment is not the antidote to manipulation; it is sharp, vigilant reporting of the president’s profound, human effects, not his antics.
The fourth estate can and must stop mistakenly interpreting the fireworks for the fire in its exhausting dance with Donald Trump.
Source: Aljazeera
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