On Two Levels, We Are In Deep Water
Communications on Two Levels
On a fundamental level, we think of communication as how we talk to you each other, how we share views and information. People to people information and ideas sharing. That has been around pretty well since our species was born. What is new is the internet and related communications means.
On another level, communication may be thought of as a one way flow – how does government communicate with the population at large and how does government seek to influence how others communicate on a large scale. What governments seek to do in this area has always been something of a challenge, reaching new levels of focus, tools, and capabilities with the fascists in the earlier part of the 20th century.
Their model worked, for the most part; there are those in power/seeking power today who have gone to school on this model, trying to use the same approaches to control public perceptions.
The Internet and Social Media
Remember when the Internet started? The hope, the dream of many, was that it would be like a mega-soap box in a national/world town center, where everyone could speak, where we all would listen and learn together. Didn’t quite go that way, did it?
Although there are examples of great communications through electrons, for the most part this has become a destructive, divisive, isolating and goading force. People tend to go to sites and groups that echo what they already think. Sites often value agitation and conflict more than conversation and genuine communications.
Algorithms have tended to accent these negative trends. Any number of large sites (Think X) are owned and directed by people who see the medium as a personal tool for their point of view and so what is posted is shaped accordingly
The whole concept of communications via electrons still has much promise, and we do indeed need more and better communications. I am not ready to give up on such means as yet, but we really do need to get ahead of the current curve and figure out how to make this resource better. Addressing the medium itself is only part of the approach we need.
The other part, perhaps the harder part, is how to train ourselves, our peers, and new generations how to judge and use such resources. Not much of that seems to be going on anywhere that I have encountered, although some are trying.
Government Control and Influence on Others in Media and Communications
Government since time immemorial has tried to control, or at least strongly influence, independent and private media. The dictatorships of Europe in the 1940’s, starting with fascists and then communists, rose this focus to a very high level. Their road map of threats, intimidation, abuse of some with notice to others “you could be next” is in full bloom in America today.
This current profile in our country has some new elements that make it far more threatening – and far more important to stand up and resist. One, there are a lot of high ranking people in the government for whom controlling the message is a core value. Two, a number of such people and many of their followers have turned the page on America’s traditional values. They reject democracy and find the whole idea of diversity a mistake. These are America’s ayatollahs.
Third, many of these folks fully understand and master modern communications and have the resources to act on those priorities. Some of what we hear these days sounds like a reprint from the texts in 1984. Four, this is something of a global trend. Much of what this administration is doing or attempting to do would feel right at home in Moscow, Beijing, and in other capitals that have no interest in genuine freedom or democracy, only in retaining power.
What Next?
As oppressive as all that sounds (and is), there is still hope that people will rise to the moment. Those who would keep power forever hope to instill changes fast enough that it cannot be corrected and that people would be discouraged early on and give up.
They might yet win that bet, but maybe not. In a small way, the recent incident with Jimmy Kimmel and Disney/ABC has been illustrative. The administration directly, crudely, and improperly threatened to misuse government power. Disney/ABC caved in instantly.
Over the following week, the question “How do I cancel Disney subscriptions?” broke a record for questions filed on Google. Disney’s website section that addressed managing one’s account crashed from so many log-on attempts. Tonight, Kimmel is back on the air.
We will see how it goes from here, but the lesson is so clear. Giving into a bully only encourages more abuse. Standing up takes courage, and may well inflict some real pain, but it works – and it’s worth it.
What interesting times we live in. See you next week.
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