The long-observed phenomenon of newsmaking – where the media is creating events instead of reporting them – has long been in existence.
In a recent example, a team of Democrat staffers and journalists launched a national campaign against elected Republican Congress attempting to hit them where it hurts – in their states and electoral districts. The gist of the campaign is to appear as members of a grassroots movement of dissatisfied citizens, rather than a Democrat-organized attack. Examples from the campaign guide (bold font is original; red highlighting is mine):
“Donald Trump is the biggest popular-vote loser in history to ever call himself President-Elect. In spite of the fact that he has no mandate, he will attempt to use his congressional majority to reshape America in his own racist, authoritarian, and corrupt image.”
“Stall the Trump agenda by forcing them to redirect energy away from their priorities. Congressional offices have limited time and limited people.”
“Sap Representatives’ will to support or drive reactionary change.“
“Plan your actions to ensure that no one is asked to take on a role that they are not comfortable with — especially those roles that call for semi-confrontational behavior — and be mindful of the fact that not everyone is facing an equal level of threat.”
“At the Town Hall
- Get there early, meet up, and get organized. Meet outside or in the parking lot for a quick huddle before the event. Distribute the handout of questions, and encourage members to ask the questions on the sheet or something similar.
- Get seated and spread out. Head into the venue a bit early to grab seats at the front half of the room, but do not all sit together. Sit by yourself or in groups of two, and spread out throughout the room. This will help reinforce the impression of broad consensus.“
“Stick with the prepared list of questions.”
“Don’t give up the mic until you’re satisfied with the answer. If you’ve asked a hostile question, a staffer will often try to limit your ability to follow up by taking the microphone back immediately after you finish speaking. They can’t do that if you keep a firm hold on the mic.”
“Keep the pressure on. After one member of the group finishes, everyone should raise their hands again. The next member of the group to be called on should move down the list of questions and ask the next one.”
“Support the group and reinforce the message. After one member of your group asks a question, everyone should applaud to show that the feeling is shared throughout the audience.”
The campaign guide also accused the Tea Party of using the same deceitful techniques. CNN and its peers actively promoted this deceitful campaign. Today it reported it as a genuine grassroots movement in an article titled, “GOP’s risky delusion about town hall protests.” There is a pattern: when people recognize a Leftist scam, the Leftist mouthpieces call this recognition a delusion. This is, yet another, FNN (Fake News Network) in operation.