COMMENTARY: Someone lost the keys to the asylum

(RNS) The United States has always had its share of nutcases and shady characters in public life. In other words, Donald Trump is nothing new, and his presidential campaign package of absurd claims isn’t without precedent. Neither are bigots who burn, shoot and shout. Hatred is never far below the surface in many people’s lives. […]

(RNS) The United States has always had its share of nutcases and shady characters in public life. In other words, Donald Trump is nothing new, and his presidential campaign package of absurd claims isn’t without precedent.

Neither are bigots who burn, shoot and shout. Hatred is never far below the surface in many people’s lives.

What strikes me as new is that for some reason, we now take these people seriously.


In an all-wired, let’s-go-viral world of non-information posing as information, these outliers can gain traction. In a saner era, somebody would have told Trump to go back to building unprofitable casinos. No newspaper with sense would dignify today’s bigotry with 24/7 coverage. No network claiming authority would employ people whose wild-eyed extremism makes a mockery of the Fourth Estate.

But here they are, the nutcases, parading in prime time as if they were a legitimate alternative in a deeply divided nation that is struggling with huge and vexing issues.

Thanks to Rupert Murdoch, they even have their own television network to legitimize streams of vitriol, conspiracy theories, fears, rages, and suspicion. In the brave new world of leveling-by-Internet, anybody can say anything and claim to be an authority.

Who’s to say a website is packed with lies or useful information? For example, I followed the thread of a comment by Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., criticizing Tea Party folks for threatening other people’s free speech. By the time his original words had fanned out to two dozen right-wing websites, they had morphed into a preference for terrorists over Tea Partiers.

When search goes social and truth becomes whatever your network of friends says it is, accurate information loses out to “crowd-sourcing.” With some deft packaging of keywords, video links and photos, you can game the algorithms and seduce throngs into believing whatever you post.

Legions of bloggers and website editors comb the news — real and phony — for snippets that can be lifted out, distorted, repackaged and then sent to partisans as if their worst fears had just been realized.


What are we to do?

I doubt that leaders of partisan causes will be motivated to disseminate accurate information. Those who fund them want more cheapening of media and public discourse, not less. Officeholders who won by deceit won’t suddenly embrace honesty.

I see three hopes.

First, not everyone will be cowed or wooed by faux information. Some will follow the actual thread, see what the speaker actually did say, what the legislation’s language actually specifies, what real statistics show, what untainted documents indicate, and they will continue to expose distortions. Big lies only prevail if truth-seekers go silent. Truth-seekers, I expect, will fight back.

Second, more and more people will take responsibility for finding reliable information. If we learned how to parse cigarette ads for truth, we can do the same with candidates’ claims. People will take the time to consult a few more websites, and to consider the likely objectivity of their sources.

Third, reality does have a way of intruding. If budget bluster is based on phony numbers, reality will emerge in time, and those who distorted and lied will lose their luster as authorities (See Beck, Glenn).

In the end, vindictive partisans won’t prevail against common sense and a free people’s determination to remain free.

(Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest based in New York. He is the author of “Just Wondering, Jesus” and founder of the Church Wellness Project. His website is http://www.morningwalkmedia.com. Follow Tom on Twitter @tomehrich.)


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