The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society.
Edward Bernays
My last client yesterday complained that he had an extra meeting at work to discuss a clientâs concern about the companyâs preparedness plan for post election violence.
Friends, we are being played like pawns.
Poised ((((programmed))))for violenceâŚno matter the outcome.
The unfortunate reality of the current situation is that the American people will lose either way.
"The people will believe what the media tells them they believe."
George Orwell, 1984
Another group had been even more badly shaken:Â those who had not seen the explosion in person, but had consumed six or more hours of news coverage per day in the week afterwards. Bizarrely, knowing someone who had been injured or died, or having been in the vicinity as the bombs went off, were not as predictive of high acute stress.
âIt was a big âahaâ moment for us,â says Holman. âI think people really strongly, deeply underestimate the impact the news can have.â
Please review the following headlines and news stories. I was able to compile these during a very cursory search using the following phrases:
violence after the election
will there be violence/riots if trump wins
will there be violence/riots if kamala wins
The propagandistâs purpose is to make one set of people forget that certain other sets of people are human.
One potential reason the news affects us so much is the so-called ânegativity biasâ, a well-known psychological quirk which means we pay more attention to all the worst things happening around us.
In one study, when scientists presented participants with news stories containing equivalent, but differently phrased, statements about political instability or terrorist incidents, they were able to manipulate their perception of how risky that country seemed. For example, saying a terrorist attack was caused by âal-Qaeda and associated radical Islamic groupsâ was considerably more concerning than saying âDomestic rebel separatist groupâ â though both have the same meaning. (source)
The negativity bias is our tendency not only to register negative stimuli more readily but also to dwell on these events. Also known as positive-negative asymmetry, this negativity bias means that we feel the sting of a rebuke more powerfully than we feel the joy of praise.
This bias toward the negative leads you to pay much more attention to the bad things that happen, making them seem much more important than they really are. (source)
We tend to...
Pay more attention to negative events than positive ones.
Learn more from negative outcomes and experiences.
Make decisions based on negative information more than positive data[1]
Bad News
Additionally, studies have shown that negative news is more likely to be perceived as truthful. Since negative information draws greater attention, it also may be seen as having greater validity. This might be why bad news seems to garner more attention.ďťż
The Brain's Response
Neuroscientific evidence has shown that there is greater neural processing in the brain in response to negative stimuli. Studies that involve measuring event-related brain potentials (ERPs), which show the brain's response to specific sensory, cognitive, or motor stimuli, have shown that negative stimuli elicit a larger brain response than positive ones.
In studies conducted by psychologist John Cacioppo, participants were shown pictures of either positive, negative, or neutral images. The researchers then observed electrical activity in the brain. Negative images produced a much stronger response in the cerebral cortex than did positive or neutral images.[source]
Because negative information causes a surge in activity in a critical information processing area of the brain, our behaviors and attitudes tend to be shaped more powerfully by bad news, experiences, and information.
So why is this important? These giant corporations decide what commercial adverts we see in-between shows and also have a huge influence on what new programmes get commissioned or remain on the air. In other words, their influence is all-encompassing and widespread. (source)
"The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers."
Thomas Jefferson
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So I have been telling my family my whole life not to watch the news, because it puts in a negative place, when your in a negative place your are not as aware of your surroundings which puts you in a dangerous place. I very very much relate to this piece. My step mother who I love dearly hung up on me today because she still believes the twin towers narrative I was using it as an example trying to explain how easy it was to paint a lie into the heads of the masses using media. All of us have a common enemy that is the truth that can not be escaped, we need to start holding that enemy accountable, but we absolutely should not be enabling it.
Why bother with violence when it's crystal clear we'll do WHATEVER we are told no matter how evil or self destructive? /points at the genocide everyone is cool getting to work on time to support
So I have been telling my family my whole life not to watch the news, because it puts in a negative place, when your in a negative place your are not as aware of your surroundings which puts you in a dangerous place. I very very much relate to this piece. My step mother who I love dearly hung up on me today because she still believes the twin towers narrative I was using it as an example trying to explain how easy it was to paint a lie into the heads of the masses using media. All of us have a common enemy that is the truth that can not be escaped, we need to start holding that enemy accountable, but we absolutely should not be enabling it.
Why bother with violence when it's crystal clear we'll do WHATEVER we are told no matter how evil or self destructive? /points at the genocide everyone is cool getting to work on time to support