Dangerous Propaganda

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright March 25, 2010
All Rights Reserved.                                

         Results of  a new nationwide Harris Interactive Poll with 2,300 adults reveal what’s been known for some time:  That fanatical pernicious propaganda as seen on national TV and radio grossly distort reality of gullible audiences.  Recent overreactions, including violence, to President Barack Obama’s recently passed health care reform bill, directly relates to incitement seen on the conservative airwaves.  Reactionary talk shows have whipped audiences into a violent frenzy, warning voters about Obama’s socialism and attempt to destroy the American health care system.  Forget about endorsements by the American Medical Assn. or American Assn. of Retired People [AARP].  Harris Interactive Poll, a national market research firm, found that 24% of Republican  respondents believe Presdient Barack Obama is the Anti-Christ or Devil—a dangerous lie prompting fear and rage. 

            When former Alaska Gov. and Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin whipped a campaign rally Oct. 7, 2008 into a rage in Jacksonville, Fl., the audience was calling then Sen. Barack Obama a dangerous “terrorist.”  Palin had become GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) attack dog, demonizing Barack for criticizing the Iraq War.  When rally participants in Clearwater, Fl. called Barack an Islamic terrorist, McCain finally had to step in and set the record straight.  Over a year into his presidency, the Harris poll confirmed that 32% of Americans believe the president is a Muslim, despite his over 20-year participation in Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s Southside-Chicago-based Trinity United Church of Christ.  Right wing radio and TV have done a good job of brainwashing listeners about Barack’s recently passed health care reform legislation.

            On the Sunday, March 21, before the final House voted on health care reform, so-called Tea Party protestors on the Capitol steps called members of the black caucus the “N-word,” actually spitting on Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), sending his office today a fax of a noose.  Harris Interactive poll indicated 29% of respondents believe Obama wants to turn over U.S. sovereignty to a foreign power.  Twenty-Five percent believe Barack was not born in the U.S. and he’s an enemy of the U.S. Constitution, despite holding a degree from Harvard Law School, having served as the first and only black president of its prestigious law review.  Harris’ poll also showed that 23% believe Barack is un-American, with 20% thinking he’s doing things like Adolf Hitler.  Such distortions speak volumes about the relentless, 24/7 propaganda machine distorting American perceptions.

            When NBC/Newsweek conducted nationwide polls in 2003 and 2004 regarding who perpetrated Sept. 11, just under 50% indicated Saddam Hussein.  News reports since 9/11 clearly fingered Saudi-born renegade terrorist Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida terror organization as responsible for Sept. 11.  Working overtime on the airwaves, right wing propagandists, supported by the Bush White House, relentlessly pushed the idea that Saddam Hussein was linked to Sept. 11.  Enough story-telling to an ill-informed public resulted in the faulty information.  Today’s disinformation on health care, largely coming from the same right wing circles, has contributed to the idea that Barack is a dangerous revolutionary threatening American society as we know it.  Such disinformation and hateful speech has resulted in the ugly racist episodes witnessed on Capitol Hill.

            Before the man-in-the-street believes the lies, the haters should stop listening to Rush Limbaugh and other right wing secular preachers and pay attention to what really happened March 21.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) shepherded the most sweeping humanitarian legislation in U.S. history, committing future generations of U.S. tax dollars to cover health care for nearly every man, woman and child-citizen in the United States.  Never again will insurers be allowed exclude subscribers with preexisting conditions.  Never again will individuals without insurance die prematurely for a lack of health care.  Never again will subscribers have outrageously priced premiums, deductibles and co-payments, making access to medical benefits next to impossible.  Instead of listening to right wing talk shows, skeptical citizens should realize Obama did something good.

            Harris’ recent Interactive Poll provides rude awakening to individuals brainwashed by the right wing media to believe gross distortions about Obama and his administration.  “This poll should be a wake-up call to all Americans about the real costs of using fear and hated to pump-up hyper-partisanship,” said John Avalon, author of “Wingnuts:  How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America” (Beast Books, 2010).  With so much pernicious propaganda from conservatives, it’s no wonder that viewers harbor so many factual distortions about many aspects of Americans life.  For multimillionaire right wing propagandists, they don’t worry about jobs and health care.  “We are playing with dynamite by demonizing our president and dividing our country in the process . . . “ talking about the way right wing extremists, like Limbaugh and Palin, whip listeners into a hateful frenzy.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.