Although some ambitious analysis has been devoted to the "framing" of Conservative political messages, little study has been done on the functional core of the BushCo PR machine. I believe that a sophisticated set of techniques that can be termed Mob Control Technology (MCT) have been developed and used consistently by Rove and the propaganda apparatus he built for GW Bush. This is why Rove is so very valuable to BushCo.
The key to understanding BushCo MCT is to grasp that the control of a mob is a very different matter from the advancement of rational policy arguments. A mob is irrational, and thus controlling it requires a keen sense of the dominant compulsions of the mob. These compulsions change rapidly, so effective MCT requires constant feedback and adjustment. Let's take a closer look at how it works.
How did American government fall into the hands of a mob? The one-word answer is Television. TV has trained people to be impulsive and irrational. The most costly and carefully engineered propaganda in the world is the 30-second television advertisement. Over a lifetime, the average person is exposed to almost one million of them. TV ads teach you to make a snap decision based on subjective factors. After a while, if you lack the intellectual resources of a well-educated person, extended TV exposure makes you susceptible to the mob control technology of modern politicians.
Making snap decisions subjectively is impulsive behavior. Typically it is exhibited by children. Adults are not supposed to be impulsive about matters of grave consequence, such as war, health care, education, or civil rights. But the American TV mob can be led to support almost any policy on these vital matters through the manipulation of its fears, hatreds, and emotional needs. (A high point of American Presidential nominating conventions is the showing of the biographical film of the nominee: essentially a long TV commercial playing on the hopes and fears of the mob.)
So how do mob control technicians work? They follow these steps:
- Target an issue. Issues are chosen based on the priorities of the political party. This is probably the most rational part of mob control, since the paying campaign donors will insist on getting their tax subsidies or weapons procurement allocations.
- Read the mob. An extensive network of "opinion leaders" in the religious, press, PR, and political communities is maintained to provide timely information for MCT purposes. It is essential to know the dominant impulse of the mob at all times (e.g., fear, anger, shame, anxiety, vengefulness).
- Craft a pitch. A pitch is a clear, concise message designed to tie the issue to the dominant impulse of the mob. The pitch will often involve a catchy slogan, such as "cut and run" or "up or down vote." Sometimes the pitch will actually be printed in huge lettering that is displayed around a politician's speaking platform (e.g., MISSION ACCOMPLISHED).
- Test the pitch. The pitch is tested privately by consulting with the opinion leader network. This is a crucial stage for confirming that any exaggerations, fallacies, or other flaws in the pitch will be accepted by the mob. Where appropriate, focus groups consisting of representative TV mob members can be used for testing.
- Deliver the pitch. The pitch is delivered in a highly coordinated fashion, usually triggered by FAX "talking points." The actual pitchmen will include talk radio "personalities," journalists, PR firms, and, of course, politicians. Some care will be taken to make sure the pitch appears to reflect the spontaneous observations of the pitchmen, but the impact of the pitch depends on carefully planned release timing.
- Adjust the pitch. The pitch usually pays off if the mob monitoring network is efficient and the pitch is well-crafted, but in the event of a problem with the pitch, it is often possible to fine-tune it.
- Repeat as necessary. A good pitch can be saved for re-use whenever the mood of the mob and the target issue are appropriate. Eventually, a good MCT team can build up a library of pre-tested pitches.
The next time you hear something like: "We have to fight them over there so we don't have to fight them here" or "They hate us because of our freedom" or "The death tax is unfair" remember that you are encountering the products of BushCo's mob control technicians. These are the people who are destroying America, one sound bite at a time.
Progressives who advocate the construction of a symmetrical mob control machine to advance their political agenda miss the point that no government that appeals to the impulses of a childish mob can long survive. Any nation that is led in this manner will be ruined by corruption and incompetence, no matter how cunning its propaganda apparatus. The mob is an irrational beast, and a government that tries to ride atop it will end up inside.