We know that it takes virtually no time at all to write fake news. In fact, it’s easier and quicker to write fake news than to write fiction. The template is already provided by real journalism, and parody has made the “beats” of a fake story even easier to mimic. The Moldovian teens didn’t have much trouble, even working in a second language, fooling tens of thousands, so imagine what professional “writers” can do at The National Enquirer.
On the same day that Washington Post had a dynamite leak (the sourcing is blind, so let’s be honest about it) about CIA concluding that Russia didn’t merely try to destabilize US elections, but specifically elect Donald Trump and that David Sanger and Scott Shane at New York Times have a similar story exposing the same agency conclusions, The National Enquirer is blaring from every grocery store checkout line, “MUSLIM SPIES in Obama CIA.”
Donald Trump has, in the words of Washington Post, a “very cozy relationship” with The National Enquirer. After all, it was the only news outlet in the universe to uncover the shocking story of Rafael Cruz being involved in JFK’s assassination, and only when Ted Cruz was Donald Trump’s only substantial competition for the Republican nomination. It’s amazing, isn’t it, that the evidence they had was uncovered at that particular time.
Well, the head of The National Enquirer flies on Trump’s private jet and has been in line for favors, apparently. He’s still paying it forward, because this story. . . of “Muslim spies in Obama’s CIA” and “FBI admits Trump was right,” can only be called one thing: propaganda. Manipulation of the press and official information with an aim of distorting facts in favor of government policy or position is, pretty much, the definition of propaganda. Now that Trump is the President Select, Enquirer quackery is no longer blather, no longer a hilarious parasite scrabbling for money: it’s falsification of truth to further the incoming government’s goals. Th- th- th- that’s propaganda, folks.
Now, it’s not worth debunking the story. The headline is self-negating. A “spy” is a person who collects information surreptitiously on behalf of an opposing government or competing organization. There is no nation of “Muslimia.” “Muslim” is not a nationality. It is a religion, and we should all hope there are Muslims in CIA. (Imagine Egypt's al Sissi being advised on evangelicals in the USA by Sunni salafists. That would not be wise, would it?) Nevertheless, we know that the people who do not read, watch, or listen to news at all also do not read the articles they forward to one another on Facebook. It seems that they are trafficking in headlines only. Therefore, we have two excellent articles in two of the nation’s finest newspapers competing with blasted headlines at every grocery store.
I said “punish the propagandist,” and I meant it.
We clever, sophisticated Kos readers aren’t going to boycott The National Enquirer. It would be as meaningless as “The Daily Stormer” boycotting Hamilton on Broadway. However, we can hurt it.
Those of you who shop at grocery stores, and especially those of you with “loyalty cards” at grocery stores, simply go to your store. . . your individual store. . . and tell them that, if they don’t stop carrying The National Enquirer, you will never shop there again. Then back it up! Your store will tell you that the decision is made by the regional manager, that it’s corporate, that it’s. . . whatever. That doesn’t matter.
Your purchases are being tracked regardless. If you are at Costco or Wal-Mart or Publix, your purchasing is noticed. If you tell them that your patronage disappears so long as The National Enquirer stays, then they will calculate the tiny amount they make on rack space for the propaganda vs. the large amount they make from loyal customers.
What’s more, I think the hard boned “conservatives” should join us in this move. No one needs fake news that serves a single billionaire blasting every shopper in America and erasing both fact and policy.