The Tell with Christine Axsmith

The Tell with Christine Axsmith

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The Tell with Christine Axsmith
The Tell with Christine Axsmith
The Price of Fear, the Wages of Ambition

The Price of Fear, the Wages of Ambition

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Christine Axsmith
Apr 15, 2024
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The Tell with Christine Axsmith
The Tell with Christine Axsmith
The Price of Fear, the Wages of Ambition
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The Price of Fear, the Wages of Ambition

Fear

“Superpredators” was a a ‘90s catchword for the politically ambitious. Stoking fear translated into votes because you could show the world that you weren’t a soft-hearted liberal. You were TOUGH ON CRIME.

That strategy led to thousands of people imprisoned at the cost of billions of dollars.

Referring to Goebbels’ Principle of Propaganda #16, “propaganda to the home front must create an optimum anxiety level,” so you can see fear has been used to create political power for a long time. We can see old Goebbels’ ideas right now, as the U.S. holds its breath and marches through another shit pit of an election. Creating or accelerating fear is a useful tool for the ambitious. Sadly, it often comes with side-effects.

The Tell with Christine Axsmith examines propaganda, persuasion and coercive control in our media and in our lives. We pepper our observations with humor so it is not too depressing. Join us.

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