Amusing Ourselves to Autocracy

By David Corn  April 23, 2022

Rudy Giuliani on The Masked Singer. Michael Becker/Fox

In 1985, Neil Postman, a media theorist and cultural critic, wrote Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. He contended that television—with its focus on visuals—reduces news and politics to entertainment, essentially transforming public discourse into a circus and undermining “serious and rational public conversation.” The book originated with a talk he gave at the Frankfurt Book Fair, while he was participating in a panel discussion on George Orwell’s classic 1984. Postman posited that the threat to humanity came less from a totalitarian state, as Orwell envisioned, and more from an addiction to amusement, as depicted in Aldous Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World, in which citizens are constantly fed a happiness-generating drug called "soma."

Postman warned that television, with its never-ending delivery of consumer entertainment, was the contemporary version of that drug. An endless flow of distraction and titillation—sensory input designed to entertain and sell us stuff—would turn us into passive and disconnected people unable to collectively grapple with the serious matters of the day. And this was before the onslaught of cable television, video rentals, DVDs, laptops, smartphones, tablets, the internet, social media, DVRs, streaming, and virtual reality. Postman, who died in 2003, worried that a visual media world then dominated by only three national broadcast networks and movie theaters was crushing our civic souls. What might he say now?

It was impossible not to think of Postman when reflecting upon Rudy Giuliani’s latest stunt. This week, Donald Trump’s consigliere appeared on an episode of Fox’s The Masked Singer, dressed in a jack-in-the-box costume, and sang (poorly) George Thorogood’s “Bad to the Bone.” If you can’t resist...

Comedian and actor Ken Jeong, a judge on the show (and a licensed physician), walked off the set in protest. And though Giuliani’s star turn was first reported over two months ago when the show was taped, the airing of this episode on Wednesday night reverberated throughout the media world.

This was deplorable. Giuliani has been a purveyor of Russian disinformation. He was the lead peddler of Trump’s big lie that the 2020 election was fraudulent. He provided false testimony while doing so. He lost court cases across the country. And he helped Trump incite the January 6 mob that violently stormed the Capitol in an attempt to overthrow American democracy.

Now he gets to yuk it up on national television—and use this stage to rehab his image. How can a guy in this getup who enjoys a good laugh be a danger to the nation?

Revulsion at this is not merely can’t-take-a-joke curmudgeonliness. A democracy that doesn’t punish those who actively seek to undermine it is a democracy at risk. Criminal prosecution may not be an option but shaming and ostracizing are. If a would-be coup plotter is embraced as just another fun-lovin’ celebrity, that hardly creates a disincentive for future assaults on the Constitution. This episode is a chilling example of television transforming politics into entertainment. Actually, more seriously, this turned insurrection into entertainment.

Postman, a Luddite who eschewed computers and mobile devices, might have gone too far in his total condemnation of television and all TV news. (Then again, I’m an MSNBC contributor and, as you know, an avid consumer of entertainment content.) But he certainly was right about its capacity to trivialize serious stuff. (See Trump, Donald: media coverage of, 2016.) In a world where a narcissistic, racist, misogynistic, ignorant, loudmouth reality television celebrity can become president, why not laugh along with his not-so-lovable, democracy-decimating sidekick?

In Amusing Ourselves to Death, Postman wrote, “What afflicted the people in ‘Brave New World’ was not that they were laughing instead of thinking, but that they did not know what they were laughing about and why they had stopped thinking.” Watch Masked Singer judges Jenny McCarthy

and Nicole Scherzinger gleefully applauding the Giuliani reveal, and you can see exactly what Postman had in mind.

He also provided this gem:

When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people become an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; a culture-death is a clear possibility.

Or perhaps a civic-life death.

Am I making too much of this one inane moment on a silly television show? We’ve also seen that one of our two major political parties has refused to confront the terrorist assault on Congress or the attempt to rig the election because doing so would interfere with The Trump Show, its most popular production. And while we’re on the subject of the devolution of politics into entertainment, Sarah Palin, a veteran of The Masked Singer and her own distorted-reality show, is running for Congress in Alaska. She claims she is driven by a deep sense of public service, though last time she held elected office, she quit halfway through her term.

The day after the Giuliani episode aired, former President Barack Obama delivered a thoughtful speech at Stanford University on disinformation. It wasn’t groundbreaking, but it’s worth watching. He discussed the obvious problems presented by social media and offered a few general notions about solutions, noting that Big Tech can do more to restrain the flow of dangerously false information. But what he didn’t confront was the demand side of the equation, the immense desire for disinformation. What do we do when 10 percent, 20 percent, 30 percent, or more of the public craves disinformation to feed and bolster their prejudices, grievances, outrage, and anger?

If Americans would rather be amused than engaged and informed, what can be done about that? Giuliani’s appearance on this show should be a warning that the ongoing democracy crisis here has not fully registered with the mainstream and many Americans. That’s a positive sign for Trump and Trumpism. If the underminers of democracy can get the rest of us to chuckle at their antics, it’s a big win for them and a step toward Trump’s overall goal: amusing ourselves to autocracy.

Got anything to say about this item—or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com.

Dumbass Comment of the Week

The other day, I opened the Fios TV app on my iPad, which I mainly use for watching news while I exercise, and in the top line of “Watch Now” suggestions was OAN, the righter-and-crazier-than-Fox network. OAN—One America News Network—has been the nutball uncle of conservative media, spreading disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic (to the extent that YouTube banned the channel for a week because of its reckless Covid cure claims), championing Donald Trump’s big lie about the 2020 election, and airing a host of baseless conspiracy theories about...well, most everything. And this was in a more prominent position than MSNBC or CNN. What gives? Was an algorithm kicking this out? If so, what algorithm would promote OAN to me instead of the usual cable news networks I watch? Or was Verizon on its own handing OAN a prime piece of real estate on its website? Either scenario is troubling. Even DirecTV recently announced it was dropping the network. (Last year, Reuters revealed that AT&T, the parent company of DirecTV, had helped create OAN.) Yet Verizon is pushing this channel.

Perhaps this might change the telecom firm's corporate mind. A few days ago, Dan Ball, an OAN host, went on a fascistic tirade and won this week’s award. He called the mainstream media “treasonous” and said, “We should take every single CEO that’s allowed it, every single host and put them in a military tribunal for treason to this nation because they constantly have lied...for decades now.” He included the “Russia hoax” in his indictment and, no doubt, was referring to the 2020 election.

This incendiary rhetoric is nothing new for the uber-Trumpish OAN. And a network that has celebrated Trump’s efforts to overturn a legitimate election cannot be expected to appreciate such constitutional niceties as the First Amendment. Last year, Pearson Sharp, one of its so-called “correspondents,” demanded the execution of the tens of thousands of Americans who were supposedly involved in the “coup” against Trump. Sharp won the DCW award for that doozie. But as absurd as these comments are, they are not trivial. They encourage members of OAN’s audience—however meager it may be—to wallow in paranoia and grievance and to ponder extreme, anti-democratic, and perhaps violent responses to the political developments that upset them. Verizon ought not be boosting this swill. It should pull the plug.

The Mailbag

Before I took a spring break, I wrote about the depressing fact that our species is organized in a way that provides certain individuals the power to destroy cities, kill thousands, and turn millions into refugees—let alone annihilate the world with nuclear weapons. I was, of course, referring to war criminal Vladimir Putin and the conflict in Ukraine. The article seemed to strike a chord with readers who were similarly concerned about the same notion. Cindy Elliot wrote:

Thank you so much for this morning’s piece, where you talk about the insanity of letting one man (Putin) control us all in the way he is now. You talked about the images from Ukraine that many of us don’t see. And the rules of law concerning a nuclear strike. It was if you’d gotten into my head, into my dream. I awoke feeling such sadness and frustration; I’ve raised money for the Ukrainian cause but want so much to do something more to help these people. I started talking with my husband, who got into explanations of NATO vs UN and the rules of law. I wanted to hear none of that. Want I found was your article, which put my own thoughts into much more succinct terms. Now, have a great vacation, and come back with a solution! I thank you deeply for today’s words and for all of the work you do to make this country and the planet a better place to be. And you are welcome to share my French fries at any event, not just Richard Thompson concerts!

Thanks for those fries, Cindy—though I am trying to cut down on salty foods. (Do you know how much salt they put in our food? Don’t get me started.) As for a solution, I’m not sure I have one yet. But I think a good start would be for more people to decide that psychopaths shouldn’t be leaders. That certainly applies here in the United States. How do we get there? I’m open to suggestions.

Jonni Gray emailed:

What to do about Putin? I was surprised by the pushback from readers about your post that we hadn’t done all we could to stop Putin. Only Alexei Navalny, Anna Politkovskaya and the rest of the poisoned and murdered have done all they could. I’m disappointed that the best Americans can do individually involves vodka instead of oil. Why are we not organizing to use less oil and gas to bring down demand? Putin’s power correlates directly to the price of oil. Are Americans incapable of inconvenience and sacrifice? 

Many Americans complain about the “sacrifice” of wearing a mask. It’s my hunch that many of our fellow citizens would be willing to make the sacrifice of paying more at the pump if it were explained that this is our way of defending democracy abroad. Yet clearly millions would gripe, and Republicans and the right wing would brazenly exploit the situation for political advantage and try to stir up a national panic. Of course, we should have a national policy—a Manhattan Project—to decrease our use of fossil fuels. But let’s deal with only one intractable problem at a time.

Judith Davidson had this to say:

We as a species are a dangerous predatory bunch. History is replete with the unthinkably horrific acts of man. And now, as in the 1930s, we watch, we ponder, we discuss or don’t, the most current and appalling display of man’s inhumanity to man. Are we so numbed by now that nothing is worthy of “emergency” status? From the beginning of the gathering of troops on the borders of Ukraine, I have felt as if the talking heads are watching a video game. So detached...We are a horrid species that needs restraints before there is no one left but the uber-gazillionaires on their yachts and spacecrafts....Ooops, gotta go and check my social media updates so I can live in denial forever. 

That’s a bit dark, Judith. Not that I disagree. But I will say that while television can sometimes make everything seem like a video game (see above), there has been great reporting on the cable and broadcast networks about the war, and the commentary on MSNBC and CNN has often been highly substantive. Those of us who want to follow the war certainly have the means to do so. But perhaps that only intensifies feelings of helplessness. It’s a small gesture, but my family has been sending money to chef José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen, which is doing a helluva job feeding Ukrainian refugees.

Joanelle Wood Mulrain was also upset:

How did our parent react when WWII was beginning to rear its ugly head? My mother was a registered nurse, she met my father, who was teaching men to fly in the war. How far did it escalate in Europe before 6 million Jews were killed and the gas chambers were smoking? Every night I see the bodies. I remember we only saw the coffins coming back of our soldiers during the Vietnam War. What’s happening is so horrendous. We are living it daily—on TV, radio, social media. It is just so depressing, all of it....I hope in your reporting of the daily, you might consider good deeds and people doing good things out of the ordinary making them extraordinary. We need to balance the horror.

The resistance of the Ukrainian people and their fight for democracy are extraordinary and inspiring. And as I noted above, look at the work of the World Central Kitchen and others responding to the humanitarian catastrophe Putin has caused. Here’s an encouraging piece from Molly Schwartz in Mother Jones about Polish citizens assisting Ukrainian refugees when their government wouldn’t.

Lorraine Parish had an extreme suggestion:

David, I have been saying over and over until it became almost a chant—one man did this, one fucking criminally insane man did this, how does the rest of the world stand by and let him do this? One fucking man, one man has destroyed millions of lives, one man. Here's a question: if one man can do this, can one man also stop it? I think yes and it's Biden. How? Call his bluff, which I believe it is, and aim our 4,000 nukes at him. He is too narcissistic to commit suicide.

Whoa, Lorraine. I understand the desire to end this bloodshed and misery. But as President Joe Biden has demonstrated since the start of the war, we must be concerned about escalation that could lead to nuclear destruction. Yes, that affords Putin an edge. A murderous maniac who has nuclear weapons can get away with more than one who does not. And it’s not a question of whether Putin would ultimately be guided by self-preservation. We cannot count on that. The history of warfare is one of miscalculation, with warring parties wildly misjudging the intentions of the other side and the potential impacts of their own actions. Throw nuclear weapons into that mix, and...

Perhaps sensing the dread generated by recent issues, Mo Winograd sent along a video and said, “Might be fun for you to share in your newsletter.” Okay, Mo. I’ll give it a shot. Here’s Canadian singer-songwriter Jann Arden with an ukulele chorus of schoolkids performing “Try A Little Kindness,” a song initially popularized by Glen Campbell. When I was a kid, my father and I didn’t share a lot of interests outside of sports (and even then, he cheered the Yankees, and I rooted for the Mets). But we did like to watch Glen Campbell’s television show together. Thanks, Mo, for bringing back that happy memory. By the way, I’ll watch anything with a ukulele chorus.

MoxieCam™

“Moxie, what are you doing?”

“Sometimes you have to drop the ball and smell the flowers.”

Read Recent Issues of Our Land

April 19, 2022: Why the hell isn’t Jared Kushner’s $2 billion Saudi payment a big scandal?; Severance’s wonderful finale; a podcast about the Ukraine war and the US-Russia intelligence wars; and more.

April 5, 2022: The power of the thug; a joke about Trump; Ben Affleck’s moves in Deep Water; and more.

April 2, 2022: How Donald Trump just helped Putin’s barbaric and illegal war; good Trump news; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Mike Pence, Lauren Boebert, and Donald Trump Jr.); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

March 29, 2022: Why you should worry that Ginni Thomas is bonkers; The Adam Project and movie-world time travel; The Sea The Sea, an indie-pop-folk duo, shimmers; and more.

March 22, 2022: John le Carré’s farewell gift to us; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Emergency Edition); the former Kremlin official who spoke out; a disappointing Suspicion;“Kyiv Calling”; and more.

March 19, 2022: How Trump and his crew boost Putin’s disinformation; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Candace Owens, Jesse Waters, Lara Logan, Herschel Walker, Elon Musk, and others); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

March 15, 2022: Tucker Carlson, Vladimir Putin, and me; why you should watch Severance; and more.

March 12, 2002: Putin, Ukraine, nuclear war, and Trump; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Madison Cawthorn, again!); the Mailbag, MoxieCam™; and more.

March 8, 2022: The progressive dilemma in Ukraine; rehabbing West Side Story; does Inventing Anna target or celebrate Instagram culture?; and more.

March 5, 2022: Once again, Merrick Garland should tell us if the DOJ is investigating Trump for his attempted coup; Dumbass Comment of the Week (winner: Ben Shapiro); masks and freedoms, the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

March 1, 2022: From CPAC to Ukraine—how the right went from wrong to crazy; rebranding this newsletter; and more.

Got suggestions, comments, complaints, tips related to any of the above, or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com.