Hillary Decoder: The Guide to Anti-Clinton Memes [UPDATED]
NOTE: Updates are at the end of the post.
“The national media have never been more primed to take down Hillary Clinton (and, by the same token, elevate a Republican candidate)” - Politico
My intention here is simple: detail the various narratives and frames (“calculating,” “secretive,” “polarizing,” etc.) that paint Hillary Clinton’s actions in the most negative possible light. These are carefully crafted and patently false scripts, many of which were concocted years ago in GOP oppo shops to demean and dehumanize her. Distinct from legitimate policy critiques, these lazy shortcuts have seeped so deeply into traditional media coverage that it is virtually impossible to read anything about Hillary Clinton without encountering them.
Every public figure is subject to criticism. What is unique in Clinton’s case is that personal attacks which would normally be the province of political opponents and critics are promulgated by the mainstream news media
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Memes spread through repetition. In the examples above, the repeated word is “calculating.” Another favorite is “secretive.”
USA Today alludes to Hillary Clinton’s “reputation for secrecy.”
Mirrored by the Washington Post: “her penchant for secrecy.”
NBC News: “Folks, this is the Clinton Way. Secretive.”
TIME: “penchant for secrecy.”
The Hill: “a paranoid, secretive politician.”
New York Times: “[T]he imbroglio could grow into a problem if Mrs. Clinton comes to be seen as unduly secretive or imperious in the months ahead.”
Remember, these instances are from two weeks of coverage in major news outlets. The recursive effect is obvious: the more the word “secrecy” is associated with Hillary Clinton, the more reporters and critics will use it, the more it will be associated with her, the more… you get the point.
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More: Hillary Decoder: The Guide to Anti-Clinton Memes [UPDATED]
Also see the “some people say” video at the end of this Post.