re: #128 BeachDem

MSNBC’s ads for the debate sound more like a WWE commercial or the old “Sunday, Raceway Park” ads I remember from my “yoot”:

TRUMP!! CLINTON!! FACE OFF!! ONE ON ONE!! BE THERE!! WHEN POLICIES AND PERSONALITIES COLLIDE!!

msnbc.com

Yeah, the media can color—or at least attempt to color—the way a story is perceived before people read even a single word of it. It was really obvious in a list of links I got via my Google Alerts in the past couple of days that were all about the same subject. I’ve highlighted the words that jumped out at me:

Geert Wilders’ lawyer to urge judges to drop discrimination case
^{DutchNews, Weekly News Bulletin, Indonesia News - Shafaqna}

Wilders’ lawyer demands that hate-speech case be dropped
^{NL Times}

Dutch lawmaker Wilders wants hate speech case dropped
^{The Big Story - Associated Press (also Fox News)}

Anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders asks for dismissal of hate speech case
^{ZeroCensorship}

Anti-Islam lawmaker Wilders asks for dismissal of hate speech case
^OOYUZ

Note hat in the first version, published by three different outlets, the court proceedings are described as a “discrimination” case whereas in all the others it was called “hate speech,” and only the last two made mention of his anti-Islam stance. In addition, wanting, asking, urging, and demanding leave quite different impressions, no?

I would assume that locals are well aware of who Wilders is and what he stands for, but others wouldn’t necessarily be. I wonder if the “Anti-Islam” part generates more clicks or less, and from whom? For the record, I didn’t actually read any of the articles, so I don’t know if their tone followed that of their headlines (which is the only part that really interested me). With a few—like Indonesia News - Shafaqna & ZeroCensorship—I think I can make a fairly accurate guess as to what their tone would be.