It’s Roget’s Fault
I caught most of the Terry Gross [Fresh Air, January 9, 2007] interview, Frank Luntz Explains ‘Words that Work’, and it was an amazing display of delusion and propaganda.
Luntz wires focus groups and reads a thesaurus to them to find the best word to describe the next Republican outrage or to maximize the value of attacks on critics. Words aren’t selected for their accuracy of meaning, but for their emotional impact. Luntz is selecting a vocabulary based on its appeal to the “lizard brain.”
Northstar of People’s Republic of Seabrook has a Horsey cartoon in the post, It’s all about the propaganda, that illustrates this point.
The new “Enemy of the State” feature on Fox News’ Hannity’s America is an example of what happens when Republicans don’t hire Luntz, their repressive authoritarian face is shown. Even Stalin dressed it up by calling them “enemies of the people.” Not to rain on their parade, but the “founding fathers” were “enemies of the state.”
