“The Dangerous Lies Undermining America’s Democracy”
Objective:
To analyze the use of literary devices and rhetorical strategies in political commentary and their impact on the reader’s perception.
Materials:
- The article “The Dangerous Lies Undermining America’s Democracy” by Robert Reich (provided below).
Activities:
1. Reading Comprehension:
- Task: Students will read the article to understand the main arguments presented by Robert Reich regarding the political climate and the undermining of democratic systems.
- Goal: Ensure students grasp the central themes and arguments about the spread of misinformation and its impact on democracy.
2. Identifying Literary Devices:
- Task: Students will identify examples of literary devices such as metaphors, hyperboles, and personification within the text. For instance, they might explore the metaphor of “poisoning the well” used to describe the spread of misinformation.
- Goal: Develop students’ ability to recognize and understand the use of literary devices in enhancing the persuasive power of political commentary.
3. Analyzing Rhetoric:
- Task: Discuss the rhetorical strategies used by Reich to persuade his readers, including appeals to ethos (credibility), pathos (emotion), and logos (logic).
- Goal: Help students understand how rhetorical strategies are employed to influence readers and reinforce the author’s arguments.
4. Critical Thinking:
- Task: Students will critically analyze the implications of the lies discussed in the article and their potential impact on society and governance.
- Goal: Encourage students to think deeply about the consequences of misinformation and the importance of maintaining trust in democratic institutions.
Essay Questions:
1. Historical Analysis of Misinformation:
- Prompt: Analyze the rhetorical strategies employed by political figures or movements throughout history to spread misinformation and undermine public trust in institutions. How have these strategies evolved over time, and what factors have contributed to their effectiveness or failure? Support your analysis with specific historical examples and their societal impacts.
- Goal: Develop students’ historical understanding of misinformation tactics and their evolution.
2. Media and Misinformation:
- Prompt: Examine the role of media and technology in the dissemination of misinformation and the erosion of trust in democratic processes throughout history. How have different forms of media (e.g., print, radio, television, social media) been utilized to spread false narratives or erode public confidence in institutions? Discuss the challenges and potential solutions in combating misinformation in the digital age.
- Goal: Help students explore the relationship between media, technology, and misinformation.
3. Consequences and Solutions:
- Prompt: Evaluate the long-term consequences of the erosion of public trust in democratic institutions due to misinformation campaigns or political rhetoric. Drawing from historical examples, analyze how the breakdown of trust has impacted the functioning of governments, the rule of law, and societal cohesion. Propose strategies for rebuilding trust and fostering a more informed and engaged citizenry in the face of misinformation threats.
- Goal: Encourage students to think about practical solutions to the problems caused by misinformation and the erosion of public trust.
Historical context on the role of misinformation and the erosion of trust in democratic processes:
- The Salem Witch Trials (1692-1693): This historical event can be used as an example of how misinformation and mass hysteria can lead to unjust prosecutions and undermine trust in the legal system. Students could read excerpts from primary sources or analyze the societal factors that contributed to the spread of false accusations.
- The Red Scare and McCarthyism (1940s-1950s): The fear-mongering tactics and unsubstantiated allegations made by Senator Joseph McCarthy during the Second Red Scare can serve as a case study on how misinformation and political rhetoric can erode civil liberties and undermine trust in government institutions.
- The Watergate Scandal (1972-1974): The cover-up and lies surrounding the Watergate break-in and subsequent investigations provide an opportunity to explore the erosion of public trust in the executive branch and the role of the press in uncovering misinformation.
- The Iraq War and Weapons of Mass Destruction (2003): The justification for the Iraq War based on faulty intelligence and claims about weapons of mass destruction can be examined as an example of how misinformation can shape public opinion and lead to significant consequences.
The lies that undermine America
The Trump Republican Party has given way to organized treason
Speaking at a rally on Saturday, Trump repeated his lie that the last presidential election was stolen from him, and again raised doubts about the integrity of the upcoming election. “We need to watch the vote. We need to guard the vote. We need to stop the steal,” he said.
How can we conduct a presidential election when one candidate and his party continue to lie about the outcome of the previous election and sow doubts about the electoral system?
Our system depends on trust. But if voters are repeatedly told they can’t and shouldn’t trust it because it is rigged, and a significant number come to agree, then no outcome will ever stick. We will be forever fighting over elections.
If voters come to believe that the people who rioted at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, were “true patriots” who have been unfairly prosecuted, how can anyone maintain faith in our system of justice?
Trump has poisoned the well. His big lie about the 2020 election has led to more lies about unfair prosecutions, including his own.
And Trump is forcing every other Republican to add more poison.
On Sunday, Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton, who is on the short list for becoming Trump’s running mate, said prosecutors were unfairly charging “every grandma and MAGA hat who was within a country mile of the Capitol” for the violence that occurred on Jan. 6, 2021.
On another Sunday show, South Carolina Republican Senator Tim Scott, also on Trump’s short list, asserted that a number of the rioters were people who “came into the Capitol because the doors were open.”
Both Cotton and Scott claimed that some Jan. 6 defendants were being held in pretrial detention longer than the sentences they would face if convicted. (That, too, was a lie. Most defendants have been released while awaiting trial, and most of the small number in custody have pleaded guilty or violated pretrial conditions.)
The litmus test for being Trump’s vice president – lying that the 2020 election was stolen, that the rioters were patriots, and that Biden and the Democrats are unfairly prosecuting them and Trump — is also becoming the litmus tests for being a Republican lawmaker. Any Republican who doesn’t spout these lies is politically endangered.
These are not small lies. They are not political hyperbole. They are lies that cut to the core of our entire system of self-government. They undermine belief in our democracy and system of justice.
It is one thing for Donald Trump – a pathological liar and sociopath – to conjure up these lies. He is nuts. It has been America’s great misfortune for him to emerge at a time when the nation was already distrustful and disdainful of politics.
But for an entire political party to wittingly repeat these lies amounts to organized treason.
How can lawmakers who presumably know how dangerous these lies are nonetheless seek to convince the public they’re true? Is their love of power so great that they would sell out our democracy for it? If so, what do they get from unprincipled power? Source: Robert Reich