Made-for-TV Authoritarianism

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Donald Trump’s show of force in the nation’s capital has nothing to do with law enforcement and everything to do with militarized politics. His concern about public safety is a ruse to create conflict and grab more power. Trump does not give a damn about Washington, D.C. and the people who call it home.

This ugly spectacle is made-for-TV authoritarianism starring camera-ready masked agents using intimidating military hardware for props. Like everything Trump does, the goal is to create pro-MAGA content to drive news cycles. As usual, right-wing media is all in on the Trump propaganda even advocating for him to send troops to other blue cities.

But local news in D.C. is doing a good job of sticking with the reality on the ground, with lots of first-hand reporting including this from Slate’s Christina Cauterucci who wrote “What I witnessed was an idyllic scene of American tourism,” detailed explainers like this from The 51st and regular fact checking of White House claims especially from NBC-4.

Local D.C. residents are also playing a key role in telling accurate stories about their city. Some are doing videos that show off beautiful parts of D.C. Many others are aggressively documenting reaction to the sudden occupation of their city by over 2,000-plus National Guard and the myriad of agents from ICE, FBI, DEA, AFT, Park Police, and the local DC Metropolitan Police.

https://www.lincolnsquare.media/p/made-for-tv-authoritarianism

[Walleye]

1. And the news media dutifully normalizes the whole thing

That is not their job

[Blue Owl]

2. A sparse article here and there is not enough

I remember on 9/11 every news outlet was saturated with coverage -- tRump's invasion of the USA should be along those lines...