Donald Trump: The unintentional culture jammer

culture jam: Culture jamming, is the act of using existing media such as billboards, bus-ads, posters, and other ads to comment on those very media themselves or on society in general, using the original medium's communication method.

The phrase Culture Jamming comes from the idea of jamming a radio broadcast.
While the concept is very serious, in recent years its been the domain of harmless comedians such as Stephen Colbert's Super PAC Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow.
And, of course, The Yes Men.

"The Yes Men come the closest to Colbert for using existing rules and structures to expose and satirize their intent," media theorist Douglas Rushkoff told AlterNet."Of course, Timothy Leary ran for governor of California, and Abbie Hoffman levitated the Pentagon. But Colbert is clearly on a scale that would have been hard to imagine early on."

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Culture jamming has been with us for as long as the consumer culture has been around. It has expanded out into the political culture as political parties have adopted many of the same tools as corporate advertising.
While the media of culture jamming has been humor, the topics of culture jamming have always been deadly serious.

Then along comes Donald Trump.

It's no secret that Republicans and the right-wing in general have been using dog-whistle politics for decades.
The racism, xenophobia, and sexism has always been implied, but never declared. So people like Sarah Palin could get away with using code phrases, and it worked well. Too well.

Trump traded in the dog whistle for the bullhorn. There is no subtle context with Trump. Nothing is implied.
The leading candidate of the right-wing is openly racist and sexist.

A political environment that was carefully constructed over half a century has had the full light of day shown into its dark crevices, and exposed a mold, vermin, and dry-rot problem.
Basically what Trump has done, without intention and without humor, is culture jamming the entire right-wing.

While disastrous in the short-term, Trump has actually done the Republican Party a favor. By exposing their long-hidden ugliness, he has given them the chance of clearing away the dead wood and starting anew.
Who will do the same favor for the decaying Democratic Party?

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Raggedy Ann's picture

I've had those exact thoughts. In fact, a friend who is afraid of a rethug POTUS sent me the Charles Blow op-Ed titled " Bernie or Bust..." some such title. She asked me what I thought about the article. It was an opportunity for me to discuss what I think of Drumpf. I told her the rethugs created him and he is saying, out loud, what they say behind backs (dog whistles, etc., you described it well) and my vote isn't going to determine the election if I'm writing Bernie in, and yes, Bernie gets my vote, regardless. I was a bit more elegant, but that's the gist of it.

So, yeah, sorry I got carried away in my thoughts, anyway, good essay. Smile

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

In 2008 she labeled Barack Obama a terrorist. Which is code, I suppose, for "terrorist."

"We see America as the greatest force for good in this world," Palin said at a fund-raising event in Colorado, adding, "Our opponent though, is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect that he's palling around with terrorists who would target their own country."

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/04/palin.obama/

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"We've done the impossible, and that makes us mighty."