More often than not, U.S. citizens are likely to carry the notion that the United States "excels at everything," as a recent op-ed by Scott Shane in the New York Times points out. (Click here to read the piece.) Why is this the case? Broadly speaking, perhaps mainstream belief in American exceptionalism is a mixed result that stems from the writing of history (especially after World War II) and the predominance of mass-media, agenda-setting, and the hunger for revenue in the business of communication.
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| Illustration by Ji Lee, photograph: Zhang Jun/Xinhua/ZUMAPRESS |
Some new facts is sure to sell over others. Shane highlights the U.S. presidential campaign as a key example of how both candidates seem to neglect mentioning certain news facts. He writes:
"IMAGINE a presidential candidate who spoke with blunt honesty about American problems, dwelling on measures by which the United States lags its economic peers.What might this mythical candidate talk about on the stump? He might vow to turn around the dismal statistics on child poverty, declaring it an outrage that of the 35 most economically advanced countries, the United States ranks 34th, edging out only Romania. He might take on educational achievement, noting that this country comes in only 28th in the percentage of 4-year-olds enrolled in preschool, and at the other end of the scale, 14th in the percentage of 25-to-34-year-olds with a higher education. He might hammer on infant mortality, where the United States ranks worse than 48 other countries and territories, or point out that, contrary to fervent popular belief, the United States trails most of Europe, Australia and Canada in social mobility."
All this truth-telling, Shane concludes, wouldn't get any U.S. presidential candidate far--regardless of their party affiliation. Such a truth-telling candidate "is, in fact, all but unimaginable in our political culture." He explains this is saying, "Americans demand constant reassurance that their country, their achievements and their values are extraordinary." In short, American culture demands to have its greatness validated over and over again.
But what happens when there is room for improvement? As Shane highlights, there is, actually, much room for improvement. If politicians play a significant role in Michael Billig's theory of banal nationalism--and their presence, impassioned speeches, and actions reinforce some national sense of value, community, and cohesive identity--how would their behavior and rhetoric motivate the public to do something about the high incidence of child poverty in the United States?
Communication is intrinsic to political awareness. If political leaders continue to primarily focus their rhetoric on America's greatness, how are they to motivate or jolt the American public into action to improve the country's national standing in preschool education and infant mortality?
I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the op-ed referencing how the political culture of the U.S. is to put an optimistic face on the presidential nominees, turning a blind eye to current sufferings throughout the nation. While America’s greatness is “validated over and over again” throughout this campaign, the politicians running for office unfortunately do not emanate greatness themselves.
ReplyDeleteA criticism many of us have seen throughout this race in particular is how both parties have used their campaign resources to focus on bashing one another instead of enforcing how they would make America more successful. The Wesleyan Media Project completed a political advertising analysis, finding that “70% of the presidential campaign commercials in this cycle have been negative. That compares to less than one in ten ads that ran by this time for years ago that criticized an opponent”. )http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/03/study-campaign-ads-much-more-negative-than-four-years-ago/)
To show this U.S. political culture in another light, many also say that Obama would have dominated the debates if he was “allowed” to be his charismatic, easygoing self. Unfortunately, this caricature is strategically played out only at certain instances – visiting a family in Oklahoma or showing off dance moves at an elementary school. During a debate, the face of determination and strength is the only one allowed to show.
This campaign’s focus on America’s greatness and continuous bashing of each party will be detrimental to public action. Along with leaving out the push for the American public to improve suffering sectors, the views of Republicans and Democrats has become much more polar. We can only hope that the winning candidate will show his true self and start in November to create a more cohesive, motivated nation – but when has this ever happened?