Election Red Flag
by Craig Colby
Thanks to the trade war and threat of annexation coming from Donald Trump, Canadians are going to have to make some big decisions. The biggest will be when we pick new leadership for the country. I’m not going to tell you who to vote for but I am going to identify big red flag to look out for if you want to avoid the mess our neighbour to the south is in.
If you hear a candidate say they want to wipe out an entire news source, watch out. That’s the first page of the fascism playbook, and if you look at the United States right now, it worked like a charm.
The phrases “the press is the enemy of the state” and “the mainstream media lies” are designed to do one thing – make you stop listening to the news. Because when you stop listening to journalism, you are far more open to suggestions from politicians.
Politicians can then dismiss facts and present their opinions as the truth.
That’s how, in the US, people stopped believing the news when it was reported that Trump was no longer allowed to run a charity in New York because he took money meant for veterans and children with cancer and used it to paint a portrait of himself, among other things.
They stopped believing their eyes when they said January 6 wasn’t an insurrection.
They stopped believing the courts, when Trump was convicted on 34 felonies.
When you dismiss journalism, it gets easier to throw away the truth. We don’t want that here!
If a politician says that the media is out to get just them, that’s a red flag. There isn’t a journalist worth his salt that wouldn’t love to get legitimate dirt on a politician and take them down. That’s how you make a career.
So, when you hear a politician say “Stop funding the media” or “Close the CBC” it’s because they don’t want the scrutiny that comes from journalists.
But we need that! It’s a cornerstone of democracy.
I’m going to be talking more about the media, including topics like media bias, making up stories, and what to believe when you read the paper or watch the news.
If you have questions, send them along. I’ll do my best to answer them or find someone who can.
Craig Colby is a television executive producer, producer, director, writer and story editor. He runs a storytelling consulting and production service.
Craig is also the author of the multiple award winning ALL CAPS: Stories That Justify an Outrageous Hat Collection.