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How easily or willfully we forget the past: 3/14/2008 >The Obama campaign's chief strategist is a master of "Astroturfing" and has a second firm that shapes p

How easily or willfully we forget the past: 3/14/2008 >The Obama campaign's chief strategist is a master of "Astroturfing" and has a second firm that shapes public opinion for corporations https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2008-03-14/the-secret-side-of-david-axelrodbusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2008-03-14/the-secre...

raverbashing 9y ago
Correct, doesn't make it right (and Hillary did some of this as well)
- verylittlemeat 9y ago
  I agree. So why keep up this naive and demonstrably false act that 2016 was the year persuasion and behavioral psychology was put to practical use in politics to manipulate voters. Every presidential election cycle I can remember was full of rhetoric and outright lies persuade voters. Does no one remember all of the hilariously terrible chain letters from past elections that claimed all sorts of nonsense? I just don't understand why people are running away with this idea that somehow facebook/twitter have changed the game when it comes to brainwashing people to vote conservative. Politics is and always has been a no holds barred competition where anything goes that isn't straight up illegal. History books praise JFK for utilizing the television in 1960 to win his presidential election. I'm starting to think that if they had today's political climate he would be remembered as a manipulator rather than being savvy.
  - slededit 9y ago
    The difference is a lot of people never imagined Trump could be elected and many people for the first time are shocked to see what the other half of the country thinks. Imagining that they were manipulated by superior technology not previously available lets people hold to the idea that half the country really didn't vote for trump deep down - if only they hadn't been duped and knew what he really was.

raverbashing 9y ago

Correct, doesn't make it right (and Hillary did some of this as well)

verylittlemeat 9y ago
I agree. So why keep up this naive and demonstrably false act that 2016 was the year persuasion and behavioral psychology was put to practical use in politics to manipulate voters. Every presidential election cycle I can remember was full of rhetoric and outright lies persuade voters. Does no one remember all of the hilariously terrible chain letters from past elections that claimed all sorts of nonsense? I just don't understand why people are running away with this idea that somehow facebook/twitter have changed the game when it comes to brainwashing people to vote conservative. Politics is and always has been a no holds barred competition where anything goes that isn't straight up illegal. History books praise JFK for utilizing the television in 1960 to win his presidential election. I'm starting to think that if they had today's political climate he would be remembered as a manipulator rather than being savvy.
- slededit 9y ago
  The difference is a lot of people never imagined Trump could be elected and many people for the first time are shocked to see what the other half of the country thinks. Imagining that they were manipulated by superior technology not previously available lets people hold to the idea that half the country really didn't vote for trump deep down - if only they hadn't been duped and knew what he really was.