Fear was his issue. Not surprising in the country of a Donald Trump who denies, fluctuates about the importance of the pandemic.
Power is obviously inseparable from information. After all, the establishment of the state of health emergency is due to him – when he decides. Here again, fear was at work. Reassuring, exposing “the bad news or the good news”, threatening, making people responsible… acting on anxiety, dosing it. In short, governing in times of crisis. Speaking the truth, or not, or little. But speaking like never before in the media with a maximum audience.
Official briefings followed press conferences or statements. With words, boxes, curves, there was a whole infographic, a staging of the virus. The contamination figures, death statistics. Fear this time held its accounting instrument .
Thus, drawing the other tricolors of France. We live the fear, the anger twitter data of the citizen of not being green enough, or too red. The media playing their role of more or less critical witnesses. After the reminder of the ethics of what we show, the recurring one of "independence to orders" was not going to be missing. Because the curves recall those of management, unemployment, pensions... An indispensable instrument, their speech does not inspire confidence. We see proof that the media speak like the power.
The history of television news is edifying
JT November 23, 1956 Mr. “Panic”
Do you know Mr. Panic? It was you and me in 1956. Just after the live speech by the chairman of the council, Guy Mollet, the news created a character with a soft hat and a long coat. This fan of storing sugar and gasoline symbolized the perfect idiot, a coward. In the middle of the Suez crisis, Guy Mollet had said it well, don't do that. The news put it into images. The gesture was archaic. The oil issue did much better thanks to the crisis narration.