Stalin
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2008
- Messages
- 3,791
built by and for influencers, governed by the posting logic of lowest-common-denominator engagement –
a former gameshow host and self-styled heckler comedian as president,
a former Fox News morning show host as secretary of defense,
podcasters for head of the FBI and deputy attorney general.
The administration isn’t even pretending otherwise; in response to Variety’s request for comment over the Swift-soundtracked TikTok video, a White House official replied: “We made this video because we knew fake news media brands like Variety would breathlessly amplify them. Congrats, you got played.”
How do musicians handle this? It’s a no-win situation, though I don’t think it’s futile for younger artists, particularly those with very online fanbases like Carpenter, to speak directly to the fear, racism, xenophobia and general delight of violence the administration seeks to normalize. I’d love to see more follow the lead of singers like Zach Bryan, whose anti-ICE lyrics provoked the White House, rather than being stuck in a loop of reactive engagement.
Perhaps the answer isn’t full disengagement or disassociation but rather a clear-eyed assessment of what this is: a game to them, one that they will keep trying to play with whatever artist of the moment they can find. As Kaelan Dorr, a member of the White House communications team, said in response to outrage over a horrifically offensive, demeaning AI Ghibli-fied photo of an ICE detention: “The arrests will continue. The memes will continue.” Our disgust will, too, but our attention does not have to.
www.theguardian.com
what happens when the worst people in the country manage to get their hands on the levers of power ?
comrade stalin
moscow
a former gameshow host and self-styled heckler comedian as president,
a former Fox News morning show host as secretary of defense,
podcasters for head of the FBI and deputy attorney general.
The administration isn’t even pretending otherwise; in response to Variety’s request for comment over the Swift-soundtracked TikTok video, a White House official replied: “We made this video because we knew fake news media brands like Variety would breathlessly amplify them. Congrats, you got played.”
How do musicians handle this? It’s a no-win situation, though I don’t think it’s futile for younger artists, particularly those with very online fanbases like Carpenter, to speak directly to the fear, racism, xenophobia and general delight of violence the administration seeks to normalize. I’d love to see more follow the lead of singers like Zach Bryan, whose anti-ICE lyrics provoked the White House, rather than being stuck in a loop of reactive engagement.
Perhaps the answer isn’t full disengagement or disassociation but rather a clear-eyed assessment of what this is: a game to them, one that they will keep trying to play with whatever artist of the moment they can find. As Kaelan Dorr, a member of the White House communications team, said in response to outrage over a horrifically offensive, demeaning AI Ghibli-fied photo of an ICE detention: “The arrests will continue. The memes will continue.” Our disgust will, too, but our attention does not have to.
The Trump administration keeps picking fights with pop stars. It’s a no-win situation | Adrian Horton
By using music from SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and Olivia Rodrigo in ICE videos, the government is playing a game of rage-bait
what happens when the worst people in the country manage to get their hands on the levers of power ?
comrade stalin
moscow
