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This week's comic: "Polarization" is a reality-obscuring weasel word

#media #journalism #authoritarianism

"Polarization" IT'S A COMMON REFRAIN THESE DAYS. NATTERING NOGGINS HOSTS: THE PROBLEM AS I SEE IT IS THAT AMERICA HAS BECOME TOO POLARIZED. YES, IT'S SO SAD. BUT THE TERM "POLARIZATION" CAN BE A FORM OF BOTH-SIDESING THAT OBSCURES SPECIFICS. ARMED EXTREMIST: I'M HERE TO STOP THE TRANSGENDERS FROM DESTROYING THE COUNTRY. TRANSGENDER PERSON: I PREFER NOT TO DIE, AND SOMETIMES SHARE THIS OPINION! WHEN A MOVEMENT BECOMES EXTREMIST, DO WE REALLY WANT TO SEE THE OPPOSITION AS PART OF THE PROBLEM? MAN: ANYONE WHO HELPS A 10 YEAR-OLD RAPE VICTIM GET AN ABORTION SHOULD GO TO JAIL! WOMAN: THAT'S BARBARIC AND I'M GOING TO DO EVERYTHING I CAN TO FIGHT IT. POLARIZATION ALERT WOULD THIS BE BETTER? MAN IN MILITARY GEAR: YOU WILL DO AS I SAY, SUBHUMAN! LATINO MAN: I WILL POLITELY ACQUIESCE! HOW NICE! NO MORE POLARIZATION!
#Media #journalism #authoritarianism
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Afternoon T
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Afternoon T
• •
I'm reminded of an ancient Cosma Shalizi quote:
“… our gracious host would really _like_ to be just a little bit to the left of a technocratic center, and to debate those just a little bit to his right about optimal policies within a shared objective function, and pretending that it is a technical and not a political discussion..."
in reply to Jen Sorensen

craignicol
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craignicol
• •

in physics, polarization of light means that you can only see a tiny sliver of reality.

Basically, polarisation looks like this youtu.be/aiMLJAZajxg

Keep up the great work 😎

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Enjoy the videos and music that you love, upload original content and share it all with friends, family and the world on YouTube.
youtu.be
in reply to Jen Sorensen

T. Mohammad from Gaza
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T. Mohammad from Gaza
• •
How are you, my friend? Could you share my latest post? Sharing is my source of income in Gaza.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Taran Rampersad
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Taran Rampersad
• •

just because people use the word improperly doesn't mean the word should be canceled.

For example, a legitimate use: centralized social media polarizes as a byproduct of the incentives of platform owners.

True.

How it's used in the wrong contexts, though, is something that should be called out.

A simple question to ask the claimant is, "How?"

That generally stops them from abusing a useful word in future. 🙃

in reply to Taran Rampersad

Jen Sorensen
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Jen Sorensen
• •
@knowprose It is true that social media companies thrive on conflict and tend to incentivize arguments. In this case, I am referring to the use of the word "polarization" among journalists and others to describe the political landscape in a safe way that avoids talking about what is actually happening.
@Taran Rampersad
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Taran Rampersad
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Taran Rampersad
• •

Agreed. And it makes the point that it's not just social media, either. It's media.

Which is also a fair point.

in reply to Jen Sorensen

Peter Brown
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Peter Brown
• •
I think this is somehow missing the point. The root of the problem is the first past the post voting system which leaves voters in practical terms with a binary choice between two parties. That is polarisation. That is black or white; right or left; billionaires or poverty - it is not a real reflection of life or politics and the only solution is to adopt proportional representation.
That produces a range of political parties reflecting the range of political views.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Remy Whisker
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Remy Whisker
• •
I believe that there are inherent rights of people, and that those rights are nonnegotiable. They should be defended at all costs, even with violence if need be.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Nantucket Lit
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Nantucket Lit
• •
The late civil rights activist Israel Shahak would say "There are encouraging signs of polarization." It is the process of polarization that affects change.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

mossyrua
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mossyrua
• •
In fairness… it’s probably what Rupert Murdoch corporations have done for decades.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

🦩 Plastic Garden Fauna 🦩
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🦩 Plastic Garden Fauna 🦩
• •

Polarization : 2020's :: Class warfare : 1990's

And 60% of America has no fucking clue what any of the above means or how to read it.

in reply to Jen Sorensen

disorderlyf
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disorderlyf
• •
This certainly explains the alarm bells that go off in my head when I hear people say it.
in reply to Jen Sorensen

GhostOnTheHalfShell
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GhostOnTheHalfShell
• •
Funny how the accommodation in goes only in one direction
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Zach
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Zach
• •
fascism relies on people submitting before they're even asked to
in reply to Jen Sorensen

Lucy Weir
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Lucy Weir
• •
completely disagree. Used polarisation precisely because it’s extremism becoming evident at both ends of the spectrum and mastodons might like to think on that.

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