{"id":4763,"date":"2012-11-21T05:56:40","date_gmt":"2012-11-21T05:56:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/?p=4763"},"modified":"2012-11-21T20:34:27","modified_gmt":"2012-11-21T20:34:27","slug":"image-over-reality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/image-over-reality\/","title":{"rendered":"Image Over Reality"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>What Obama’s Re-Election Tells us About America (Part 3)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Obama\u2019s re-election tells us that image matters more than reality.<\/p>\n

In the days leading up to his re-election, Obama announced to America<\/a><\/strong> that the federal deficit had gone down under him. \u201cWe tried our ideas. They worked. The economy grew. We created jobs. Deficits went down.\u201d Well, the federal deficit actually expanded under Obama<\/a><\/strong>, and not even his supporters have tried to argue otherwise.<\/p>\n

However, what has mattered more than the facts was the impression Obama gave of himself as an experienced statesman who halted the rising deficit through his policies of fiscal prudence. Most of America bought the lie, or Obama wouldn\u2019t now be preparing to serve a second term.<\/p>\n

In addition to portraying himself as a thrifty leader who had brought America out of its recession, Obama successfully portrayed Romney as an intolerant, right-wing plutocratic. The barrage of the withering television ads that the Obama campaign let loose in the swing states solidified this caricature of Romney, though it was about as accurate as Obama\u2019s claim to have decreased the federal deficit.<\/p>\n

What this tells us about America is that impression matters more than substance. As I pointed out in an article I wrote last summe<\/strong><\/a>r, political speeches \u201care increasingly filled with vacuous statements that do not invite rational disputation. Speeches are designed to maximize applause lines, stroke the emotions and appeal to our intuitions, while being lean on substantive content.\u201d<\/p>\n

Obama embodies this image-based paradigm. He was able to appeal to the intuitions and emotions of most Americans, especially those living in urban areas, while being lean on factual content.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Further Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n