In the wake of the first Gulf War, Noam Chomsky, an American professor of linguistics and noted political thinker, broke down the steps taken by former President George Bush's administration to took to ensure public support for their invasion of Iraq. Manufacturing Consent, first a book and then a documentary movie of the same name, showed how through manipulating the media, outright lies, and other means, the administration ensured that first the media and then the American public were deceived into giving their consent for the war. As a linguist he was naturally interested in how the administration used the English language to assist them in their efforts, and how phrases like "collateral damage", among others, were part of the strategy.
While sharing some of the same concerns about language as Manufacturing Consent, Deflating The Elephant looks beyond a singular event toward the bigger picture. Like the earlier film the central figure, George Lakoff, is a linguistics professor interested in how language is used to shape public opinion. His topic is how the language used by American conservatives over the last thirty years to describe liberals or moderates has gradually changed the public's perception of liberalism from being a force for positive change to something that has a negative impact on their lives.
Lakoff discusses how conservative think tanks have focused on framed messaging to demean liberals and liberalism. According to Lakoff language is influenced by framing — the process of associating a word with a concept — and in turn our way of thinking, our ideology, and our behaviour, is shaped by the way in which concepts are used and repeated. Phrases like "war on terror", "tax relief", and "tax-and-spend liberals" have been used sufficiently that they now result in a conditioned response adhering conservative ideology. Lakoff contends that this is how America has been changed from essentially a progressive country to one with decidedly conservative leanings.
If you have any doubts as to which side of the argument Lakoff falls on, he makes it obvious when he starts to outline how progressives screwed up by ignoring rather than challenging the conservative disinformation campaign. The real giveaway though is the fact that the second part of the movie is dedicated to explaining how liberals can go about countering the negative perceptions that have been created. This involves a detailed analysis of how framing is created and the means to change the perception that liberals are elitists who waste taxpayers' money while allowing the country to be over run by terrorists.
I don't doubt the veracity of Professor Lakoff's arguments or his theories on language, nor do I have any trouble believing there was a concentrated effort on the part of conservatives to demonize liberalism. I agree with his assessment that liberals failed miserably by not taking this linguistic threat seriously and his recommendation that liberals work actively to counter this disinformation. The mood generated by the current administration represents a golden opportunity for rehabilitating liberalism in the United States.
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