Hot Type: How to Fight the Autocrat Contagion
As the 'No Kings' protests erupt all over America, Heidi Siegmund Cuda reports that good journalism, repetition, and a culture of mockery are still the best tools to break the autocrats' spell
While standing in the Blavatnik Hall at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, pulling myself together after an emotional journey through a Marie Antoinette exhibit, I thought about the power of propaganda. The last queen of France never said “let them eat cake”. She didn’t steal a diamond necklace or have improper relations with her son. She did, however, apologize to her executioner, after accidentally stepping on his foot on the way to the guillotine.
Propaganda on repeat has been burning witches and boosting autocrats to power since Julius Cesar wrote his own war chronicles touting his amazing prowess.
But if we’re going to survive as a species with even a shred of dignity left, we have to get more savvy at separating fact from fiction.
The political world is populated by media creatures — lying with the ease of used car salesmen (no disrespect). But instead of the annoyance of a leaky radiator, you can now lose your entire country.
So how do we fight the autocrat contagion?
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Byline Supplement to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.