Here’s a brief report from Politico’s Alan Wren on what to expect. (1) Note that the report is an example of focusing on the process rather than the stakes, which is what much of mainstream US political coverage has degenerated into. Notice that in this nearly three-minute report, there is no reference to any actual policy issue at stake. Not even an allusion. War in Ukraine and the Middle East? Women’s rights to reproductive care? No, what’s really important is whether Biden may look old!
To indulge in the theater-criticism a bit myself, the report includes what my personal favorite of Biden’s political lines when Trump was interrupting him in a 2020 debate, “Will you shut up, man?”
The image that displays when you post a link on social media is two old white guys arguing with each other. I'm just glad there are no serious problems in the world a President might need to worry about.
Digby Parton recently called attention to the degree that convicted felon above Trump’s talent as a public figure has been in large part because his mastery of “reality” TV. This recalled the first of the “reality TV” shows I saw, which as I recall was one of the two initial New York episodes of The Real World:
[Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray] decided upon the … idea of casting a bunch of "regular people" to live in an apartment and taping their day-to-day lives, believing seven diverse people would have enough of a basis upon which to interact without scripts. The production converted a massive, 4000-square-foot duplex in Soho, cast seven cast members from 500 applicants, and paid them $2,600 for their time on the show. The cast lived in the loft from February 16 to May 18, 1992. The series premiered three days later, on May 21, 1992.I mentioned to a co-worker that I had watched a few episodes of the series and was impressed by the acting. He explained to me that the whole idea of the series was that the participants were not acting, but rather the show was filming documentary material of a group of unrelated young adults living in a group housing situation.
At the time of its initial airing, reviews of the show were mostly negative. Matt Roush, writing in USA Today, characterized the show as "painfully bogus", and a cynical and exploitative new low in television, commenting, "Watching The Real World, which fails as documentary (too phony) and as entertainment (too dull), it's hard to tell who's using who more." The Washington Post's Tom Shales commented, "Ah to be young, cute, and stupid, and to have too much free time...Such is the lot facing the wayward wastrels of The Real World, something new in excruciating torture from the busy minds at MTV." Shales also remarked upon the cast members' creative career choices, saying, "You might want to think about getting a real job."
Nonetheless, the series was a hit with viewers. One early sign of the show's popularity occurred on the October 2, 1993 episode of the sketch comedy show, Saturday Night Live, which parodied the second-season Los Angeles cast's recurring arguments over cliquism, prejudice and political differences. (2)
In other words, it was supposedly non-actors acting in an unscripted documentary of domestic group living.
As Digby puts it in her column:
Reality TV is essentially a lie. It maintains the pretense of authentic documentary filming of real life but it is actually a phony, manipulated narrative that tells the story the producers want to tell. (It's like professional wrestling, another Trump obsession.) Trump discovered that his fame and access to media allowed him to literally create a new reality for millions of people through the simple act of manipulating the narrative with lies and repeating it over and over again. don't know if he even realizes what's real and what's not. At this point, his very survival is on the line. [my emphasis] (3)Televised “professional” wrestling was this kind of reality TV before the term was invented. And Trump took to the (business aspect of) professional wrestling. World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) website has an adoring biography page for him:
As one of the most famous men in the world, Trump has been recognized as an innovator of real estate, politics and reality television. And how could you miss him? The Donald’s surname — synonymous with wealth and power — has been emblazoned in giant gold letters across skyscrapers and high-rises in the biggest cities in the world. But long before he stepped into the Oval Office, Trump was helping to shape the future of the squared circle. In fact, he had been making a consistent impact on WWE since the days when Andre the Giant was still king.Reality-TV wrestling makes a weird kind of sense as a training ground for a career as a rightwing political demagogue. It lets people enjoy more-or-less sadistic violence (along with petty humiliation) and get emotionally engaged with it, while at least a significant portion of the audience at least suspects it’s fake. Part of the audience thinks it’s real, or at least hope it’s real.
The Donald’s Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, N.J. hosted both WrestleMania IV and WrestleMania V — the only venue to present The Show of Shows two years in a row. Since those unforgettable nights, Trump has remained a familiar face in the front row of WWE events, but it wasn’t until 2007 that the billionaire got in on the action.
In January of that year, The Donald interrupted Mr. McMahon’s “Fan Appreciation Night” on Raw and dropped tens of thousands of dollars from the rafters of the arena onto the WWE fans below. Red-faced that a rival would steal the spotlight from him, Mr. McMahon challenged Trump to a “Battle of the Billionaires” at WrestleMania 23 with the stipulation that the loser of the bout would have his head shaved bald.
A record number of viewers tuned in to watch The Donald back Bobby Lashley to victory over Mr. McMahon’s Umaga and subsequently shave the WWE Chairman’s signature mane in the center of the ring. (4)
Someone recently asked me if I thought Trump was a conservative. My response was that I don’t think he has any kind of conventional political concepts or preference, but he knows he is using far-right issues in his demagoguery. He’s willing to make verbal gestures to less extreme conservative positions, like his recent vaguely moderate concepts about in-vitro fertilization. He cares about power, not ideology, but he’s not interested in democracy because that means his power can be challenged. And, of course, his political mentor was New York mob lawyer Roy Cohn, who had been the chief counsel of Joe McCarthy’s infamous witch-hunting Senate Committee. So Trump has strong influences from the hardcore right of the Republican Party.
Digby cites Ramin Setoodeh’s new book Apprentice in Wonderland:
Sehtoodah's book begins after Trump has left the White House and is reminiscing about his glory days as a TV star. He was down in the dumps and it seemed to perk him up to talk about his knowledge of how show business really works. Trump told him, “It’s all about one thing: ratings. If you have ratings, you can be the meanest, most horrible human being in the world.” (It reminded me of an anecdote from Dr. Anthony Fauci in his book “On Call,” when during the COVID pandemic Trump called Fauci into the Oval Office to brag about the ratings his crazy press conferences were getting.) That's what it's all about - ratings, poll numbers, Truth Social followers. It's all a measure of his fame and celebrity power. [my emphasis]Digby’s article is a helpful reminder that Trump in Presidential campaigning is not trying primarily to portray himself as responsible, serious, and empathetic. He’s presenting a variation on the professional-wrestler fake tough guy entertainer. Making fun and insulting and threatening the people his own supporters hate is all part of the show. Digby:
This week we are all on tenterhooks waiting for the presidential debate on Thursday and Trump is doing his usual promotional teases to get those all-important ratings up. He's quite talented at that. Recall that in 2016, he staged a press conference and planted women that Bill Clinton had allegedly had affairs with in the front row of the presidential debate as a stunt to rattle Clinton and get the press buzzing. This year he's demanding President Biden take a drug test to prove he isn't going to be "jacked up" on something. Some of that's just trying to psych out the opponent and playing the expectations game. But really, he's just setting up a scenario for the press and his fan base: Could Joe Biden really be on drugs? Is he senile or is he "jacked up"? Will Trump be "tough and nasty" or will he be calm and disciplined? Stay tuned.Digby is awesome.
That's all politics is to Donald Trump — another reality show in which he is the star. It's the only way he can understand it. Unfortunately, his massive fame and power have managed to convince almost half the country that it's an actual reality. The rest of us are desperately clinging to facts and truth, dismayed and unnerved that so many around us are susceptible to such an obvious fraud. If only it really was a TV show that we could just turn off or change the channel. Unfortunately, it's all too real and we can't allow ourselves to look away. [my emphasis]
Notes:
(1) The Real World (TV series). Wikipedia 06/04/2024. <https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Real_World_(TV_series)&oldid=1227194825> (Accessed: 2024-27-06).
(2) What to expect from Trump and Biden at the first 2024 debate. Politico YouTube channel 06/26/2024. <https://youtu.be/2AF9vxsovKI?si=kQhExPsqRioVnxPM> (Accessed: 2024-27-06).
(3) Parton, Heather Digby (2024): Donald Trump is stuck in a reality TV loop. Salon 06/26/2024. <https://www.salon.com/2024/06/26/donald-is-stuck-in-a-reality-tv-loop/> (Accessed: 2024-27-06).
(4) Donald Trump: Bio. WWE Network website, n/d.
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