Last week, President Donald Trump held a rally in Asheville, North Carolina, a location that surprised many because Asheville is like the Austin of Appalachia: tattooed, marijuana-smoking, crystal dealers not typically inclined to Grand Old Party.
As expected, the media Disregarded Rally. The article states:Small Crowd” and Ridiculed The campaign's “heterosexual American family theme”
On the other hand, the same media outlet described Harris-Waltz as “joy” said Admiral Rachel Levin.Woman of the Year” BidenVery sharp” or US withdrawal from Afghanistan “Amazing successBut the American left is convinced that the media will be thrilled with the emperor's new clothes, and that if you hear it enough times, you will be too.
Republicans and Trump supporters are joyful, and you can see that at every rally Trump holds. (Related article: James Carter and Jim Ellis: Trump needs a recovery strategy)
In Asheville, thousands of cheerful, heteronormative American families also gathered. A friend and military colleague of mine attended with his young family of four. He arrived hours early, unable to get close to the 2,500-seat venue at Thomas Wolf Auditorium. He pushed his way through a tiny slice of the crowd, sending photos and videos of the event to our shared group text.
What he showed was completely ignored by the traditional media.
Thousands In downtown Asheville, smiling people waved American flags, chanted “USA!” and said “God bless America” as they passed in front of a friend's iPhone camera. On another corner, I videotaped “Korean supporters of Trump” singing patriotic songs. I even took photos of counter-demonstrators. Media Photographed The close-ups of the protesters hide the fact that there were far too few of them: a friend's video made it clear that there were fewer than 10 people standing pitifully in Asheville's Pack Square.
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA – AUGUST 16: Democratic US Presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about her policy platform, including improving the cost of living for Americans, at the Hendrick Center for Automotive Excellence in Raleigh, North Carolina, August 16, 2024. This is the first major policy speech the candidate has given since receiving the Democratic nomination. (Photo by Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)
I've worked in the media industry for 30 years, and I was truly struck by the contrast between the photos of Trump rallies taken by trusted friends and the photos reported by national media professionals. (Related: Democrats release policy platform for Biden's second term as Harris struggles to escape her boss' shadow)
Socialists, dictators, and communists — the enemies of freedom — seem especially obsessed with propaganda and brainwashing. In today's age of instant images and global communication, it's rare for people to actually Shining Kim Jong Un They say there are no problems in North Korea, never mind that they are surrounded by crying, screaming children begging for food. How susceptible are we to taking at face value the Palestinian Authority's claim that 40,000 civilians have died in Gaza, or Venezuelan President Maduro's claim that he won a landslide election? Does anyone think that opening a second front in a war in which the Ukrainians are outnumbered 5 to 1 is a sure sign of victory? Imminent Victory?
Perhaps it's easier to spot propaganda abroad.
Vice President Kamala Harris also visited North Carolina last week, and there were likely no media reports bemoaning the size of the crowd, about 10,000 people. 250 peopleCrowds gathered in the streets of Raleigh, a city four times the size of Asheville, not to hear the vice president proclaim, “Now is the time to forge a new path,” but to hear no media member even ask the most basic question: “Wait a minute, aren't you the president now?”
America spent much of the 20th century battling the consistent propaganda of Pravda and the Kremlin. voicestands on the brink of electing a woman who believes in Soviet-era price controls. “I will work to pass the first federal law banning food price gouging,” she said, not “price gouging.”, But no journalist asked whether it was just a gaffe or a grand scheme to stop Wal-Mart from setting its own price for Corn Flakes.
What has been most striking to my fellow police officers is that while the traditional media may not be interested, the public continues to be. Interview Elon Musk of X has a thirst for truth.
That alone may be the best news of 2024.
Morgan Murphy is a former Pentagon spokesman, National Security Advisor to the U.S. Senate, and Afghanistan veteran.
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