The term “gaslighting” is trending these days as leaders across the globe who are under pressure politically try to create an alternate reality for their citizens. This is achieved mainly by mainstreaming a false narrative about events, individuals, policies, politics and statistics, using clever propaganda and willing accomplices to make it believable.
The term has seen an increase in frequency after Donald Trump took office, but it is also being parlayed by a number of global leaders, from Brazil and China to Turkey and Belarus. In India, in recent weeks, the rape of a poor Dalit girl in UP becomes an international conspiracy. Then, the demolition of a mosque which created global headlines amid photographs, video and eyewitness reports, finds no mention of that by a CBI judge who says no one was involved; apparently, the massive Babri Masjid came down of its own accord. An equally voluminous report by the Delhi police says the riots earlier this year were pre-planned and part of a larger conspiracy and the police produces dubious witnesses, willing accomplices, to state that this was so. The list goes on. The gaslighting of India is building up steam—along with smoke and mirrors.
Are we following in America’s footsteps? Amanda Carpenter, a well-known political commentator, published a bestselling book titled Gaslighting America. In it, she analysed public and social media strategies used by Trump in his 2016 candidacy for US president and during his period in the White House. She detailed the steps that Trump takes, and has taken, to gaslight America. They include the following:
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Find a political issue that competitors are unwilling to approach and which the media will find sensational. He has done that on numerous occasions, the pandemic, masks, postal ballots, not committing himself to a smooth transition of power, and much more.
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