Millions of Americans in the right-wing media universe are every day consuming coverage on television, on radio, and online denouncing the election as a fraud. Lies that the election was rigged and stolen from President Trump have absolutely dominated coverage in that world for more than a month — an unsettling reality that cannot be stressed enough. And, unfortunately, there are no signs of such coverage letting up. So as we inch closer to Inauguration Day, it’s worth considering: How does this end?
It’s as if a pot of water has been heated to a violent boil over the last few weeks. Will folks like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh just flip the switch on the stove off and let the temperature cool down? Probably not. Will the water simply evaporate over time, naturally dissipating? Perhaps. But there is also a more frightening scenario: that the water grows to a more and more violent boil, eventually spilling over into civil unrest. Let’s hope that such a scenario does not play out, but riling up a chunk of the electorate can have dangerous consequences.
At the moment, what’s perhaps preventing this is that pro-Trump media personalities are still suggesting to their audiences that the Trump campaign’s legal challenges might have a shot at undoing the election results. Consumers of right-wing media still have some hope — however false it may be — that the legal system might work in their favor. But this lie cannot continue forever. Next month President-elect Biden will be inaugurated. And it is worrisome what might happen if millions of Americans believe that “deep state” Democrats have successfully staged a coup and stolen the election…
On Rush Limbaugh’s radio show Tuesday, a listener called in to express anger over “the fraud that’s taken place” and called for “millions” of Americans to “get out in the streets” and protest. “If the streets are lined with truck drivers and the roads are lined with people and clog these cities up, it becomes a desperate act,” the caller said. “But if they steal this election, they’ve stolen our liberty, they’ve stolen our freedom.”
Limbaugh fanned the flames of this listener’s delusion. “They have forever corrupted the Constitution,” Limbaugh told the caller. “I mean, the stakes are quite serious.” The caller, who ironically complained “40% of the people are still watching the propaganda,” continued in his calls for people to pour out into the streets. “The people have to stand up. There are too many people too quiet sitting by the wayside,” the caller said.
Millions of people think exactly like this caller. News orgs cover liars like Limbaugh well, but I think in many regards we have failed to seriously convey the damage the actual lies told by these people are doing. A portion of our country has had reality distorted for them by bad-faith actors and that isn’t reflected in coverage as an emergency. It’s still a niche beat left to a handful of reporters.
“This is heading down a very dark path”
I reached out to NYT’s Charlie Warzel, who covers the Information Wars, and asked him where he believes the election denialism lies will lead us. “We’re in uncharted territory,” Warzel told me by email. Warzel did push back on my question, saying it was perhaps an “imprecise frame” because “all the evidence we have is that this info war stuff doesn’t ever really end.” Instead, Warzel said, “It builds and builds, teasing some crescendo that never happens. The tension only increases.”
“But this is heading down a very dark path,” Warzel said. “It’s possible to imagine this leading to isolated incidences of violence. Perhaps most likely, this rhetoric has the potential to lead to another alternate reality conspiracy narrative, not unlike, say, QAnon. It’s yet another extended fantasy universe for people to get lost in. It can breed hundreds of offshoot conspiracies and communities devoted to something that didn’t happen. I sure hope that doesn’t happen. But I think that, wherever it goes, it will have no definitive ending and will only entrench our political divisions.”
If history is any guide
Princeton history professor and CNN analyst Julian Zelizer largely agreed with Warzel. “If the late 1960s is basis for comparison, things could get worse. The turmoil of the late 1960s didn’t end with things becoming calmer, but the fault lines only intensified,” Zelizer told me. “In many ways we have been red hot ever since. Sometimes red hot moments such as this don’t fizzle but generate a foundation for future political battles. I think that’s the case right now, especially since there are institutions such as the partisan media that will continue to fuel the flames…”
What’s the solution?
WaPo media columnist Margaret Sullivan said she isn’t entirely sure what can be done to remedy the situation. “It’s hard to imagine the commitment to this fantasy simply falling away of its own accord — certainly not when Trump is fueling it every day,” she told me. “It’s possible that the Fox News brass eventually will get people like Hannity to acknowledge reality after January 20th. But I wouldn’t bet on it. And those who work for fringier outlets will never drop this, at least not until something even more compelling comes along. So, unfortunately, you have millions of Americans thoroughly convinced — forever — that Biden is an illegitimate president. Maybe they don’t take to the streets over it but that’s still a very destructive force in our society and politics. It’s really distressing to contemplate but at the moment, I don’t know of any way out.”