Framing the Debate --- Playing Into Their Hands

I consider myself to be an active booster and supporter of this region's creative arts scene, believing that disciplines such as music, dance, painting and so on should all be considered a vital part of the so-called Innovation Economy mix. The art (and business) of video & film production is definitely a part of all this.

On a totally unrelated front, I am as disgusted by the hijinks of George W. Bush and his Axis of Evil (Cheney, Rumsfeld & Rice) as any other forward- thinking individual would be (or, for those rare cases: should be). After all, could anyone else have screwed up this nation's foreign policy any worse from 9/12/01 onward than this band of lunatics? Not likely.

Given these two perspctives, one might think that I would be overjoyed to witness the current buzz being directed to the three young Leatherstocking Region producers of Loose Change, a documentary that takes a "hey, this part here ain't quite right" examination of various 9/11 events. If something isn't properly and completely explained to the satisfaction of the trio, then might such a lack of proper explanation suggest such themes as coverup or conspiracy?

The problem with this type a product is that it plays right into the right wing's hands. No one has better mastered the political P/R and media manipulation game than the national GOP and its various think tank and strategic consulting partners. A product such as Loose Change is a free gift to them, one which provides a very convenient BRANDING OPPORTUNITY for framing the opposition as "left wing wackos" and then handing it off to their cohorts in the mainstream media for delivery to the masses.

In other words, those that question the administration's international crusade can now be framed as "crazy conspiracy theorists," with these Loose Change kids' names being tossed around in the same sentence as Professor Churchill and Cindy Sheehan by the Bill O'Reillys and Sean Hannitys of the airwaves. Grab the image of someone that you know will generate an unfavorable reaction, put that image up their on the screen and say "here's what the Democrats and the left are all about."

As good as these young men's intentions might be, they're playing right into the hands of the Masters of Manipulation.