THOUGHT MANAGEMENT IN THE POST-TRUTH ERA

Mental Imperialism and Psychological Colonialism in the Digital Age

Atique Naqvi | Boston

Colonialism and imperialism are almost interchangeable. While the latter is an idea, the former denotes the practice or implementation of the idea. Both concepts are seeing newer manifestations in our more-than-ever connected world in this digital age.

Without an iota of doubt, truth is the first casualty in the post-truth world, which accelerates through the misuse of social media channels. Also, the misuse of information is not the biggest concern.

Surprisingly, the meaning of information nowadays is perceived almost as an absolute truth, especially if that informer is a powerful person or even a leader.

Being on the brink of euphorically nostalgic, I’d say those were the days; when people trusted and believed statesmen and leaders such as India’s MK Gandhi, South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, Botswana’s Seretse Khama, United States’ Abraham Lincoln contrary to today’s fragmented world where the so-called leaders have lost the trust of the majority of people. Most leaders, today, are informed liars.

Whether it was Adolf Hitler lying to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain about Czechoslovakia, or Bush Jr and Tony Blair lying about the WMDs in Iraq or the current resident of the White House driving in top gear on a lying freeway, there is always a section of a population who strongly believe in whatever their leaders say.

Dictators and absolute rulers have been thriving on lies as an integral part of their survival tactics, however, democratically elected leaders, and even aspirants, these days misinform their ‘subjects’ aka followers, aka supporters through selective lying. The effects of such misinformation campaigns are exacerbated through free-for-all social media channels and help shape popular public opinions.

In the pre-digital era, powerful countries colonized weaker nations. So, it was an era of tangible imperialism. What’s happening today is an intangible colonization. I won’t term this as mind control because then I might be classified as a conspiracy theorist, but it can certainly be called as a thought or an opinion management exercise.

Thought management is the new-age colonization. It is not very difficult to manage opinions when people are informed and not knowledgeable. When the source of information is a mere notification on your smartphone or on your social media app, the basis of the opinion that is formed in not an informed one.

When a leader misinforms or blurts out blatant lies, he or she is well aware of his/her actions. And the one who is doing it is an informed liar because he/she has ulterior motives.

Let’s take an example of the recent Paris attack. Karim Cheurfi (Muslim name) killed one police officer and injured two others near Champ-Elysees on Thursday (April 20, 2017).

The US President Donald J Trump reacted: "Again, it's happening, it seems. I just saw it as I was walking in, so that's a terrible thing. And that's a very, very terrible thing that's going on in the world today. But it looks like another terrorist attack. And what can you say? It just never ends. We have to be strong and we have to be vigilant, and I've been saying it for a long time."

Next morning, the US President tweeted: "Another terrorist attack in Paris. The people of France will not take much more of this. Will have a big effect on the presidential election!"

Without wasting any time, ISIS, the dreaded terrorist group based in Syria and Iraq, claimed: “It was our guy”.

The world went back to its routine after succumbing to - Ah! Another Islamic terrorist attack!

Per the British public broadcaster BBC, Karim Cheurfi is a convicted criminal. The broadcaster said quoting Paris public prosecutor that Cheurfi had four criminal convictions.

BBC reported: “Cheurfi was arrested and his home searched in February (2017) after an inquiry was opened over reports that he had been talking about killing police and getting weapons.

“In April 2001, while driving a stolen car, he fired on and wounded two men who had chased him, one of them a plain clothes police officer.

“He last emerged from prison in October 2015 and was living in the eastern suburb of Chelles.

“His lawyer described him as psychologically fragile and neighbors in Chelles said he had never shown any interest in religion,” reported the BBC late Friday (April 21, 2017).

Another example is the recent chemical attack in the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun that killed about 90 people. Within a few hours of the attack, “inside sources”, “intelligence” services and the White House resident claimed, with a certainty of course, that Syria’s presidential dictator Bashar Al Assad was behind the chemical attack.

Syria's presidential dictator Bashar Al Assad

And all the countries with vested interests in removing Assad, cried in unison: “It was Assad”. The judgment was passed, and the public opinion was formed. Subsequently, the US military aircraft dropped a few bombs, and the Arabs opposed to Assad affectionately and very respectfully started addressing the US President Trump as Abu Ivanka (Father of Ivanka). Amid the high decibel lies, there were no takers for the cries of an independent investigation into the tragic incident.

Few global powers said: We have decided, it’s Assad, you better f***ing believe it is Assad. End of story.

The illusion of knowledge has given rise to a popular perception that anything spoken from a “respectable” position must be true. When a President, Prime Minister, CEO, a person of a strong social standing and a senior government official says something, it’s viewed by many as an absolute truth.

Friedrich Nietzsche, the 19^th century German philosopher, probably envisioned the fallouts of the digital age. He said: Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth because they don’t want their illusions destroyed. Nietzsche also said: God is dead, and we have killed him.

Likewise, in the commotion of information, the truth is dying peacefully breathing its last few on its digital deathbed, while some of the lifesavers are running away with the dying patient’s oxygen mask!

Sorry, it’s no more. RIP Truth. Please don’t forget to attend the funeral. There will be post-truth, drinks, and cookies.

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