Seriously.
If I meet you in real life and you lie to me?
I’ll know.
But, if you lie to me on TV, I’ll totally believe you.
Most recent examples. I apologize to those outside the US who may not know all these folks.
John Edwards (I did not have an affair)
Roger Clemens. (I did not take steroids)
Manny Rameriez (My knee hurts)
George Bush (America doesn’t torture)
Bill Clinton (I did not have sex with that woman)
Ronald Reagan (I did not trade arms for hostages)
I can’t figure this out, people. I truly can’t.
Why do I want to believe the people on TV but suspend belief in real life if the facts simply don’t add up?
What is your TV VS REAL LIFE Liar IQ?
Care to share any examples?
©Pat Coakley 1008
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After the de-fib-rillator, all of the above need an un-fib-rillator, ( with a wink to The Cheese Man (http://planetross.wordpress.com).
But this way surpasses fibbing.
Add Elliot Spitzer ( crime stopper, for others- himself, not so much)
Alberto Gonzales ( I can’t recall if I lied )
Dick Cheney ( they had yellow cake ) ( he would never qualify for angel food cake )
OK OK the entire current administration, I can’t spend all damn day here typing in everyones’ name and offense.
So this big wad of crap starts way at the top and on its’ roll down Capitol Hill, picks up the smaller bits until it’s one big orb of lies.
And it’s all fine, right, if you don’t get caught. And if you DO get caught, keep lying and bring in the legal briefcases to exonerate you.
Don’t you want to scream out that pants on fire are NOT A FASHION STATEMENT?
But, Hey Pat, I see you found a good use for those new paints!
Bonnie L–these are acrylics! Not the oil. Today is the day actually that I am seriously going to put a brush stroke down on this small little bitty canvas: 5X7.
How are you in the TV vs Real Life IQ? Do you do better in either medium with sleuthing out veritas?? I suspect you are good in all mediums! And, laugh out loud, pants on fire not a fashion statement. Love it.
You actually reminded me of one I didn’t believe on TV, ie. Alberto (I can’t recall if I can’t recall) So, there’s one!
If someone can’t look me in the eyes and hold that gaze, and if their story is too rehearsed or, worse, too extreme, they’re lying!
Or exagerbating.
Yes, we here at my home, made up this word and you can, for yourself, break it down to see what we made it from.
Have fun with those paints-smart to start small.
Exagerbating? We have another Seusser among us! Cool word . . .
I tend to be very cynical about things I read or see in the media. Having worked in the media, as both an announcer and program director/operations manager on the radio side of things, I know how the bottom line is all about viewers/listeners. We hook them, and then get them to spend their money on things we think they should so our bills get paid.
Hook ’em any way you can. Play to their insecurities. I saw this in vivid detail during the hubbub that preluded Y2k. I worked at a dollar/holler Christian radio station that carried many programs by prophets of doom. They were huge, and people sent them thousands of dollars for generators and foodstuff or invested in gold because they said to. A little fear goes a long way. And a lot of fear pays the bills.
Sad, but true.
And I’m glad those days are over for me . . .
Its hard to tell what mine is, here we kind of have to take everything the media says with a pinch of salt – or perhaps that is just me
“Zuma is an innocent man justice will prevail” next day “Zuma threatens those in government with unveiling of secrets”
“Mbeki is not friends with Mugabe” next day photo of Mbeki holding Mugabe’s hand.
If I believed everything then the Egyptian prime minister would be dead (no jokes according to Mbeki), garlic would be the top cure for AIDS, AIDS and HIV aren’t related, HIV doesn’t exist, there is no smog, there is no pollution, the world is flat… I’m scared to continue… petrified!
Sanity, Ok. If I understand this correctly you living where you do probably don’t believe anything. Tysdaddy having worked on the “inside” of a media outlet, believes nothing and doesn’t own any gold. BL is the human defribillator.
Have none of you ever believed someone’s denials only to find out later they did it. This happens to me repeatedly. Someone can look me straight in the eye, (one even wagged his finger and is still waggin’ it) and lie right to my TV face with such earnestness that I believe them.
I swear to you they must believe it at the time in order to be so convincing. PS. I am world’s worst liar. My face turns beet red like a stop light.
I never lie. Of course… this could be a lie.
I’m jaded. I don’t believe anything that comes out of a politician’s mouth. If they were telling the truth they would not get elected and certainly would not stay in power. It’s their job to lie.
Some push it to unchartered territory. I can’t blame them. In this country, if you cheat on your spouse, you are scum, but if you ignore a congressional subpoena, you are ok. There is a little cell in the basement of Congress that has Karl Rove’s name all over it, but that’s not going to happen, is it? No accountability whatsoever.
I’m done and all pissed off now.
” wolf…wolf… ”
Pat,
If you have a spare hour or so, stop by the library and pick up a little book by Harry Frankfurt titled “On Bullshit.” Much of what we see on TV is just that . . . and being a philosophy major, you’ll love it.
And it’s not that I don’t believe anything. Some of what we see and hear has a basis in reality and, with enough research, can be understood in a way that is bias-free.
I automatically distrust anything on TV. Because TV is such an expensive medium, I just assume that people on TV have been paid to say what they say and if they haven’t been paid then they’re pushing something for their own benefit.
I learnt two important lessons when I did mass media and communications as an elective at university as part of an adult education course and communication as part of a college course.
The main function of the mass media is to sell advertising. The people on TV are advertising whatever they think will promote their cause. The other thing that I learnt is that when people sit down to a negotiation they are there to get what they want and they give scant regard for what the other party wants.
People on TV pimp stuff and they don’t care about what benefits us. Truth gets in the way of profit or career.
All of the above goes double for politicians.
You know, I find it really funny that people try to believe that they simply stop being people when they enter into politics. Somehow, “their” secrets wont be found out. What a load of crapola! Lies are always found out especially in the political arena. There will always be a journalist somewhere wanting the Pulitzer…
I have a very in tune B.S. meter. I really really listen when people talk. I wait and see if they trip themselves up. Give em enough rope…
The worst for me though isn’t the politicians who lie. Hell we all expect that. Actually looking at Hillary does anyone really blame Bill? But where I do get my knickers in a knot is when the TV Evangelists will get on air, crying and telling you how they need your money for God’s work – only for you to find that they are cruising around in a Lear Jet, have hookers galore and are the worst perverts of the lot! I think there is a hot spot in hell for those guys.
Now, seriously, people!! Am I the only dufus who has believed someone on TV when they’ve denied doing something and later it turns out they were lying?
And, ambergirl, I absolutely blame Bill! A.B.S.O.L.U.T.E.L.Y.
NKgee! I had to call to figure out your “Wolf…Wolf…” Duh! Of course! The boy who cried “wolf”! Very clever.
I believed Bill Clinton when he said he didn’t have sex with “that woman”. I guess I just wanted to believe that he was being set up and he was innocent. I’m not sure why I wanted to believe; it really didn’t affect me one way or the other.
When the truth finally came out I was just disappointed. If he had said up front that he had sex with “that woman”, I wouldn’t have thought anything about it. It would still have been wrong, but not at least he wasn’t trying to fool everybody.
As for people on TV, I am an optimistic cynic by nature: I want to believe people won’t lie, but deep down I expect they probably are.
Although I haven’t read Al Franken’s book “Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them”, I think it would probably be a good read :) I’d probably buy it just for the title :)
I’ve got to proofread this stuff more!
should have read:
“It would still have been wrong, but at least he wouldn’t have been trying to fool everyone.”
and
“I want to believe people won’t lie, but deep down I expect they probably will.”
I was kidding about the Bill comment….
Amber, there are hillary haters around here that blame her for holes in the ozone layer! So, it’s something I’ve heard before!
PlanetR: At last! Someone who has been duped along with me! I think you are right, it has to do with wanting to believe.
Hey, sympathies to all dupe-ees out there. I’m constantly being duped. Before we get into all the long stories of what, where, when, by whom and which media were involved, has anyone noticed that in the UK we are living in a country with a Prime Minister who WAS NOT elected by the people? And they wonder why his popularity is at an all-time low. I have to stop here. I feel a rant coming on…
You have been awarded the “kick ass blogger’s” award! Come visit my blog to pick it up!
You are right Pat, there are alot of people that hate here for everything. I don’t like the woman personally for what I know of her personally. BUT. … I don’t think she should be blamed for the hole in the ozone layer. I thought that was Al Gore’s fault…lol
I don’t trust Hillary because she is in the pocket of Monsanto. In my opinion Monsanto is truly evil. I think she’ll just be the same old “business as usual” type of politician. All the media focus on her gender (and Obama’s race), is just a distraction from the real issues.