Herman Cain appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live defending himself against the charges of sexual harassment that he has been facing. This was a strategic decision: Usually politicians have formal conference for rebutting such charges, and appear some time later on talk shows to act as if it has blown over. Cain did the opposite, and appeared on Jimmy Kimmel before his scheduled press conference. His appearance gave him a chance to get his opinion out, and and to use humor to deflect the allegations. His appearance also continues to promote his image of being a normal American, while a serious press conference would give off the impression of “politics as usual”. Appearing on a talk show is not by any means a new idea for politicians: Soon after his election, it seemed that President Obama couldn’t get enough of talk shows! This political motive behind some talk shows makes one wonder what other examples of art could have been distorted for political reasons. John Berger lays out a complex theory that art has become “mystified” for the common man for a political purpose in his essay Ways of Seeing. People have been alienated from art and led to believe that it is only for the rich to understand so that they don’t question the context in which these paintings were painted. For example, Frans Hals painted some portraits that might have displayed his contempt for the higher class. The higher classes try to alienate us from art so that we do not contemplate the inequities of those time periods, which may lead to a modern contempt for the rich. Whether this theory is true or not, it is something worth contemplating the next time one investigates a piece of art. Try to visualize what the artist was thinking when he painted it, and what happened in history during that time that may have influenced or manipulated the artist. The original article can be found here. John Berger’s essay can be found here.
http://youtu.be/_FhuhwhoDdI
The speed with which events take place and are reported and re-reported has risen to a dizzying pace. YouTube and Twitter have changed the world.
The first thing that comes to mind with Cain’s strategy here is “Well I know mommy won’t let me go, but daddy will, so I’ll ask him first!” Now, in retrospect, Hermain Cain’s attempts to defuse the charges was futile (surprise, surprise). However, it is interesting how this new form of media allows politicians to create a public image. As Zack mentioned, Cain might have used this to try and make himself seem more like an “average American” (whatever that actually means). Just like FDR with his fireside chats, politicians use advances in technology to manipulate the public. After all, that is what politicians do best–and that is what we elect them for, whether we want to believe it or not–manipulating the public. Also, i found it coincidental that Zack discussed Berger in this post from about a month or so ago, as he discusses the connections between art, politics, and technology, and I just used Berger in one of my comments about art and technology.