By Dylan Murphy |Contributing Writer|
The modern GOP that has hardened its stance on social and fiscal conservatism as the American Electorate has become increasingly polarized.
The role of Immigration and National Security have become arguably the most critical issues in contemporary political discourse.
The conservative political media machine ability to connect with the masses and control the discussion has placed the party in control of the presidency, Congress and a large number of governorships across the country.
I believe it is the conservative media’s ability to simplify its message and communicate with the masses has been the deciding factor in delivering such effective political outcomes.
The GOP with the always eager assistance of the Fox News and other smaller news outlets, such as the far right Breitbart News, have framed highly complex issues such as national security and immigration as very simple problems with easy solutions.
The Democratic Party and its allies in the left leaning media outlets of MSNBC have continued to document the complexity of immigration reform and how to best protect the United States from enemies domestic and abroad.
Where Trump and his colleagues exclaim how a 1900 mile wall on the United States southern wall will quell the issues with the movement of drugs and people from Mexico and its Central American neighbors, the Democrats often harp of the moral and logistical difficulties of such a proposition.
In delving into the complications of the issue, the Democrats become the party of “talkers,” giving Trump and his allies at Fox News further ammunition to portray himself and the party as “doers” and men of action.
The introduction of cable news and the transition away from traditional objective journalism has undoubtedly advanced the cause of the Republican Party.
The consequences have been damaging and dividing among Americans as outlets have developed a product that suits the preferences of its particular audience and target demographic.
The dominance of “commentary programs” has been a significant problem in the ability of the American public to remain informed to accurate and objectively presented information.
These commentators do not adhere to the strict standards of journalists and often focus on pleasing their audience with hard line partisan rhetoric that makes news and confirms their pre-existing ideas and opinions on issues.
There is little fact checking done on such commentaries, likely because PolitiFact would have to devote entire staff divisions to cover programs such as the infamous “Hannity” by notorious partisan Sean Hannity and Bill O’Reilly’s “The O’Reilly Factor.”
Both programs have become highly successful, in particular O Reilly’s that has remained the most watched cable news program in America.
The political right has dominated cable news as O’Reilly, Megyn Kelly and Hannity were recently named one, two, and three, respectively in the Fortune recent 2016 ratings review.
Conservative voices continue to dominate the ratings and connect with audiences at a far greater rate than their liberal counterparts.
I believe the Trump election highlights the power of this messaging, this was an election where Trump fought a demographic challenge, a successful Democratic presidency and a well experienced and articulate opponent that appeared to have the support of women, minorities and the mainstream media.
The Clinton campaign didn’t connect with the working class masses. This is something that left-leaning has continually struggled to do and will need to address to advance the Democratic Party moving into the future.
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