Stossel
Say What?
S6 E17 May 7, 2015 60m TV-PG
POLITICAL SPEECH: I long for the day when a politician runs a campaign ad that speaks the truth... Instead, politicians use words like “Free” when they really mean “Give away taxpayer money”. Or “Single Payer” when they really mean “Forced Monopoly”.
Every politician obsesses over what he should say when he speaks. Which words will move people? "What will get people to like me?" Frank Luntz arranges focus groups that help decipher what these words are. He tells Stossel how it works.
CLINTON SCANDAL MANUAL: The Clintons have been at the center of a lot of scandals (sex with interns, the Whitewater scandal, deaths in Benghazi, their dubious charity, and most recently, violation of State Department email rules.) Yet, they've largely gone unpunished. The Clintons must have a Scandal Manual that helps them escape punishment: Lie or deny scandal allegations, parse the truth, and confuse the press.
POLITICANS SAY THE DARNDEST THINGS: Political gaffes can often make or break a politician's campaign: Senator George Allen never recovered after he referred to a cameraman with the racial term "Macaca." I discuss the repercussions of some famous gaffes with comedian Tom Shillue.
MY TAKE: Orwell wrote, "Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable. They give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." It's another reminder of why we ought to keep government's powers limited.
Every politician obsesses over what he should say when he speaks. Which words will move people? "What will get people to like me?" Frank Luntz arranges focus groups that help decipher what these words are. He tells Stossel how it works.
CLINTON SCANDAL MANUAL: The Clintons have been at the center of a lot of scandals (sex with interns, the Whitewater scandal, deaths in Benghazi, their dubious charity, and most recently, violation of State Department email rules.) Yet, they've largely gone unpunished. The Clintons must have a Scandal Manual that helps them escape punishment: Lie or deny scandal allegations, parse the truth, and confuse the press.
POLITICANS SAY THE DARNDEST THINGS: Political gaffes can often make or break a politician's campaign: Senator George Allen never recovered after he referred to a cameraman with the racial term "Macaca." I discuss the repercussions of some famous gaffes with comedian Tom Shillue.
MY TAKE: Orwell wrote, "Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable. They give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." It's another reminder of why we ought to keep government's powers limited.
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