
Princeton University Press
Heather Hendershot, When the News Broke: Chicago 1968 and the Polarizing of America (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2022)
Katherine Cramer Brownell, 24/7 Politics: Cable Television and the Fragmenting of America from Watergate to Fox News (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2023)
What Winston Smith, the protagonist in George Orwell’s 1949 novel "1984," keeps trying to avoid in the book is the telescreen. It’s a screen, a speaker and a microphone all in one; it’s in every home and every workplace, every street and forest and park; it’s always on, always listening, always seeing. Finishing the novel on the remote Scottish island of Jura in 1948, as Stalin was ascendant, after we had dropped two atomic bombs on Japan, and seeing the national security and surveillance state forming, Orwell imagined it to be oblong, a “metal plaque” – something that looks like “a dulled mirror,” he wrote. This was before television and well before desktops, laptops, and cell phones had become omnipresent. In 2024, of course, we can imagine it as an endless Zoom call (Good G-d!) – always on, on every device beside and surrounding you. And connected to Google. And the people controlling Google are the government. And the main thing the government is interested in using it all for is – to Google you!
Orwell had figured out that what goes into our heads – all the sights, all the sounds, sensations from the other senses, too – determines our reality, and that we can be conditioned by the media we absorb, especially if we are forced to absorb it, to believe anything that producers of that media want us to. “If one is to rule, and to continue ruling, one must be able to dislocate the sense of reality,” the novel tells us. And “reality,” Orwell writes, “is inside the skull.”
Orwell imagined a single Ministry of Truth, the “primary job” of which, he wrote, is not only to reconstruct the past but “to supply the citizens” with “newspapers, films, textbooks, telescreen programs, plays, novels – with every conceivable kind of information, instruction or entertainment, from a statue to a slogan, from a lyric poem to a biological treatise, and from a child’s spelling book to a Newspeak dictionary.” The Ministry in 1984 has “huge printing shops with their sub-editors, their typography experts, and their elaborately equipped studios for the faking of photographs”; a “teleprograms section with its engineers, its producers, and its teams of actors”; a records department, with “armies of reference clerks” whose job it is to draw up lists of books and periodicals “due for recall.” The Ministry produces music, too – songs that are “composed entirely by mechanical means” (ChatGPT, anyone?) “on a special kind of kaleidoscope known as a versificator.” But it’s the telescreen that’s the key instrument in dystopian Oceania for delivering what Orwell calls “reality control.”
Media scholars like Heather Hendershot (at MIT) and Katherine Cramer Brownell (at Purdue) do readers a huge favor in their work when they write extraordinary books like the ones above about television and look at its relationship to state power and control. These two books tell us how the national leaders we vote into power now are increasingly television, or telescreen, people. Kennedy was our first television president – the first to hold live press conferences in front of the cameras – and definitely our first telegenic chief executive. Lyndon Johnson’s family empire was based on broadcasting holdings across Texas; his wife, Ladybird, owned so many of them in her name, LBJ called himself the “broadcaster-in-law.” Nixon came out of the country’s biggest TV market – California. Reagan had been a movie actor on the silver screen and then a television spokesperson for General Electric. And Trump had been a TV star in NBC’s “The Apprentice,” one of our reality (reality-control) teleprograms, to use Orwell’s word, that portrayed him as a self-made millionaire and genius decisionmaker in front of millions of American viewers every week. With Trump, all this happened as Rupert Murdoch was building up a whole pro-Trump Teleprograms Department – Teledep, in Newspeak – at the Fox equivalent, replete with radio, internet, books, newspapers, a film studio, you name it, of a modern Ministry of Truth.
Control over media technology is never a quiet battlefield: it’s always the seat of warfare. Hendershot’s book – ostensibly about four days in Chicago – explores in extraordinary detail the fights – including the physical ones – over communications technology here. The Democratic Party set to nominate the party’s candidate for president at a time of war in Vietnam, violence against the Civil Rights movement, and the assassinations of President Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and JFK’s brother Robert F. Kennedy, among others. There were three and only three television networks then, and all three covered the proceedings. It became the top-rated television event of 1968. Fifty-one million households wound up tuning in.
Mayor Richard J. Daley, the party boss of Chicago, wanted the cameras and print journalists to cover it only the way he wanted. He told the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers to go on strike in order to limit the number of new telephone lines available to reporters for voice calls and the transmission of live images out of the city. He had pay phones near the convention jammed with dimes so journalists couldn’t call out. He made sure the phones in office buildings next to the convention site had their wires slashed, too. He denied parking permits for the networks. He sealed manhole covers with tar so that protestors couldn’t hide in the sewers. He threw barbed-wire around the convention amphitheater and put the entire police force of 12,000 men on 12-hour shifts. But he could not wield absolute control, and the extraordinary violence that erupted in Chicago that summer became the story that was broadcast live on our telescreens.
Brownell’s book is a fantastic read covering a much longer time period but also about reality control. People in charge – at the helm of media companies, the financial analysts, the politicians, even the journalists – sold us the coming of network television and then the coming of cable television as the answer to previous media systems that had failed democracy. But as Brownell puts it, the rise of cable, much like the rise of all the other media here, “was never about enhancing democracy.” “It was about making money and forging strategic partnerships between an industry and the elected politicians who wrote the rules in which that industry operated.” It was about “how to structure media institutions [. . .] central to political power.” It was Marshall McLuhan who said, “We shape our tools, and thereafter they shape us.” If that’s the case, we had better understand what’s coming next – and fast!
Peter B. Kaufman lives in Lakeville and works at MIT Open Learning and is the author of “The New Enlightenment and the Fight to Free Knowledge.”
Kaufman will discuss the award-winning book "Overreach, The Inside Story of Putin and Russia's War Against Ukraine" by journalist Owen Matthews on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 4 p.m. at Scoville Memorial Library.
Celebrating the completion of his Eagle Scout leadership project to benefit Angels of Light on Friday, March 21, Jayden Loibl, 17, was joined by Angels of Light co-Executive Directors, Lori Cassia-Decker, left, and Danielle Mollica.
MILLBROOK — Capping a lifetime of scouting achievement, Jayden Loibl, 17, has earned the rank of Eagle Scout, completing a community project to handcraft outdoor benches and tables for the local nonprofit Angels of Light building at 28 Front St.
In addition to overseeing the construction of sturdy benches and tables that invite passersby to try them out, Loibl’s major project also created a Love Lock Pillar, and finished off the project by making stencil templates of the nonprofit’s logo to be used to identify the space and invite visitors.
“It makes the space more inviting,” said Danielle Mollica, co-Executive Director of Angels of Light.
To become an Eagle Scout, Loibl explained that he had progressed through six ranks, the final being Eagle. Community service hours are required along the way, with the final leadership project being the Eagle Scout project. As he progressed through the scouting ranks, Loibl said that he had earned 34 merit badges.
“I started Cub Scouts in first grade,” Loibl said, “and I have been in scouting every year since.” He moved up to Boy Scouts in the fifth grade.
For his Eagle Scout project, he chose Angels of Light because he and his family have been volunteering within their programs for several years.
The new Love Lock Pillar wrapped in chain link fencing invites the community to add padlocks, dedicating the lock to a child or family facing hospitalization or illness.
The chain link fencing was donated by Superior Fence and Rail in Pleasant Valley.
A lifelong Millbrook resident, Loibl attended Millbrook schools through the early grades before enrolling at Our Lady of Lourdes High School in Poughkeepsie to take advantage of their academics and to participate in Varsity Hockey, Soccer and Tennis.
Having received letters of acceptance from four colleges and universities, he is awaiting decision letters from two more. Planning for undergraduate studies in Industrial Engineering, Loibl’s interest in mathematics will guide his choice of graduate work leading toward math modeling of data or risk analytics.
Continuing the scouting tradition, Loibl’s younger brother, Justin, 15, has earned the rank of Life Scout and currently serves as a Senior Patrol Leader.
“I am very proud of him,” Loibl said.
For more information about Angels of Light, go to www.angelsoflighthv.org.
AMENIA — Pedestrians will soon be able to walk safely between Broadway and Beekman Park, now that a construction contract has been awarded.
The planning process continued for many months, culminating in an invitation to bid. The Town Board voted unanimously at its regular meeting on Thursday, March 20, to select the lowest bidder, clearing the way for work to begin.
The contact was awarded to Southern Industries Corporation of Tarrytown, New York, the lowest of three bids received and reviewed by Engineers LaBella Associates of Poughkeepsie.
The project that will extend the sidewalk along Route 44 to provide pedestrians with access between the hamlet center and Beekman Park will cost $234,326.50, according to the bid documents. The amount will be paid from the town’s Capital Project Fund.
With several local committees working on town planning activities, the Town Board discussed ways to find commonality and cooperation among those various deliberations.
Town Supervisor Leo Blackman reported that he had attended the recent Century Boulevard planning meeting in Millerton and had found it instructive. He recalled that in 2004 Amenia had worked with landscape architect Mark Morrison who created a design proposal that upon Blackman’s review, seems relevant to the community today. Researching further, Blackman reported that he had found that there have been 13 reports done over the years by architects and landscape designers, each with ideas that could be useful in local planning.
In an effort to find commonality among the many reports, Finance Director Charlie Miller prepared and presented a summary of plans and visual depictions of overlap.
Miller said that he focused on the Morrison plan from 2004, the Recreation Department’s plan from 2006, Leo Blackman’s plan from 2016, and the Fountain Square plan and the Amenia Green plan from 2024.
Grants are available for communities seeking to improve walking convenience, connectivity, access, parking and passive recreation, Miller reported. He saw value in bringing residents together to hold planning discussions.
Blackman saw the importance of coordinating such planning with the current work of updating the Comprehensive Plan that is now underway and sharing ideas with the community planners about to begin work with the comprehensive plan committee.
A goal, Blackman said, could be to work toward qualifying for a state New York Forward Grant program.
“The initial part would not cost money,” said councilmember Rosanna Hamm.
Councilmember Nicole Ahearn observed that the timeline between community input and grant application seemed “ambitious.”
“It’s a matter of pulling all of this together,” Miller responded. The slide presentation will be posted on the town’s website.
General discussion continued, touching on the town’s ongoing needs for downtown pedestrian safety, ease of access, community enhancement and revitalization.
Blackman reported that he has spoken with the Department of Transportation about imposing a parking time limit in front of the post office and accommodating parking for handicapped drivers.
Crosswalks are a concern also. Blackman felt that where there are presently two along the stretch of Route 343 between the traffic light and Mechanic Street, there should be four.
“Our expectation is that we will have a more vibrant downtown and the way to do that is for people to not be afraid for their lives when they cross the street,” Blackman said.
Hamm suggested flashing lights at crosswalks and Ahearn saw the need for reflective paint marking the crosswalks, noting that the existing lines are faded.
Spring has officially arrived with freezing night time temperatures forecast through the first week of April.
Victoria Kelly, Cary Institute Environmental Monitoring Program Manager and Senior Ecologist, prepared this report.
MILLBROOK — Since 1988 the weather station at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in the Town of Washington has been keeping track of our local weather — precipitation, temperature, wind, air quality, etc.
The News asked Cary’s Victoria Kelly what records showed about this winter. Were these months colder and snowier than last year? How do they compare to historic winters? Is this a normal winter?
December’s average temperature was 30.3 degrees Fahreneit, 1.3 degrees below the 1991-2020 average, which is what weather people refer to as “normal.” The January average temperature was 25.2 degrees, 1.1 degrees below normal, and the February average temperature was 28.4 degrees, 0.3 degrees below normal. So, it’s not your imagination, this has been a cold winter. Note that the 30-year average used to determine “normal” changes every 10 years and doesn’t include the warm winters of the last few years in the comparison.
The record high winter temperature was a balmy 78 degrees Fahrenheit on February 21, 2018, and the record low was a very chilly minus 27 degrees Fahrenheit on January 27, 1994.
Overall, the winter of 2024-2025 has been colder with less snowfall than normal. It’s not over yet though. Remember the blizzard on March 14, 2017? Or the April Fool’s Day blizzard March 31-April 1, 1997? March has been known to go out like a lion before, it could very well do it again. Total snowfall this winter so far is 22 inches. Our last accumulating snow was February 15-16. As with many of our events this winter, it began as snow and changed to ice and then rain. We call that mixed precipitation. If we get no more accumulating snow this winter, it will be the fourth winter in a row with less than average snowfall. Our record low snowfall was 13 inches in the winter of 2015-2016. Our record high snowfall was 92 inches in the winter of 1994-1995.
Reports from the suppliers or heating oil and propane estimate that demand increased 15% to 30% so far this winter confirming the findings of the Cary Institute.
The North East Fire house on the south side of Century Boulevard.
MILLERTON — The commissioners of the North East Fire District recently held their monthly meeting at the firehouse to discuss their current needs and general business.
Discussion centered around the current work on the 2025 budget and proposed expenditures, which ranged from upgrading their heating/cooling system to the possibility of replacing car no. 3.
The possibility of obtaining a new vehicle, such as a pickup truck, was also considered. In the end, the discussion was put on hold with chair Dave McGhee saying, “We have time.”
Updates on planning and training were discussed. Fire chief Keith Roger reported that 15 calls for medical assistance came in for the previous month, two calls came in for motor vehicle accidents, one call for a fire and one call came in for a propane issue which was quickly resolved. There were 35 calls for downed wires.
Physicals were also a topic of conversation. The fire district currently has 47 members, some of whom still need physicals. The district’s plan is that all members will be caught up on physicals by autumn.
The Easter egg hunt to be held on April 19 was discussed in addition to the need to look into hay wagons for the event.
As part of the chief’s report, Roger discussed equipment. Hose-testing is scheduled to be conducted on April 9. He also stressed the need to order brush equipment and side mirrors. Roger stated he needs to figure out exactly what is needed to fill department needs, but “bib overalls, radios and wands,” are on his wish list as well as new labels for equipment.
The discussion then turned to two events. On March 27, assistant county executive Gregg Pulver will be holding a closed meeting to discuss EMS issues. On April 18, Kelly Roger will be utilizing the firehouse for an event. Building use was approved for both events.
The subject of air packs then came up as one had sustained damage. Chief Roger also reported he is looking into which responders are in need of new equipment. Additionally, he has been trying to meet with new vendors. He has also started a log book for recordkeeping purposes around equipment to enable the department to track its movement and usage throughout the department.
Responder Chris Reyes discussed his work on the annual dinner and requested that $15,000 be made available for associated expenses. A motion was made to allow, which was officially passed.
No new members have recently joined the fire department, but recruitment efforts remain ongoing with interested parties being encouraged to come to the fire district on Monday evenings at 6 p.m. to learn more.
The next meeting at the firehouse will be a workshop on April 1. A regular meeting will be held on April 15.