
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.
Dan Aymar-Blair
POUGHKEEPSIE — Dutchess comptroller Dan Aymar-Blair released a special report early last week on federal monies and how they move through the county level, including the disbursement process in the county; how federal funding benefits Dutchess residents and whether any fiscal distribution issues have surfaced locally as a result of actions taken on behalf of the Trump administration.
According to Aymar-Blair’s report, federal programming represents roughly 10% of Dutchess expenditures, not including any COVID-19 assistance. As an illustration of federal- to county-level distribution and spending, in 2023, under the Biden administration, the county received approximately $65 million from the U.S. government with $25 million going toward direct aid in support of such programs as home energy assistance and food stamps. Federal monies were also disbursed — and continue to be directed — toward county-level agencies, programming and supports such as adoption, foster care and child care needs, emergency/disaster assistance, infrastructure development and maintenance, and workforce initiatives.
In addition to federal-to-county funding, Aymar-Blair noted an additional $1.9 billion annually is directly distributed to Dutchess residents from the U.S. government via Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. These entities are clearly not immune to the impact from the Trump administration as the Social Security office in Poughkeepsie, for example, has been poised for a reduction in office services. Whether Social Security benefits to individuals are reduced or cut entirely remains to be seen.
While data pertaining to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid recipients particular to Northeastern Dutchess was not readily available, data from the Social Security Administration provides some clues as to the number of individuals in Dutchess County who could potentially be impacted by benefit cuts. According to 2023 figures from the SSA, 4,730 Dutchess residents received Social Security benefits, 4,232 persons were categorized as blind/disabled and 2,904 persons were listed between the ages of 18 through 64. For adults 65 and over, 1,261 received Social Security benefits. The number of persons under the age of 18 receiving SSA benefits was listed at 565.
While cuts to Medicare and Medicaid have not been announced, it is possible under the circumstances. According to a Feb. 27 statement from Alan Morgan, chief executive officer of the National Rural Health Association, any disruption to these benefits, particularly Medicaid, would worsen an already challenging situation.” The Medicaid program is a lifeline for rural hospitals, providers and patients,” Morgan said. “Any cuts to the Medicaid program will disproportionately affect rural communities. Rural Americans rely on Medicaid coverage more so than their urban counterparts with about 20% of adults and 40% of children living in rural areas enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP,” the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Aymar-Blair agreed with the impact assessment as well as its potential outlier results, saying, “Dutchess County relies heavily upon this ... Cuts to Dutchess County’s federal funding could impact life-saving programs, and reduced consumer spending would be a likely side effect of reduced federal assistance like Medicaid.”
Aymar-Blair’s report does not include information on federal awards to businesses or municipalities, nor does it address the controversies attached to impacted in-county federal entities such as the Castle Point Veterans Hospital in Wappingers Falls, New York, which — as with the Poughkeepsie Social Security office — is also reducing its services with the closing of its E2 Acute Inpatient Care Unit, which eliminated 20 inpatient beds. While calls have gone out from local officials and residents to sustain the offerings provided by the Poughkeepsie Social Security office and the Castle Point VA hospital, no action has been taken just yet on the part of the federal government.
While Aymar-Blair concedes there has been no disruption from the federal level at this time to Dutchess funding, he has received a sufficient number of phone calls and emails from constituents to spur him to continuously monitor the situation. He is also working in collaboration with county departments to determine any impacts future actions from the Trump administration could have on funding for Dutchess County agencies, services and programs with the situation remaining very fluid.
For more information or to read the comptroller’s report in its entirety, visit: www.dutchessny.gov, navigate to “Government,” click “County Comptroller”, and click on “News and Announcements”.
The Stissing Center was bustling just before the show on Sunday, March 9.
PINE PLAINS — The Stissing Center was packed on Sunday for an afternoon performance of podcast and NPR series “Selected Shorts.” The sold-out show, which was recorded for national broadcast at a later date, brought a lineup of four accomplished actors and storytellers to the Pine Plains stage to recite a selection of short stories from award-winning authors.
“Selected Shorts,” a product of Manhattan-based performing arts powerhouse Symphony Space, features prominent actors who recite works of short fiction. The full program usually revolves around a theme; Sunday afternoon’s focus was “transformations.”
Comedian, writer and actress Ophira Eisenberg — or “renaissance woman of storytelling,” as Stissing Center Executive Director Patrick Trettenero introduced her — assumed hosting duties, warming up the crowd with jokes about Brooklyn egg prices and doctors with self-esteem issues — “I want a megalomaniac with a god complex and no hobbies.”
Every seat in the large coffeehouse-style auditorium was filled, and the crowd was engaged. “For a 3 p.m. audience, you guys are amazing!” exclaimed Eisenberg.
Actor David Straithairn took the stage first, reading a short story by Pulitzer Prize winning author Steven Millhauser titled “Green.” Straithairn’s classic, almost antique delivery suited the small-town American ethos of the story well. A somewhat detached but observant narrator recounts the story of a sort of anti-plant mania that started “innocently enough” in his town, stripping public and private property alike of all greenery. Eventually, a few intrepid neighbors add shrubbery back to their yards, prompting a swing back in the other direction: “After a brief diversion, a playful experiment, things had returned to normal in our quiet town — or had they?”
Straithharn’s reading was followed by an animated performance from actor Lauren Ambrose, whose long resumé is most recently punctuated by her role in the popular television series “Yellowjackets.” Ambrose read “Quantum Voicemail” by novelist and short-story writer Kristen Iskandrian, a woozy tale from a particular and slightly neurotic narrator who describes voicemail in probably the most poetic language ever put to page about the messaging format. Voicemail is “a stirring three minute soliloquy,” and “like a photograph, it capture[s] a moment of attention,” says the rapt narrator.
A brief intermission enabled patrons to refuel with drinks or popcorn from the bar, or head outside to enjoy the early spring weather. For those who remained in the theater, the sunken lounge-like space in the center of the room facilitated easy conservation between neighbors as they reflected on the performances.
Eisenberg herself recited the third story, “Squirrels” by Israeli writer Etgar Kenet. The action opens with a description of a family myth — or was it? — about a grandfather being reincarnated as a giant squirrel after a battle with cancer, and which subsequently halts his widow’s next wedding by biting the groom-to-be’s thumb. The story does get sentimental, which Eisenberg’s mostly comic oration accented well.
The final performance was of New York City-raised writer Jamel Brinkley’s “Blessed Deliverance,” a coming-of-age story about a group of college-bound teenagers growing up and growing apart in gentrifying Brooklyn. New York stage and screen actor Teagle F. Bougere handled the tension and confusion of late childhood/young adulthood well in his recitation. The plot reaches a high point when an unhoused man releases a pack of rabbits from an animal rescue shelter into the street while the group of teens looks on, cheering but not entirely sure what for.
After a few closing remarks from Eisenberg, the show was complete. Satisfied attendees made their way back to their cars and released the streets of Pine Plains into Sunday quietude once again.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong visits with former State Rep. Roberta Willis of Salisbury before his talk on immigration at Trinity Lime Rock Church Thursday.
LAKEVILLE, Conn. — Attorney General William Tong knows firsthand about the plight of immigrants.
He spoke to a standing-room-only crowd at Trinity Lime Rock Church March 6, which together with those on Zoom totaled 225. The event was hosted by Vecinos Seguros 2, a grassroots organization that works to make sure those without legal status know their rights.
Tong has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and is part of a group of attorneys general around the country who are banding together to take legal action against his actions.
He stirred the audience with his personal story. Growing up in West Hartford, where he remembered kids showing up at his school from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam after he was the first Asian student enrolled, he thought “they were refugees and I was the son of immigrants. I thought I was better than them. In fullness of time, I realized what we were all doing here. My parents and grandparents ran for their lives in China. I am nothing but the son of refugees. There was no daylight between those kids and the immigrants showing up today.”
Tong related how his parents met while both were working in a restaurant in Hartford. One day, in the 1970s, a representative from the Immigration and Naturalization Service showed up and because his father was undocumented, was threatened with deportation. After much thought, the senior Tong was resigned to the fact he would have to leave. But shortly before the deadline, while driving along the Berlin Turnpike, he decided to make a last-ditch effort. He went home and wrote a six-page handwritten letter to then-President Richard Nixon explaining his case. The INS agent returned later and said the president had read the letter and sent the message that the country welcomed him and urged him to stay.
Tong said he’s often asked what brings him hope during these times. “In one generation, I went from that Chinese restaurant to attorney general of this state. There are kids out there now; families living with that dream. We need to help them keep it.”
The attorney general said that when Trump talks about denaturalizing citizens and then about anchor babies, he is talking about him. “Banning birthright citizens is utterly and brazenly unconstitutional.” Audience members, as they did several times during the presentation, applauded loudly.
Speaking on the importance of immigration for moral and economic structural reasons, Tong noted, “America runs on Dunkin’ and immigrant workers. There would be no economy without immigrants.” Half of all farm workers are undocumented, as are half of those working in the meat packing industry he said.
Touching on Connecticut’s Trust Act that was passed in 2013, Tong explained that it limits how local law enforcement can cooperate with federal immigration officials to protect the rights of undocumented immigrants. He called efforts to repeal the act “ridiculous,” saying “the federal government does its job and we here do ours.” He said if anyone tries to get rid of the act, he will fight it and believes he’ll win, emphasizing several times that Connecticut is a sovereign state. The federal government has a lot of power, but can’t come to Connecticut to tell its citizens what to do.
When asked what people can do to help those without legal status, Tong advised not to put anyone at risk and make sure they have a plan if ICE shows up. Agents must have a judicial warrant to come on private property. He also recommended they seek people who will provide pro-bono legal advice. He said those holding green cards have legal status and should be respected by ICE. He also recommended not using the word “sanctuary” since it has no legal meaning and can be inflammatory. He was also forthright in saying not everyone can be protected from deportation.
He added there is no evidence to support the claims that immigrants create crime more than American citizens and stressed the Trust Act does not protect violent criminals.
At the outset, Tong said he and his colleagues had sued the federal government when Trump and the Office of Policy and Management tried to freeze all federal funding for a variety of grants, especially those dealing with medical research. “We now have an injunction to stop him from breaking the law. Remembering we have checks and balances, we’re serving as the only check since there is so much disinformation out there.”
Coming to the end of his message, Tong’s tone was foreboding. “We’re not on the precipice of a constitutional crisis, we’re in one. Trump is already not in compliance with federal court orders. If he doesn’t follow Supreme Court rulings, we’re in a dark place. We all have the responsibility to take to the streets and speak out.”
AMENIA — Updating the town’s Comprehensive Plan will proceed following action by the Town Board at its regular meeting on Thursday, March 6, to provide funding for the services of professional town planning consultants.
The committee had suspended its work for several months feeling that its planning would benefit from expert planning advice.
By unanimous vote the Town Board agreed to allocate $37,500 to hire the services of Nexus Creative Design of Mount Kisco, New York, the collaborative arm of Pace University’s Land Use Law Center. Together, the planning experts will work with the Comprehensive Plan Review Committee to facilitate local forums, gathering and interpreting residents’ input regarding visions and aspirations for the town’s future.
The result will be a revised Comprehensive Plan reflective of residents’ views and modern planning principles which will serve as a tool for all future planning and zoning development decisions.
Electrical work and interior painting at the Town Hall will proceed following the Town Board’s unanimous vote to approve the hiring of contractors. McDermott Electric of Wingdale was awarded the contract for needed electrical work, one of three who submitted bids. The bid was the second lowest at $4,400, but the contractor was determined to have had experience with the configuration of the building’s electrical systems and the bid was not appreciably higher than the lowest bid.
A contract for Town Hall interior painting was awarded to Jaybird Painting of Wassaic, the lowest of three bidders, at $7,940.
A proposal to extend the term of service of the Town Supervisor from two years to four years, discussed at past Town Board meetings, will be included on the Nov. 4 election ballot, following unanimous decision by the Town Board. Discussion had determined that the change would enhance efficiency and continuity. The vote by referendum is mandatory under the Municipal Home Rule Law.
Failing to advance to a public hearing was a proposal that would have limited the number of consecutive terms of service for elected town officials. The negative vote was unanimous at 3-0. Councilmember Brad Rebillard was absent from the meeting.
Commenting on her vote, councilmember Nicole Ahearn felt that the measure was not necessary, that it was difficult enough to attract people who are willing to step up and serve.
“I have faith in the voters,” agreed Rosanna Hamm, feeling that elections provide opportunity for voters to effect change.