Of course, this is all assuming that the same interviewees weren't paid by Variety, which in today's Corporate Media climate, is entirely possible.
Be that as it may, however, the Klansmen allege that the producers handed them scripts, paid them unreported cash and even provided materials for staged cross-burnings and other demonstrations. This caused some outrage from a Mississippi Klan chapter, who felt they'd been shortchanged when they learned how much the Tennessee Chapter was paid.
The scandal brings up a few interesting questions. As we saw during the Presidential Campaign, via Wiki Leaks and elsewhere, the DNC was actively coordinating with the Corporate Media. We saw a lot of press given to Far-Right extremists, who purportedly were all Trump supporters. Was there more than free publicity being given to these groups?
Take, for example, the bloggers of the 'Red Pill' Manosphere. A number of these blogs solicit donations and their writers were all very strongly pro-Trump. They also---almost in unison---suddenly shifted the focus of their blogs from Pick-Up Artistry and Anti-Feminism to ultra-White Nationalism, Anti-Semitism, and race-baiting.
It does make one wonder. Where do the donations come from? Who is buying all these self-published books the Manospherians claim to be top-sellers?
Maybe it would be a good idea for some Social Justice Warriors to have a little closer look at some of the sources of Manosphere bloggers' funding. It's especially interesting considering how these writers have recently had some falling-outs among themselves over pushing White Nationalist issues. Interesting that the controversy between them should arise just as the revelations about A&E were becoming public. As the Indians say, somebody may be speaking with a forked tongue here. After all, the KKK complains about money-grubbing Jews controlling the Media too; but they apparently didn't mind taking their cash.
Since the incoming Trump Administration has disavowed connections with these extremist groups---and has vowed to investigate corruption in the Corporate Media---some of these Manosphere Red-Pill sites might be worth looking into, for a start. The Red Pill philosophy is not exactly one where commitment to principle over selfish gratification is exalted.
In other words, as far as the Manosphere is concerned, we have a very strong appearance of impropriety here. It will be interesting to see whether or not we'll have some financial transparency on their part. They owe it to their regular readers to assure them that their followers, too, aren't being Gamed.
Absolutely! Well said. My curiousity was certainly piqued while watching them suddenly move from pick up artistry to white supremacy. Often an alleged "SJW" would show up on twitter or a blog and play those guys like useful idiots. Immediately the Nazi references and outright misogyny would spew forth and soon we had a genuine "deplorable," that was making Trump look really bad, guilty by association.
ReplyDeleteWhen Hillary Clinton made her "basket of deplorables" comment I about fell over because I knew many of those "deplorables" were created, made, socially engineered, so to speak. But why and by whom? Also, it backfired obviously. "Deplorables" expanded, became a meme, and Trump won the election. But Trump didn't win because of the red pills and the alt right, he won in spite of them.
So, as crazy as it sounds, those guys were being used and most of them are probably too stupid to realize it. They believe they're saving western civilization, or some such rubbish. I have noticed the infighting, the attempts to now distance themselves from the sudden surge of nazis and outright rapists permeating their ranks.
Follow the money indeed. The big story in this election wasn't Russian hackers, but American trolls engaging in social engineering and trying to create what might be called a right-wing boogeyman.