Trump is Abnormal, It's His Superpower

2019-09-06 · explainer · Hank · 3:57 · watch on YouTube

Topic: US politics & society · mode: News analysis · tags: timely hook

Using 'Sharpiegate', Hank argues that newsworthy means abnormal, not important, and that President Trump's real skill is attention: constant abnormal spectacle keeps him in the spotlight to craft a narrative that is always only about himself, which is exhausting because it is dangerous.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Trump's Sharpie-altered Dorian map, the NWS's accurate forecasts, and the Sharpiegate uproar

★★ Hank says that a couple of days ago President Trump shared an earlier map of Hurricane Dorian's projected path. — 00:00:00 · Donald Trump
★★ Hank praises the NWS hurricane forecasters: the three-day forecast, the most important for evacuations, has been spot on for all of Dorian and has saved lives. — 00:00:00
★★ Hank says the president had said Alabama was in Dorian's crosshairs, which on its own would be a totally normal verbal flub. — 00:00:21 · Donald Trump
★★ Hank says someone, probably Trump, drew a Sharpie line on the map to include a slice of Alabama. (hedged) — 00:00:21 · Donald Trump, Sharpie
★★ Hank says it became a front-page story, 'Sharpie gate' trended on Twitter, and people suggested Trump be prosecuted for sharing false weather data. — 00:00:21 · Twitter, Donald Trump, Sharpie
★★ Hank rejects the prosecution idea: it was not shared as a predictive map but as what might have happened; still, it is very clearly weird. — 00:00:21

00:00:51 — Newsworthy is not important: news is what is abnormal; is Sharpiegate important?

★★★ Hank says newsworthy and important are not synonymous: the Golden Gate Bridge not falling down is important but not news, because the first condition of newsworthiness is being abnormal. — 00:00:51 · sensationalism
★★ Hank says Sharpiegate is maybe important as a ham-fisted illustration of the degradation of the shared foundation of truth. (hedged) — 00:00:51

00:01:20 — Trump gets attention: spectacle is a feature; governing as shared story; abnormality keeps him in the spotlight

★★ Hank says the story was mostly used as a window into the president's mind, which is always guessing. — 00:01:20 · Donald Trump
★★★ Hank says Trump is not bad at everything: he really gets attention, prefers spectacle to governing, and produces fresh spectacle two or three times a week; it is a feature, not a bug. — 00:01:20 · Donald Trump
★★ Hank adds this does not mean the spectacle is good for Trump personally or for his reelection chances. — 00:01:20 · Donald Trump
★★★ Hank says spectacle matters: governing is partly getting things done and partly creating a shared story people can believe in; theatrics tell stories, and those at the center of attention shape the narrative. — 00:02:04
★★ Hank says some people find the theatrics exciting: a line on a map makes everyone explode, fitting a narrative of the press and liberals being ultra-critical of Trump. — 00:02:04 · Donald Trump
★★★ Hank says that by being abnormal Trump is always in the spotlight, and so gets to craft a narrative like the producer of a reality TV show. — 00:02:04 · Donald Trump

00:02:43 — His story is only about himself, which is exhausting and dangerous; vote it out; sign-off

★★★ Hank says the only story Trump wants to tell with this power is about himself: the ultimate and only savior, owed loyalty, always right even when clearly mistaken. — 00:02:43 · Donald Trump
★★★ Hank says we are exhausted not only by a fresh spectacle every two days but because it is always about the same thing: pompous, selfish, egotistical and smug. — 00:03:13 · Donald Trump
★★★ Hank says Trump has a tremendous skill for crafting narrative but uses it only for himself, not a shared vision, which is exhausting because of how dangerous it is. — 00:03:13 · Donald Trump
★★ Hank says he doesn't know the way through; he is only describing a situation. (unsure) — 00:03:13
★★★ Hank says abnormal things not treated as news become normal, but when the strategy is being abnormal for attention, the only option is to recognize it and vote it out every time. — 00:03:42 · sensationalism

In the description and comments

★★ The description says the channel has rarely discussed Trump, perhaps as a respite, and Hank has no idea whether attention helps or hurts, but understanding it matters, hence this video. — video description · Donald Trump, Vlogbrothers

Threads in this video

restate · Can news media be trusted to inform us accurately? — Hank says newsworthy and important are not synonymous: the Golden Gate Bridge not falling down is important but not news, because the first condition of newsworthiness is being abnormal. (00:00:51)
restate · Is outrage useful? — Hank says some people find the theatrics exciting: a line on a map makes everyone explode, fitting a narrative of the press and liberals being ultra-critical of Trump. (00:02:04)

Mentioned

Central: Donald Trump · Hurricane Dorian–Alabama controversy · sensationalism

Also: Organizations: National Weather Service · Twitter

Concepts: post-truth politics · reality television · storytelling

Places: Alabama · Golden Gate Bridge

Events: Hurricane Dorian

Products: Sharpie

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