Every once in a great while the people of Reddit do the right thing and I’m proud of every one of them that took a stand. Even the BBC is calling it an awkward gesture and they aren’t owned by right wing billionaires in the US. Not ONE media news org here has called the obvious. Sanewashing. Wish I’d never heard the term.
I will play devil’s advocate. Media outlets are scared of being sued for defamation or scrutinised for what may turn out to be misleading news. That’s why there are always referring to “sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity” or adopt a mild language to refer to something. But if I am a news publisher, I would describe Musk’s gesture as “appears to be Nazi salute” or to that effect. It is still calling it out as it is, but I would still have plausible deniability.
I see your point … Fear of retribution through the FCC is now a real thing. This is how it begins though - first they ban free speech and any dissent and then the ones that still stand up will be disappeared.
Plus it’s likely that if you post any criticism of Musk whatsoever you get a lawsuit automatically. That’s what rich people do. They can afford it. Its like having a VPN or an alarm system on your house. They send their lawyers.
The biggest issue is that the media is focusing on just this one incident in specific. They’re acting as if whether or not musk is a nazi hinges exclusively on if it was meant as a seig heil or not.
Ultimately his nazi salute is just the latest in a very very long line of racist and intolerant shit he’s said, done, and perpetuated. Regardless or whether he seig heiled or not, he’s still a nazi.
Every once in a great while the people of Reddit do the right thing and I’m proud of every one of them that took a stand. Even the BBC is calling it an awkward gesture and they aren’t owned by right wing billionaires in the US. Not ONE media news org here has called the obvious. Sanewashing. Wish I’d never heard the term.
I will play devil’s advocate. Media outlets are scared of being sued for defamation or scrutinised for what may turn out to be misleading news. That’s why there are always referring to “sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity” or adopt a mild language to refer to something. But if I am a news publisher, I would describe Musk’s gesture as “appears to be Nazi salute” or to that effect. It is still calling it out as it is, but I would still have plausible deniability.
I see your point … Fear of retribution through the FCC is now a real thing. This is how it begins though - first they ban free speech and any dissent and then the ones that still stand up will be disappeared.
Plus it’s likely that if you post any criticism of Musk whatsoever you get a lawsuit automatically. That’s what rich people do. They can afford it. Its like having a VPN or an alarm system on your house. They send their lawyers.
The biggest issue is that the media is focusing on just this one incident in specific. They’re acting as if whether or not musk is a nazi hinges exclusively on if it was meant as a seig heil or not.
Ultimately his nazi salute is just the latest in a very very long line of racist and intolerant shit he’s said, done, and perpetuated. Regardless or whether he seig heiled or not, he’s still a nazi.