Dogwhistles and figleaves : how manipulative language spreads racism and falsehood / Jennifer Mather Saul.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Saul, Jennifer Mather, 1968- author.

Contributor:

Rosengarten Family Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Language and languages--Political aspects.

Language and languages.

Racism in language.

Conspiracy theories--Social aspects.

Conspiracy theories.

Truthfulness and falsehood.

Physical Description:

xvi, 222 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Oxford University Press, [2024]

Summary:

"It is widely accepted that political discourse in recent years has become more openly racist and more filled with wildly implausible conspiracy theories. Dogwhistles and Figleaves explores certain ways in which such changes - both of which defied previously settled norms of political speech - have been brought about. Jennifer Saul shows that two linguistic devices, dogwhistles and figleaves, have played a crucial role. Some dogwhistles (such as "88," used by Nazis online to mean "Heil Hitler") serve to disguise messages that would otherwise be rejected as unacceptable, allowing them to be transmitted surreptitiously. Other dogwhistles (like the 1988 "Willie Horton" ad) work by influencing people in ways that they are not aware of, and which they would likely reject were they aware. Figleaves (such as "just asking questions") take messages that could easily be recognized as unacceptable, and provide just enough cover that people become more willing to accept them. Importantly, these work against the background of a divided public. They are particularly effective in influencing people who are conflicted yet malleable--those who don't want to be racist, for example, but are willing to be convinced that something which seems racist really isn't. Saul shows how these dogwhistles and figleaves have both exploited and widened existing divisions in society, and normalized racist and conspiracist speech."-- Provided by publisher

Contents:

Introduction

Racism

White racism, white folk racial theory, and white racial discourse

Racial dogwhistles

Figleaves for racism

Falsehood

The rise of blatant falsehood

Figleaves, dogwhistles, and falsehood

Obvious falsehoods without deniability

Dogwhistles, figleaves, and the fight against racism and blatant falsehood.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 197-218) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Rosengarten Family Fund.

ISBN:

9780192871756

0192871757

OCLC:

1374422182