Sunday morning, sitting at the campground, little rain but that shouldn’t last long. The last five days I have been removed from “the media.” I purged my Facebook feed of anyone that just continuously posted pro or anti-Trump rhetoric. I made sure that I did not follow the Washington Post, Washington Times, New York Times, and The Republic. I did keep The Guardian. My feed looks better, I feel better, I think I am going to continue this for a while.
As an Information Operations professional the campaigns I would design were focused on educating, informing, influencing, or persuading. The last month, when I read someone’s anti-Trump posts, I try to determine which of the four the post was designed to accomplish. I only say anti because most of my pro-Trump friends have been pretty quiet for the last month, they don’t think their world is coming to an end. Many of the posts are “a call to action” posts. Call your Congressperson and tell them X. The rest, well it becomes difficult to separate. I think many are just therapeutic posts, preaching to the choir. They post something about Trump today, they feel better about themselves, “I have done something,” I am not alone. These posts will do little to change the way a more Pro-Trump supporter would think. The posts are littered with emotion and do little to actually persuade or influence. Then I occasionally get the posted video or article with no comment. I just skip those. If you watched it or read it and don’t take the time to comment I am not going to spend my time watching or reading. Give me a review, I will probably check it out. One of my Facebook friends, Dane, has views that are very different from mine. The content he posts is guaranteed to by Ant-Trump, but he always comments, makes a few points, so I read or watch to see if I agree or disagree.
My final thought. I am by no means Pro-Trump. Hell, I probably fall left of center on my views of Trump. You want me to read your posts? Give me a reason, persuade me that you have taken the time to read or watch, and put a little fact check and analytical rigor to your post. You do that, I will definitely read.