Saturday, November 18, 2017

Who is Beating the Drums of War and for what Purpose?


Yesterday the Japan Times reported that 54% of 2000 Japanese polled favor pressure tactics over dialogue alone when dealing with North Korea:
54% support pressure tactics over dialogue for North Korea (2017, November 18), Jiji poll, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/11/18/national/politics-diplomacy/54-support-pressure-tactics-dialogue-north-korea-jiji-poll/#.WhBryHlrzwm

An opinion poll Friday said 53.9 percent of the public supports Japan and the United States in using pressure to deal with North Korea, versus 39.4 percent who prefer dialogue.

The article does NOT clarify how questions were posed to to the 2000 people polled. Framing research has found that selective "framing" of questions and issues shapes audience responses.

In particular, it is not clear what counts as using "pressure" to deal with North Korea. Perhaps the pollster simply asked whether the respondent favored using pressure or dialogue alone. Pressure can be economic and need not necessarily be military.

However, Yahoo is framing the poll results through their headline as if 54% of respondents want WAR, although if you read past the headline you will see that there is no specific mention of war:
Japan Wants War With North Korea's Kim Jong Un, Not Dialogue, New Poll Shows. Yahoo, Available, https://www.yahoo.com/news/japan-wants-war-north-korea-135210061.html accessed November 18, 2018.

Roughly 54 percent of people surveyed in an opinion poll published Friday said they want Japan and the United States to take steps toward reigning in North Korea, compared to 39.4 percent who said dialogue was the best path forward, Japan Times reported Friday. At the same time, 52.8 percent of respondents said they were worried and 15.4 percent said they were very worried about what North Korea would do next. The survey was conducted for four days 
This Yahoo story was originally published by Newsweek. Why is Yahoo replicating biased framing by Newsweek.

Newsweek's version of the story available here includes a video with ominous music playing in the background. Moreover, a key word search at Newsweek's site finds quite a few sabre-rattling types of articles concerning North Korea, especially represented by the article "Americans are Worried about North Korea, Poll Finds which includes a picture of tanks and fiery explosions.

What is Newsweek's agenda here? Is it simply to "Hype" content to make their content more likely to go "viral," or is there a hidden agenda to promote fear and hysteria that would open the door for nuclear or some other form of high-tech war against North Korea?

1 comment:

  1. Have Trump and his crony republicans/corporate democrats, gone completely insane?
    There is a lot of money in warmongering. Good for the wall street-casino set, too. Recently Trump has signalled that the future is nuclear! Nuclear in space with NASA. Nuclear weapons in space. Testing new weapons in Nevada.
    Subsidizing nuclear reactors. Activating new MOX factory's.
    This is in the wake of Fukushima. It is like a nightmare.

    https://nuclear-news.net/2017/11/17/congress-sends-trump-700-billion-defense-bill-that-includes-mox-funding/

    The News That Matters about the Nuclear Industry

    Congress sends Trump $700 billion defense bill that includes MOX funding 

    Posted by Christina MacPherson

    Richard Lardner

    "Associated Press Augusta Chronicle, 17 Nov 17 WASHINGTON — Congress on Thursday sent President Donald Trump a sweeping defense policy bill authorizing a $700 billion budget for the military, including $340 million for MOX at Savannah River Site. The defense authorization bill for 2018 sailed through the Senate by voice vote. The House had approved the measure earlier this week.

    The Trump administration and former President Obama both asked for the nuclear fuel project to be de-funded, but Congress funded it anyway……. http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/2017-11-16/congress-sends-trump-700-billion-defense-bill-includes-mox-funding"



    Newsweek has always been squirrelly. I feel they play both sides of the fence. They certainly did in shrubs, Iraq war. The article in Newsweek, is misleading and irresponsible. Japan is in w terrible situation. They should b more concerned, with Fukushima. The Japanese should close down their nuclear power plants. There was a serious enough earthquake in Korea, for them to halt construction of reactors they stopped building, then started building again. Now they are stopping again.

    I hope this article, about Japanese saber rattling and Trumps intent, is more accurate. Japanese, that I know, think the recent election was rigged for Abe.
    http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/oped/comment/Donald-Trump-North-Korea-Russia-Obama/434750-4187858-nfj97gz/index.html

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