Is there more character assassination now than in the past? “We are constantly thinking about our image”
Over 60 scholars and Gorbachev’s former interpreter are talking about “character assassination, illiberalism and the erosion of civil rights” at a three-day conference at the UvA. What is the role of social media in this?
Roman politician Catilina is said to have plotted a coup in Rome on several occasions around 60 BCE. In all his resentment, stemming from his low socioeconomic standing in the Roman Empire, he did not shy away from violence in the process, at least if we are to believe the words in the Catilinarian speeches of the renowned philosopher and writer Cicero. Indeed, other historical sources give no evidence of Catilina’s nefarious plans. In addition – red flags – Cicero and Catilina were arch-enemies.
What can we deduce from this? That character assassination is not a recent phenomenon; it seems to be a phenomenon throughout all eras. The bottom line is always: there is an audience, a medium, and a context. And, of course, someone who “attacks” and someone who is attacked.
To what extent character assassination is indeed different now than it has been in the past was a question that scholars from the UvA, VU, University of Baltimore, and George Mason University addressed Wednesday afternoon at the P.C. Hoofthuis. The roundtable discussion was a prelude to a three-day conference at the UvA on “character assassination, illiberalism, and the erosion of civil rights.” Phenomena that, according to those present, are often quite intertwined.
The program features over 60 speakers from some 50 universities who will shine some light on (one of) these topics through the lens of their scientific expertise. The guest of honor and discussion leader on Wednesday is Pavel Palazhchenko. After all, as a former interpreter of Mikhail Gorbachev, the president of the Soviet Union who, along with U.S. President Ronald Reagan, made the end of the Cold War possible – he has “lived through history.”
Donald Trump
According to Palazhchenko himself, character assassination is an increasingly common phenomenon. It can start small, he says. “When Donald Trump called Senator McCain a coward, people began to think differently – often subconsciously – about McCain.” This permanently undermined McCain’s reputation, according to Palazhchenko.
Character assassination can also be very subtle, says Eric Shiraev of George Mason University from the U.S. “When Maia Sandu competed for the presidency in Moldova, people called her ‘too hardworking.’ Many thought it was more important for a woman to have enough time to take good care of her family. That criticism was difficult for her, yet she eventually became president.”
Social media
The consensus among attendees is that social media has fundamentally changed the seriousness and capacity of character assassination. “Because of social media, everyone has a megaphone, so we can be verbally attacked all the time,” says UvA lecturer in ancient history Martijn Icks, one of the congress organizers.
He says this makes it even more important for people to adopt a virtuous image, for example. “We are constantly thinking about our image. But if I profile myself as virtuous on Twitter, I’m not really virtuous, I’m just pretending.”
But the problem of character assassination is not new, he insists. “Read a speech by Cicero and you see that it is at least as common as the character assassinations we have now in modern times,” Icks says. “It’s been with us since ancient times. Social media has just made it much more visible.”
