Discourse, power, and violence
On September 11, 2001 hijacked airplanes hit the World Trade Center and killed thousands of people. This was very shocking moment and the United States was under attack for the first time in a long time. The group who was responsible was terrorist group called Al-Qaeda. This attack on the United States would cause a chain of events that changed both the US and the world. The Bush administration was able to use discourse following these events to justify wars and to push through their right-wing agenda.
Discourse is usually used to describe a discussion or debate that is generally between not just two people, but rather a large group of people. A discourse is also usually a one sided argument and is meant convince or justify to the public what the speaker or writer believes based on their opinions, ideas, and theories. For instance in the article it speaks about how after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks President Bush’s administration and along with the help of the media was able to push its right-wing agenda. They were able to push through an agenda that included the Patriot Act, massive changes in the legal system, expansion of the US military, and war in both Iraq and Afghanistan (Kellner, 2007). After the Sept. 11, attacks the Bush administration declared a “war on terrorism”. Many of the television networks after the attacks would allow right-wing politicians to come on their shows and vent and call for the most extreme and aggressive measures (Kellner, 2007).
President Bush would constantly speak about the evils of terrorists in every speech he made after the terrorist attacks. When Bush made his first speech after the attack he called for preventative war, which would prevent terrorist attacks from happening in the United States. In his speech he would declare that things important to America’s national culture such as their freedom was under attack. He would also try to label the terrorists as evil posing the war as Good vs. Evil and
Discourse is usually used to describe a discussion or debate that is generally between not just two people, but rather a large group of people. A discourse is also usually a one sided argument and is meant convince or justify to the public what the speaker or writer believes based on their opinions, ideas, and theories. For instance in the article it speaks about how after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks President Bush’s administration and along with the help of the media was able to push its right-wing agenda. They were able to push through an agenda that included the Patriot Act, massive changes in the legal system, expansion of the US military, and war in both Iraq and Afghanistan (Kellner, 2007). After the Sept. 11, attacks the Bush administration declared a “war on terrorism”. Many of the television networks after the attacks would allow right-wing politicians to come on their shows and vent and call for the most extreme and aggressive measures (Kellner, 2007).
President Bush would constantly speak about the evils of terrorists in every speech he made after the terrorist attacks. When Bush made his first speech after the attack he called for preventative war, which would prevent terrorist attacks from happening in the United States. In his speech he would declare that things important to America’s national culture such as their freedom was under attack. He would also try to label the terrorists as evil posing the war as Good vs. Evil and