Why Fact-Checking Trump Doesn’t Work

George Lakoff: “If reporters dedicate time and energy to investigating whether known lies might be true, they will continue to cede control of the news cycle to Trump.”

“Trump’s ‘big lie’ strategy is designed to exploit journalistic convention by providing rapid-fire ‘news’ events for reporters to chase. Trump spews falsehoods in a blitzkrieg fashion, but the lies are only part of the game. What reporters continue to miss is the strategy behind the big lies: to divert attention from big truths. The technique is simple: create controversy and confusion around politically-charged topics to stoke his conservative base and distract from stories that harm Trump.”

“It’s a numbers game. The more he can get his key terms and images repeated in the media — even as ‘fact checks’ — the more he wins. That’s just how our brains work. The more we hear about something, the more it sticks. Even if it’s not true.”