Page 208 - Darko Štrajn, From Walter Benjamin to the End of Cinema: Identities, Illusion and Signification. Ljubljana: Educational Research Institute, 2017. Digital Library, Dissertationes, 29.
P. 208
from walter benjamin to the end of cinema
reality, civilization, etc., constitute a core of set of values and common ide-
as within a given political culture. Summarily, we might say that such at-
tributes of political culture mostly may be ascribed to the so-called West-
ern world, and increasingly to some countries, which in recent history have
entered into the universe of democracy. Although very significant differ-
ences between the features of specific political cultures in different regions
and countries could be cited, it seems that a general apprehension of the
term of extremism does not differ across the boundaries. Therefore, it ap-
pears that the political extremism represents a breach of a consensus on a
broad combined definition of democracy and civilization.
Reflections and representations of extremism, which make it omni-
present, and at the same time shown so as to be more or less on the same
level as natural and other disasters, may raise doubts about the simple dis-
tinction between “normal society”, politics as usual and a political extrem-
ism. The manifestations of especially some kinds of extremism – more than
others less recognisable as such – are usually amongst the more prominent
news that attracts the media interest worldwide. We can remember some
advice about a necessary and needed reduction of the scope and emphasis of
news on events attributed to the work of political extremism. Nevertheless,
so far the media, especially television, have not resisted the opportunities to
add dramatic features to an attractiveness of their news programmes. Ac-
cording to the distinction elaborated by Richard Rorty (Rorty 1989: p. XVI)
in a context of the question of how the media might contribute to the build-
ing of solidarity, the violent manifestations of political extremism are more
or less strictly treated as a doing of “them”, a kind of aliens. The drastic rep-
resentations of the manifestations of political extremism, i.e. terrorism, are
simultaneously objects of a mass voyeurism and the demarcations with-
in the established society. The very term “extremism” therefore functions
as the demarcating discriminatory gesture: not only neutrally marking the
difference between “normal and insane”, but also inducing a sense of radi-
cally total “otherness” of those who commit extremist acts. Hence, extrem-
ism is re-produced into a mystically self-generated threat to the entire so-
ciety. Almost day after day in the media representations of the extremist
manifestations, the established society is acquitted from its complicity in
the causes of the phenomenon. Far from asserting that the media are mas-
terminds behind extremism, they certainly at least present the state of af-
fairs, expressing and propagating the dominant views and attitudes, in oth-
er words, the ideology. As such, the functioning of the media importantly
206
reality, civilization, etc., constitute a core of set of values and common ide-
as within a given political culture. Summarily, we might say that such at-
tributes of political culture mostly may be ascribed to the so-called West-
ern world, and increasingly to some countries, which in recent history have
entered into the universe of democracy. Although very significant differ-
ences between the features of specific political cultures in different regions
and countries could be cited, it seems that a general apprehension of the
term of extremism does not differ across the boundaries. Therefore, it ap-
pears that the political extremism represents a breach of a consensus on a
broad combined definition of democracy and civilization.
Reflections and representations of extremism, which make it omni-
present, and at the same time shown so as to be more or less on the same
level as natural and other disasters, may raise doubts about the simple dis-
tinction between “normal society”, politics as usual and a political extrem-
ism. The manifestations of especially some kinds of extremism – more than
others less recognisable as such – are usually amongst the more prominent
news that attracts the media interest worldwide. We can remember some
advice about a necessary and needed reduction of the scope and emphasis of
news on events attributed to the work of political extremism. Nevertheless,
so far the media, especially television, have not resisted the opportunities to
add dramatic features to an attractiveness of their news programmes. Ac-
cording to the distinction elaborated by Richard Rorty (Rorty 1989: p. XVI)
in a context of the question of how the media might contribute to the build-
ing of solidarity, the violent manifestations of political extremism are more
or less strictly treated as a doing of “them”, a kind of aliens. The drastic rep-
resentations of the manifestations of political extremism, i.e. terrorism, are
simultaneously objects of a mass voyeurism and the demarcations with-
in the established society. The very term “extremism” therefore functions
as the demarcating discriminatory gesture: not only neutrally marking the
difference between “normal and insane”, but also inducing a sense of radi-
cally total “otherness” of those who commit extremist acts. Hence, extrem-
ism is re-produced into a mystically self-generated threat to the entire so-
ciety. Almost day after day in the media representations of the extremist
manifestations, the established society is acquitted from its complicity in
the causes of the phenomenon. Far from asserting that the media are mas-
terminds behind extremism, they certainly at least present the state of af-
fairs, expressing and propagating the dominant views and attitudes, in oth-
er words, the ideology. As such, the functioning of the media importantly
206
