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Mutua Mutua Lenny Nganga Maureen Jagona Ore Diana Obath Chris Githaiga Corazon Sefu Wandimi Dr. Maureen Owiti Irene Mbonge Prof. Kellen Kiambati Thrity Engineer-Mbuthia Yannick Lefang Michael Nzule Dr. Supriya Sharma Alice Ngatia Poppy Lydia Sello Grace Gikonyo Carol Mwazi Kesiya Chitete Tamara Betty Asonga Christine Nyandat Anthony Taiti Grace Oduor Enock Wandera Jan Okonji Marion Wakahe Dr. Catherine Ngahu Dr. Wale Akinyemi Frankline Kibuacha Pauline Warui Simiso Ncube Catherine Awuor Alice Ngatia Joan Vida Poppy Lydia Sello Geoffrey Sirumba Ruth Kehinde Onasoga Susan Makau Wasilwa Miriongi Dr. Clifford Ferguson Coach Diana Muhairwe Kepha Nyanumba Caroline Mwazi Nyamwaya Reuben Kisigwa Richard Wanjohi
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02 @ MarketingAfrica MAL65 / 25 ISSUE
Marketing Africa
FIRST WORD
On Presidential Pettiness
In a world that fake news has become so rampant, it is not uncommon to find out that the source that informs you that the news that you just read are fake is itself fake. What we welcomed as the age of information has become the age of disinformation.
In the digital era where the world is already suffering from an information overload, there is now a real problem, a proliferation of fake news abetted by platform owners who have been forced to remove fact checking at source before dissemination.
The excuse offered for allowing this disservice to the public is that according to some high-minded billionaires in America, fact checking is an affront to the freedom of expression as enshrined in the constitution. A strange case of digital democracy.
The amazing thing is that the very people who are quoting the constitution to allow the public to be fed unfiltered news are the same people that are attacking and dismantling the fundamentals of democracy in America using fake news on traditional and digital media.
So, of course, when we read in the news that Trump was going to sanction South Africa because it was intending to rename a street in Johannesburg in honor of one of their local heroes, we knew it was fake news except that it wasn’ t.
It was beyond imagination that a president in the middle of trying to end two wars in Gaza and Ukraine, which he had promised to achieve on day one of his presidency, would stoop to discuss a municipal matter in a town in South Africa.
As if to stretch our credulity further, that is the same week that Trump had informed the world that there was white genocide taking place in South Africa and he even offered to resettle displaced whites in America. We mistakenly assumed this was also fake news.
At least we do know the source of the fake news about South Africa to be the president’ s First Buddy, Elon the Musk, who is presently straddling America like a colossus and running America like a new venture where administrative efficiency gives it a competitive advantage.
So tight is the broederbond between the Musk and the president that when the Musk faced a backlash from voters in regard to his policies and started ditching his Tesla vehicles, the president, an avowed anti EV crusader, publicly bought himself a Tesla.
That the hallowed lawns of the White House were turned into a commercial venue to host an event to promote the Tesla brand was not fake news even though the same president had asked Americans to‘ drill, drill, drill’ when abandoning the global Paris climate accord.