It's no secret that elected leaders get where they're going in tandem with big-money interests that provide hefty campaign contributions. Many politicians have been able to meet the current standards with glib appearances and modern flourishes. Familiar ideas can be conveyed in brief or at length. Simplistic truisms can be reinforced in a snap. But it isn't possible to effectively dispute widespread assumptions and prejudices within a few seconds.
Sound bites are perfect for demagoguery.
If politicians are apt to abuse language, then all too many journalists are functioning as enablers. As a practical matter, the shared lexicon of politics and journalism supplies the raw material for continuous fashion statements. Even when partisan fevers are raging, show business has a way of taking precedence. I remember speaking with some Mexican journalists covering the 1988 Democratic National Convention in Atlanta. During the last decade, such conflicts have been swept under the national rug, with high-profile progressive Democrats moving from restraint to quiescence.