Soundbite Culture

As we move into the political season, it becomes increasingly apparent that we live in a "soundbite culture"—a culture of marketing slogans that simplify things and tell us how to think and what to believe. When politicians speak, what sells, as advertisers already know, are the soundbites—the slickly crafted slogans that stick in your brain in spite of yourself.

Political slogans have a long history, dating back, at least, to the French Revolution, when the slogan "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité", epitomizing the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen adopted by the revolutionary government, incited the French mob into action.

However, while this is a classic example of the noblest of causes to be adopted by a rioting mob, it is also a classic example of how mob violence, even for the noblest of causes, can quickly turn ugly and horrific and result in the most terrifying of situations. The French Revolution, which began with the Storming of the Bastille on Bastille Day—July 14, 1789—and was quickly followed by the decapitation of the French aristocracy, including the French King and Queen, by guillotine, rapidly devolved into a state of complete political anarchy.

In 1793, lawyer Maximilien Robespierre took control of the nascent French Republic and unleashed what came to be known as The Reign of Terror—a fascist regime characterized by universal paranoia in which as many as 40,000 accused political prisoners were summarily executed by guillotine without the benefit of a trial. One of the most prominent casualties of the Terror was Danton, one of the architects of the Revolution, as recounted in the 1983 film Danton, starring French thespian Gérard Despardieu in the title role. The Reign of Terror continued until July, 1794, when Robespierre himself was arrested and executed as a political threat to the French Republic.

Thus, the Revolution, which began under the noblest of pretexts, as encapsulated in the revolutionary slogan, "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity," turned into a blood-thirsty monster that devoured its own leadership and architects—the mob, once unleashed, took control and, running amok, devoured anyone and everyone in its path.

While this is a somewhat extreme example, it is a classic case of how one of the earliest and best known of political slogans, representing the very noblest of human instincts and political causes—namely, human rights and equality and justice for all—is closely linked to one of the biggest political fiascoes in history—the Reign of Terror—and, ultimately, to the rise of the proto-Fascist dictator and self-proclaimed emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte.

Horizon Cybermedia is about getting past all the slogans and soundbites that permeate our culture, whether from politicians or corporate advertisers, dumbing down and simplifying the complex realities of our world—and getting to the complex truth through the sophisticated medium of self-expressive art. Check out our website at http://www.explorationtheseries.com and stay tuned for continually updated media content, including the 30 second promo of our next film on the Wine Country of Sonoma, Ca., coming soon.

Wishing you the very best,

Uday Gunjikar,
Founder and CEO,
Horizon Cybermedia, Inc.