Spin Cycle 0
An ex-corporate spin-meister discusses how “spin” differs from “lies” and marvels at the multiplication of mendacity. A couple of nuggets (emphasis added):
But let’s say that beyond emphasizing just one figure and de-emphasizing another, to try to “help” our company I decided to unilaterally claim that Assets Under Management were up 10 percent, not 1 percent. That’s not spinning. That’s lying. You can’t do that. At least not for long. . . .
Today lying has been elevated to a renegade art form. We call it Fake News. (I’d rather call it Real Lying.) In a year of troubling trends, no trend is more troubling to me than the everyday casualness with which folks in power, or seeking power, ignore facts or make up their own when real facts don’t suit their needs.
