Perspective: Fear sells | Northern Public Radio: WNIJ and WNIU

We’re two days away from the presidential election and the post-game show is already in full swing. Consequently, I will not add to this by trying to explain Trump’s victory or analyze Harris’ loss. Instead, I want to focus on something that both campaigns shared and divided equally – and that is fear.

The message from the Democratic side was simple and direct: “Our democracy is in danger because of one man, and we must stop him.” The Republicans, on the other hand, constructed a different threat: “You and your family are in danger from a horde of undocumented ‘others’.”

The subject of the Democratic message was collective; it is our democracy that is vulnerable. In contrast, the subject of the Republican message was individual and personal. This is about you and your family. In the same way, the object of fear also differs. On the Democratic side, the threat was personified by a specific individual: the former president. However, the subject of fear in the Republican message was abstract and ambiguous, which arguably contributed to its perceived danger and urgency.

These differences are important because they tell us something about the two parties and about ourselves. The Democratic message came from a shared sense of community us– and identified a threat in an individual who did not share our values. The Republican message addressed the individual and mobilized xenophobia in an attempt to fabricate a looming danger from an amorphous and collective other. Fear certainly sells, but how and what is the important difference.