One downside to all this DC chaos. The best and brightest were already shunning government work. It will be even worse now. Government really does provide some valuable services. Oh well. The rich do not care one whit…
Everything you think you know... is fake (Part Two)
Welcome to Kayfabe
Before the scripted nature of professional wrestling became widely known, the term “kayfabe” was used as a code among industry insiders to discuss matters in public without revealing the staged nature of their discipline. It was also used as a warning to other wrestlers that someone who was not “in the know” was in the vicinity; this could even include wrestlers’ family members who had not been clued into the scripted nature of professional wrestling.
A “kayfabe interview” for example meant the person being interviewed remained “in character”; when speaking of a “kayfabe girlfriend”, it implied she wasn’t actually romantically involved. A person could also be said to be “kayfabing” someone, by presenting storylines and rivalries as real.
Indeed the scripted nature of professional wrestling was unknown to most for a long time; the first public acknowledgment of its staged nature came in 1989 when WWF owner Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey State Senate that wrestling was not a competitive sport. And indeed until as late as the mid-1990s those in the industry believed it was a secret that must be protected at all costs.
A fascinating aspect is that, even after the scripted nature of that discipline became an open secret, most fans refused to acknowledge it. To this day, most enthusiasts suspend disbelief, and feel, act and react as if the whole thing was real.
The heroes of the wrestling theater are called faces (short for “babyfaces”); their personalities are crafted to elicit the support from the audience through traits such as humility, patriotism, determination, etc. Faces usually win their matches on the basis of their technical skills and are sometimes portrayed as underdogs to enhance the story. On the other side of the dialectic, so-called “heels” are villainous or antagonistic characters, whose personalities are crafted to elicit a negative response from the audience; they typically embrace traditionally negative traits such as narcissism, egomania, unprompted rage, sadism, and general bitterness, and employ underhanded tactics such as cheating and exploiting technicalities.
Despite the archetypal character settings, different crowds may still react differently. It is known for example that older male fans tend to cheer for heels and boo faces, while children and female fans tend to stay on the cheer-for-faces-boo-for-heels sentiment. Again, the most fascinating aspect is these emotions of support or disdain are 100% real, as if the whole thing wasn’t scripted.
In professional wrestling, storylines are typically played out beyond the matches themselves; for example, if a wrestler appears on a show after a “brutal” attack they would “sell” the injury by limping or having their arm heavily bandaged in-between matches. Real-life deaths were sometimes even scripted into the narrative where promoters would come up with a kayfabe reason to work the event into the storyline.
Where are we going with all this? After all, this isn’t a website about professional wrestling.
Kayfabe And The News
Our contention is that kayfabe is not limited to the world of wrestling. Actually, that is an undisputed fact, as “reality TV” is known by now to be as fake as any other piece of TV fiction. What we are saying is that the same dynamics, the same principles, the same understanding, the same archetypes, and the same underlying psychological tools are used in what is commonly called “the news” and what is generally referred to as “politics”.
The world is a stage. Nearly everything on TV or “in the news”, whether acclaimed or criticized, is fake and/or scripted.
Love it John, and I have stolen some for my publications! TBP has wonderful weekly ones too:
https://www.theburningplatform.com/2025/03/03/government-media-ridicule-741/
Best as always
AP
Awesome analogy
Some very funny! Most SO true!
Satire Trumps all (pun intended) - America is Back! Blame the Democrats!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClvLp4vXJ5I
How many times did Trump lie during that fiery exchange in the oval office with the comedian in the sweatshirt?
Ask me one on sport!
One downside to all this DC chaos. The best and brightest were already shunning government work. It will be even worse now. Government really does provide some valuable services. Oh well. The rich do not care one whit…
Love your work, John.
What if....
Everything you think you know... is fake (Part Two)
Welcome to Kayfabe
Before the scripted nature of professional wrestling became widely known, the term “kayfabe” was used as a code among industry insiders to discuss matters in public without revealing the staged nature of their discipline. It was also used as a warning to other wrestlers that someone who was not “in the know” was in the vicinity; this could even include wrestlers’ family members who had not been clued into the scripted nature of professional wrestling.
A “kayfabe interview” for example meant the person being interviewed remained “in character”; when speaking of a “kayfabe girlfriend”, it implied she wasn’t actually romantically involved. A person could also be said to be “kayfabing” someone, by presenting storylines and rivalries as real.
Indeed the scripted nature of professional wrestling was unknown to most for a long time; the first public acknowledgment of its staged nature came in 1989 when WWF owner Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey State Senate that wrestling was not a competitive sport. And indeed until as late as the mid-1990s those in the industry believed it was a secret that must be protected at all costs.
A fascinating aspect is that, even after the scripted nature of that discipline became an open secret, most fans refused to acknowledge it. To this day, most enthusiasts suspend disbelief, and feel, act and react as if the whole thing was real.
The heroes of the wrestling theater are called faces (short for “babyfaces”); their personalities are crafted to elicit the support from the audience through traits such as humility, patriotism, determination, etc. Faces usually win their matches on the basis of their technical skills and are sometimes portrayed as underdogs to enhance the story. On the other side of the dialectic, so-called “heels” are villainous or antagonistic characters, whose personalities are crafted to elicit a negative response from the audience; they typically embrace traditionally negative traits such as narcissism, egomania, unprompted rage, sadism, and general bitterness, and employ underhanded tactics such as cheating and exploiting technicalities.
Despite the archetypal character settings, different crowds may still react differently. It is known for example that older male fans tend to cheer for heels and boo faces, while children and female fans tend to stay on the cheer-for-faces-boo-for-heels sentiment. Again, the most fascinating aspect is these emotions of support or disdain are 100% real, as if the whole thing wasn’t scripted.
In professional wrestling, storylines are typically played out beyond the matches themselves; for example, if a wrestler appears on a show after a “brutal” attack they would “sell” the injury by limping or having their arm heavily bandaged in-between matches. Real-life deaths were sometimes even scripted into the narrative where promoters would come up with a kayfabe reason to work the event into the storyline.
Where are we going with all this? After all, this isn’t a website about professional wrestling.
Kayfabe And The News
Our contention is that kayfabe is not limited to the world of wrestling. Actually, that is an undisputed fact, as “reality TV” is known by now to be as fake as any other piece of TV fiction. What we are saying is that the same dynamics, the same principles, the same understanding, the same archetypes, and the same underlying psychological tools are used in what is commonly called “the news” and what is generally referred to as “politics”.
The world is a stage. Nearly everything on TV or “in the news”, whether acclaimed or criticized, is fake and/or scripted.
More https://fasteddynz.substack.com/p/what-if-488
I needed a good laugh, thanks John.
Excited for all the crazy Au & Ag stuff coming up. Can't wait to see what comes up next week or so.
Be well.
Keep on keepin' on folks!
Great comments in a week where we make history and witness a welcome death:
1. The US starts a war in the Ukraine.
2. The US abandons its ally half way through the fight.
3. The US demands war reparations for a war it started and lost.
NATO is dead. Germany needs to align itself with Russia before it gets Ukrained by the US.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wph-S4VCxo4?feature=share
American swagger: 600,000 dead and Trump has a good laugh about it.
B
Fake War.
https://fasteddynz.substack.com/p/the-ukraine-war-is-fake
https://fasteddynz.substack.com/p/are-you-a-mentally-ill-retarded-moron/
Thanks Eddy:
I stopped after I read "no one has ever landed on the moon"
Love the hat
Great content, thank you.