The Power of Language: Dems Failing to Sell Healthcare Reform

Call it Boyle's Law for debate. The lexicon for health care reform has expanded to include the plural noun, town hallers, and it's grown louder as well, increasing in volume from all the shouting. Hot air will expand to fill the available space.

Thus it's refreshing to hear language expert George Lakoff soberly pick apart the rancorous words being volleyed from both sides. His conclusion: Democrats are failing to make a persuasive case for health care reform.

Watch the full program on FORA.tv.

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Comments

[XME]

To those who oppose, they'll oppose it no matter how good it is. And it's also hard to sell reform when there are 3 bills floating around and there's no clear idea what the final bill will entail...that creates fear, even in thos who want some kind of reform.

[research]

Medicare for All!

Like Kucinich and Dean have pushed for years.

That's the language problem.

Listen to these frightened seniors: They LOVE MEDICARE!

Keep it simple.

[jmpurser]

Excellent point. I wonder why our "chess master" couldn't see it.

[RobHunt]

What is there to sell? Why all the hand wringing? Dems control Congress with overwhelming majorities and your guy sits in the White House. Why don't you just jam health care reform down our throats?

The idea that REPUBLICANS are standing in your way is simply ludicrous. You guys creamed us in the last election. You have a gold-plated mandate for change. So change us already, and stop belly-aching about the lack of bipartisan support. What is wrong with the Dems that they can't pass their most important legislation when all of the stars are aligned?

[DickTater]

Hear, Hear

[research]

Conservatives are blocking health care. That includes the DLC, you know what the DLC is, right? Obama, rahm, clintons and the leadership- of the democratic party are all corporatist fed DLC.

Kucinich/Dean 2012!

[jmpurser]

Excellent point. I would say their FIRST problem was surrendering the reality and THEN the screwed the message.

Single payer is easy to explain and would be a REAL American Plan.

[WilliamBradford]

Lakoff is a master of spin - that's his job. We could have a lot cleaner discussion if we could tell the truth rather than choose the words to paint a certain picture. The points he hits:

1) Government Takeover - people, that's what it is. Insurance companies are bad. Doctors are bad. Obama is going to fix it... by taking it over. This plan is designed as the first step toward single-payer. Why not tell the truth?

2) It Will Kill Old People - Medicare is bankrupt - eye-poppingly bankrupt. No matter how we do it, health care has to be rationed. It is logical to assume that since Medicare is a black hole of deficit, fixing that means more rationing than is currently happening. This new plan will effect Medicare. Why not tell the truth?

3) No Waiting, No Claim Denials - This seems disingenuous. An increased demand for health care will certainly involve the same amount or more waiting. It also seems likely that even the "American Plan" amazing public care will have to have standards that involved denying some claims.

Why not tell the truth and see if anyone is interested. Stop selling and start fixing.

[lastpost]

A word is a meaningless sound or inscribed shape, to which an agreed association is allegedly assigned. Communication using words is like transmitting an encoded message to someone, who then attempts to decode it using a different code book. There are multiple meanings, interpretations, and ways in which any given word can be misconstrued. Yet only a single possibility that its intended connotation will be transferred precisely.
I can’t imagine why we have so much trouble with them.

[Rog49Thomas]

In life two things are required to get things done.
Conviction
Passion

If you're really not sure if you believe in something or precisely what it is you believe in, you lack conviction.

If you believe in something but won't fight for it, you lack passion.

[GrainOSand]

The GOP message, while a lie (in many cases -- a half truth at best -- in most cases), is more accessible...and it could very well be true that policy brilliance affects ability to frame a simple message of “The enemy is this... and those are lies and here is why”. The GOP job is easy though, they are working with delusional fear that has always existed. Fear lives near the surface though it may start deeper, where true inspiration always emerges from the depths. Put another way, it is easy to blindly throw a rock with no idea or concern for what it hits (though Democratic Party ideas are always considered the mark or ideal) versus having to defend against rocks coming from all angles as one seeks to change an environment of destructive rock throwing to one of creative solution building, coalescence, and implementation. The new administration is trying to capitalize on a newfound unity that seems to be fast fading under the hot lights of mangled and muffled message, and that seems to be wilting in the toxic swamp of compromise politics. Time to go street. Time to channel all Mr. Obama learned as a community organizer where the framing of the message is crucial to stoke movement and to ignite fires in bellies (and transparency is crucial to trust). Time to press and make the case for change.

[DickTater]

nomobull has it right.

Author/Lakof are incorrect if they think the public needs to be convinced or sold.
America basically voted on these policies in Nov.
Now it is our other elected officials who cannot get this done. It is our elected-salaried-expensed-red-carpeted representatives who are playing hide the cookie with OUR DOUGH. Allowing this Invasion of the Body Snatchers healthcare system continue to have their way with us...as long as the Dem gets some cash slipped into his pocket.

Horrible use of Mass Media, CorporoNews constantly shifting attention from what is important, to watch faked hysteria. Turning a foregone conclusion ( public heavily in favor of Healthcare Reform) into some kind of He Said She Said shouting match between irrelevant parties.
Relevant parties here are the Prez and the Congress.

We want universal healthcare. That is what BHO promised and that is what he is wriggling out of, to the pain and detriment of us all. I am pretty ashamed of his weak, calm, impotence in the face of the Corporate Interests. I thought better of him. We all knew our representatives were bought and sold creatures and it sucks. HE had his work cutout, but he was liberated from the daily grind of being a paid-for corporate puppet. He should be calling out these Blue Dogs and Dem Senators, riding them, doing "What do we want" "Healthcare!" shout-outs, not townhalls where crazies get to pack the place and grab the mike.

[JustinAddison]

Part of the trouble seems to be that the presenters appear to be so ill-prepared. They just act as though they were sent in at the last minute with no clue as to what they're supposed to be discussing. And did you see the one who was on her cell phone while an audience member was trying to ask a question?

[nomobull]

maybe the media should be as eager to report the facts as lies and opinion. remember the msm sold the war to a lot of people by not reporting the truth.

[nomobull]

maybe if the media stopped running with the lies and delivered the facts first hmmmmmmmm

[blah2 0]

Exactly! It k ills me that the media is reporting that liberals are failing in the HR messages wars when they are reporting every cra zy thing Repubs/conservatives are saying as fact

[Billy Dole]

The Democratic Party has not failed to convince me that health care is a good thing. I have become steadily more convinced, reading argument after argument, that health care reform is good and necessary. That means that I've been convinced. I have a feeling I'm not the only one who has become more in favor of health care reform as this debate goes on.

[CATNIP1]

Me,too. all this back and forth has got me looking up the facts. I've signed up to attend the town hall in Texas, as a show of support. Yes we can.

[karela]

Lakof understands how many brains work! Many people think that if they hear it on TV long enough and loud enough, that it must be true. Republicans have scary sound bites and we have reasoned explanations. Reasoned explanations worked very well for the intellectuals among us who were already sold on health care reform. BUT, now we have to get the ones who are easily frightened and are also low information voters. We need our own sound bites that name the evil doers and he is absolutely right that "The American Plan" is a MUCH better name than "The Public Option". You'd think Democrats never heard of advertising and what works versus what doesn't. We all know that insurance companies deny claims and make money by doing so. The man said that that twenty to thirty percent of our premiums goes to hiring people to look for ways to deny claims. We tell the stories, but we don't have a sound bite. What should we call such an evil practice? The 30%ers, the vampires, the purveyors of death??? I don't know, but it should be short, it should be snappy and it should make you feel like barfing when you hear it. And then we should repeat it endlessly until the low information people feel it in their bones! This guy was absolutely right. We're trying to use reason and reason only works with a percentage of the people. We already have those folks. It's time to get the others!

[Marefur]

How about "death panels?" Seriously -- we should target that where it belongs and admit we already have them -- they're called insurance companies.

[dureau]

FAiling to sell it to who? The crazies on TV at the meetings. How rediculous. We will have a good health care bill you can count on it.

[walk0nwalls]

There's a difference between the policy and the salespitch and we are definitely, hugely losing the salespitch