Whataboutism

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Whataboutism (from the English What about ...? = "What about ...?" And the suffix -ism = " -ism ") describes a technique of manipulation , by which one distracts from unpleasant criticism by pointing to similar or other real or supposed grievances are pointed out on the part of the critic. This conversation technique, often criticized as irrelevant, was originally held up under this name as a propaganda technique for the Soviet Union when it dealt with criticism from the western world .

Critics relativize the rejection of an argument as whataboutism, insofar as the accusation itself can be used manipulatively. The accusation could be an expression of double standards , selective selection of points of criticism and a lack of communicative competence , a tactic to safeguard one's own interpretation .

Related terms or similar manipulation techniques are diversionary maneuvers (distraction tactics), answer with a counter question, evasive maneuvers , change of subject, tu-quoque argument .

Word meaning and origin

Whataboutism, as defined by the Oxford Living Dictionary, is "the technique or practice of answering an accusation or difficult question with a question or another subject." According to the dictionary, the term comes from the 1990s and is synonymous with the term "whataboutery" that came up in the 1970s. It is also used in German-language articles.

Logical fallacy and rhetorical device

The aim of the procedure used as a rhetorical device is often, but not always, to discredit the opponent's position without refuting his arguments. A classic example of whataboutism that has become a proverb is the sentence "And in America they lynch blacks", which is often uttered in the Soviet Union in response to criticism of socialism .

This type of reply means that the interlocutor does not have to provide a factual answer to the criticism held, but can also directly or indirectly admit the correctness of the allegations. The question, which is often expressed reproachfully, denies the critic as a rule the justification for his criticism.

Whataboutism is a variant of the tu quoque (Latin for you also , term for a counter charge), which is a subspecies of the ad hominem argument .

Accusation and counter-accusation shift the topic from content to organizational, try to prioritize and hierarchize topics.

Used to mark a Soviet and Russian propaganda tactic

The term was popularized by journalist Edward Lucas in a 2008 article in The Economist . Lucas attributed whataboutism to Russia as a propaganda tactic and considered the renewed use of the term a sign of the return of the Cold War and the Soviet era mentality in Russia's current government. This tactical procedure was held up against the Soviet Union for dealing with criticism from the western world. This use of the term since the Cold War has been presented several times and also systematically analyzed.

Whataboutism was and is used in many areas, mostly in the political arena, to dissuade criticism of the politics of one's own country and to direct them with reference to “What about ...?” To events in other countries that have similarities with the original subject of the Have criticism. For example, references to human rights violations in Russia were countered by the USA with references to crimes in the Guantanamo prison camp , and the annexation of Crimea was equated with the military conflict resolution in Kosovo .

In modern Russia, especially in connection with allegations of human rights abuses and other criticisms of the Russian government, the practice of whataboutism has revived. Whataboutism is also combined with so-called " active measures ". The Guardian's Miriam Elder discussed how this tactic has been used by the Vladimir Putin government and its spokespersons in particular , leaving most criticisms of human rights violations generally unanswered. In July 2012, Konstantin von Eggert, a columnist at RIA Novosti , wrote an article on the use of whataboutism in relation to Russian and American support for various governments in the Middle East.

In Euromaidanpress , Alex Leonor published a detailed analysis of Russian propaganda with a variety of examples.

Looking back

In 2014, Joshua Keating used Orlando Figes' book on the Crimean War to place the phenomenon of whataboutism in the larger context of Russian history since that time, and found similarities between contemporary expressions and those of Vladimir Putin during the Crimean crisis . Even in the run-up to the Crimean War, Tsar Nicholas I wanted to wage war against the Ottoman Empire for religious and geopolitical reasons , but the European powers France and Great Britain pursued their own, thoroughly selfish, particular interests, which ultimately led to a warlike conflict that gave a foretaste of the the following, industrially shaped wars of wear and tear of the 20th century.

The tsar's anger over the unforeseen confrontation with the Western powers was reinforced by Pan-Slavist Mikhail Pogodin, who criticized the supposed double standards of the European colonial powers, which allow them to wage wars and occupy countries, while Russia is again prohibited from doing so (it should be noted is that Russia meanwhile continued to expand vigorously in Central and East Asia).

General use as a propaganda method

However, the term is not restricted to political or especially Russia-critical use.

The technology was used by the Nazi press as early as 1938. After the Reichspogromnacht the Austrian People's newspaper wrote as headline on November 12, 1938: “London agitation over broken glass. But not a word about destroyed Arab villages! Again outrageous abuse in the Jewish 'world press'. "

"If the Pope criticizes the Syrian Assad, Assad could simply say, 'What about the pedophile priests?' When Oskar Lafontaine was asked about the dead at the Berlin Wall, he asked the counter-question: 'What about the dead in the Mediterranean'? ”There were also many examples in the US election campaign of 2016 . Donald Trump in particular was accused by his critics of practicing whataboutism . Alan Cassidy wrote in a direct comparison of Trump with Vladimir Putin, however, that Putin had "perfected" whataboutism, as in an interview with ORF in June 2018, as well as the Russian Novaya Gazeta pointed out that Putin had answered the four key questions Counter-comparisons ("in his own way") had answered. In contrast to a protection comparison, Putin and others are a counterattack, Harald Martenstein stated in 2016.

Limitations of Criticism

Edward Lucas already pointed out that whataboutism is “not a bad tactic” if it is not exaggerated, as in the case of Russia. “Any criticism must be placed in a historical and geographical context. A country that has solved most of its dire problems deserves praise and should not be verbally prepared for the problems that remain. Similarly, behavior that may be imperfect by international standards can be quite good in a given environment. "

Christian Christensen, Professor of Journalism in Stockholm, makes it clear that the rejection of counter-allegations can also be an expression of the fact that one perceives one's own mistakes in distorted self-perception as inferior, that one applies double standards . For example, the opponent's actions appear as prohibited torture, one's own measures appear as “extended interrogation methods”, the violence of the other as aggression, one's own merely as a reaction. Christensen even sees a benefit in the use of the argument: “The so-called 'whataboutists' question what has not been called into question and bring contradictions, double standards and hypocrisy to light. This is not a naive justification or rationalization [...], it is the challenge to think critically about the (sometimes painful) truth of our position in the world. "

In his analysis of Whataboutism , UNAM 's professor of logic, Axel Barceló, comes to the conclusion that the counter-charge often expresses the justified suspicion that the criticism does not correspond to the real position and reasons of the critic.

Abe Greenwald pointed out that the very first reproach that leads to a counter-reproach means an arbitrary setting that can be just as one-sided and biased, or even more one-sided than the counter-question "what about"? Whataboutism can also have an enlightening effect and put the accusation in the right light.

In her analysis of whataboutism in the US presidential campaign, Catherine Putz notes in The Diplomat Magazine that the key problem is that this rhetorical device precludes the discussion of disputes of a country (e.g. civil rights on the part of the US) when that country is in this area is not perfect. By default it requires that a country should only plead with other countries for those ideals in which it has reached the highest level of perfection. The problem with ideals is that we rarely reach them as human beings. The ideals are still important, however, and the US should continue to advocate: "The message is important, not the ambassador."

Gina Schad sees the characterization of counter-arguments as "whataboutism" as a lack of communicative competence in that discussions are cut off. The accusation is also used as an ideological protective mechanism that leads to "closures and echo chambers ". The reference to "Whataboutism" is also perceived as a "discussion stopper", "in order to secure a certain hegemony of discourse and interpretation".

See also

Web links

Wiktionary: Whataboutism  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Whataboutery - definition of whataboutery. In: Oxford Dictionaries. Retrieved December 26, 2016 .
  2. ^ A b Heinrich Schmitz: How to avoid discussions with counter-questions . In: The European . November 8, 2014 ( theeuropean.de [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  3. ↑ a b c Harald Martenstein : Harald Martenstein on rhetorical evasive maneuvers . In: Die Zeit magazine . No. 24 , 2016 ( zeit.de ).
  4. ↑ Axel Barceló: Whataboutism Defended: Yes, the Paris Attacks were horrible, ... but what about Beirut, Ankara, etc.? S. 8th ff . ( academia.edu [accessed May 3, 2020]).
  5. ^ Edward Lucas: The New Cold War: How the Kremlin Menaces Both Russia and the West . Bloomsbury Publishing, 2009, ISBN 978-0-7475-9578-6 , p. 307. “Castigated for the plight of Soviet Jews, they would complain with treacly sincerity about discrimination against American Blacks. (footnote: the accusation 'and you are lynching negroes' became a catchphrase epitomizing Soviet propaganda based on this principle. ”)
  6. ↑ "And what about ...?" - Perfidious trick from the moth box of rhetoric . In: Deutschlandfunk Kultur . ( deutschlandfunkkultur.de [accessed on July 1, 2018]).
  7. ↑ Christian Christensen: OPINION: We need 'whataboutism' now more than ever . January 26, 2015 ( aljazeera.com [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  8. ↑ a b Never Trump Nevermore . In: National Review . ( nationalreview.com [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  9. ^ In Defense of (Some) Whataboutism . In: Bloomberg.com . ( bloomberg.com [accessed July 1, 2018]).
  10. ↑ Identities (7/7) - Why white people love being equal. Accessed on May 3, 2020 (German): “Structural problems are often played off against each other through what is known as“ whataboutism ”. This is an attempt to hierarchize social problems and discourses. Thus, the discussion moves away from the content to the organizational: Wouldn't it be more important to talk about other structural problems first? "
  11. ^ Whataboutism . In: The Economist . January 31, 2008 ( economist.com [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  12. ↑ Olga Khazan: The Soviet-Era Strategy That Explains What Russia Is Doing With Snowden . In: The Atlantic . ( theatlantic.com [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  13. ↑ Thomas Ambrosio: Tu Qouque: How The Kremlin redirects External Criticism Through Rhetorical attacks. North Dakota State University, 2008, wiscnetwork.org ( September 6, 2009 memento in the Internet Archive ) (PDF).
  14. ↑ a b Whataboutism: Come again, Comrade? In: The Economist . January 31, 2008, accessed April 18, 2014 .
  15. ^ The West is in danger of losing its moral authority. In: European Voice . December 11, 2008, accessed April 18, 2014 .
  16. ↑ Adam Soboczynski: Please do not disturb . In: Die Zeit , No. 4/2016
  17. ↑ Christian Weisflog: Why the Crimea is not Kosovo. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung . November 18, 2014 ( nzz.ch ).
  18. ↑ Serghei Golunov: The Kremlin's Compulsion for Whataboutisms: Western Experience in the Putin regime's Political Rhetoric . In: PonarsEuarasia - Policy Memos . June 14, 2013 ( ponarseurasia.org [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  19. ↑ Olga Khazan: The Soviet-Era Strategy That Explains What Russia Is Doing With Snowden . In: The Atlantic . ( theatlantic.com [accessed December 30, 2016]).
  20. ^ Peter Pomerantsev, Michael Weiss: The Menace of Unreality: How the Kremlin Weaponizes Information, Culture and Money. In: Institute of Modern Russia. 2014, ceas-serbia.org ( Memento of March 11, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; English).
  21. ↑ Miriam Elder: Want a response from Putin's office? Russia's dry-cleaning is just the ticket. In: The Guardian , April 26, 2012 ( theguardian.com English).
  22. ↑ Konstantin von Eggert: Due West: 'Whataboutism' Is Back - and Thriving. In: Sputnik . July 25, 2012, accessed April 18, 2014 .
  23. ↑ In view of the cases described, The Economist suggests two rhetorical countermeasures: on the one hand, to "cite arguments that the Russian leadership itself uses" so that they cannot be applied to a Western nation; on the other hand, the recommendation that Western nations increase self-criticism their media and government statements.
  24. ↑ Alex Leonor: A guide to Russian propaganda. Part 2: Whataboutism. In: Euromaidan Press. Retrieved December 30, 2016 (Alex Leonor is a graduate student studying political, military history.).
  25. ^ Joshua Keating: The Long History of Russian Whataboutism. In: Slate , March 21, 2014 ( slate.com ). For details and quotations, see Orlando Figes: Crimean War: The Last Crusade. Berlin Verlag, Berlin 2011, ISBN 978-3-8270-1028-5 , p. 152 f. ( Google Books ).
  26. ↑ London agitation about broken glass. But not a word about destroyed Arab villages. In: People's newspaper. November 12, 1938, accessed September 2, 2018 .
  27. ^ The Backwards Logic of This Election Year. In: The Federalist. June 16, 2016, accessed December 30, 2016 .
  28. ^ Catherine Putz, The Diplomat: Donald Trump's Whataboutism . In: The Diplomat . ( thediplomat.com [accessed December 30, 2016]). Donald Trump's Whataboutism ( Memento from July 22, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  29. ↑ The betrayal of Helsinki , Tages-Anzeiger, July 17, 2018
  30. ↑ "Let me say at the end" Vladimir Putin answered four urgent questions from Austrian television - and each time it was a comparison , Novaya Gazeta, June 5, 2018
  31. ↑ On rhetorical evasive maneuvers , Zeit Magazin 21, June 2016
  32. ↑ “It is not a bad tactic. Every criticism needs to be put in a historical and geographical context. A country that has solved most of its horrible problems deserves praise, not to be lambasted for those that remain. Similarly, behavior that may be imperfect by international standards can be quite good for a particular neighborhood. "
  33. ↑ OPINION: We need 'whataboutism' now more than ever . ( aljazeera.com [accessed December 26, 2016]).
  34. ↑ Axel Barceló: Whataboutism Defended: Yes, the Paris Attacks were horrible, ... but what about Beirut, Ankara, etc.? ( amazonaws.com [PDF]).
  35. ↑ Axel Barceló: Whataboutism Defended: Yes, the Paris Attacks were horrible, ... but what about Beirut, Ankara, etc.? ( academia.edu [accessed May 3, 2020]).
  36. ^ In Defense of Whataboutism. October 4, 2019, Retrieved May 3, 2020 (American English).
  37. ^ Catherine Putz: Donald Trump's Whataboutism . In: The Diplomat . ( thediplomat.com [accessed December 30, 2016]): "The core problem is that this rhetorical device precludes discussion of issues (ex: civil rights) by one country (ex: the United States) if that state lacks a perfect record . It demands, by default, for a state to argue abroad only in favor of ideals it has achieved the highest perfection in. The problem with ideals is that we, as human beings, hardly ever live up to them. 'If the United States waited to become a utopia before arguing in favor of liberty abroad, it would never happen. What matters is the set of ideals - that all are created equal with rights to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" - not that we have managed to perfectly live up to them. This is a struggle the United States shares with the world: to try and fail and try again. The United States may not be a “very good” messenger, but there may never be a better messenger. It's the message that truly matters. '" Donald Trump's Whataboutism ( Memento from July 22, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  38. ↑ Gina Schad: Digital brutalization ?: What communication on the internet does with our compassion . Goldmann Verlag, 2017, ISBN 978-3-641-18497-1 ( com.ph [accessed May 3, 2020]).
  39. ↑ Marion Eckertz-Höfer, Margarete Schuler-Harms: Equal Rights and Democracy, Equal Rights in Democracy: (Legal) Scientific Approaches . Nomos Verlag, 2019, ISBN 978-3-7489-0018-4 ( com.ph [accessed May 3, 2020]).