Downing St wants you to kick off about him not signing the letter.

This is a perfect example of Lakoffian framing.

The fact is that an unelected Prime Minister has again been humiliated by an elected Parliament.

A short explainer...

To win the PR air war you need to be first, with a fresh message, no matter the setback you just suffered. That's how you manipulate the media. By giving them a new story, to distract from the bad story.
Vote Leave (which is basically now the government) has been very adept at this.

Remember when the Electoral Commission ruled that Vote Leave had broken electoral law? They instantly declared the EC as "politically biased".

The story then? VL accuses EC of political bias?

See?

That is what we call framing.

Today's story is now about Johnson's 'defiance', rather than his humiliating political failure.


In the age of social media, those adept at framing have millions of people to manipulate. Most of us aren't aware of much comms theory, so we are easily manipulated into amplifying these talking points.

I too have been momentarily tempted to post some snarky 'hot takes' on Johnson not signing the extension request & sending a contradictory note. But reality bites when you spot the framing.

Today's story, behind the framing flannel, is that Johnson preferred to die in a ditch than do the thing he has been forced to do.

As ever, well-meaning people will argue the toss on this. Because often the last people to spot skilled manipulation are the skillfully manipulated.

Anyway, this is how to react

David Allen Green
@davidallengreen

Nothing in the latest tactical idiocy to cause alarm

The Benn Act letter is sent, these other reported letters legally inconsequential

Seems clever, and will impress the easily impressed, but nothing to worry about

If you're inspired to better understand framing, a good follow to consider is @dirktherabbit who consistently shines a light on these tactics

Framing is what the best journalists cut through, to bring you the real story. Which is why @BethRigby is one of my go-to sources for insight, rather than gossip

Jenni Russell ✔
@jennirsl

Journalists refusing to be spun by access to the No 10 machine are the ones to read in this latest Brexit crisis - the fearless @BethRigby here.

Link to tweet

…
Beth Rigby ✔ @BethRigby

Unspun version
1) Govt asks for a Brexit extension as legally required by Benn Act
2) PM writes an additional letter saying why he believes a delay is a mistake and he will not negotiate one

Link to tweet

…

I should also recommend @jennirsl, who is calling out the same problem

Jenni Russell ✔
@jennirsl

This is just a stunt by Johnson aimed at his base - but @peston is acting as his megaphone by sending the message Johnson wants out there; that he’s defiant. The truth is: he isn’t. He complied with the law. Peston’s doing No 10’s job here rather than his own.

Link to tweet

…
Robert Peston ✔ @Peston

.@BorisJohnson will tonight stick two fingers up at the Benn Act by sending the letter to @eucopresident it stipulates asking for a three-month Brexit delay but refusing to sign it. He expects to see MPs in court.

What actually happened

Link to tweet

Robert Hutton ✔
@RobDotHutton

Narrator: He asked for a Brexit extension.

If you'd like to journey into the deeper subtleties of framing this, by @zephoria, is a brilliant introduction.

“Media Manipulation, Strategic Amplification, and Responsible Journalism” by danah boyd link.medium.com/Y5OvWhqZV0

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1185797486708961280.html