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Article: Getting Our Attention
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- September 30, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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A handful of Golden Agers, mouths taped, stood up in protest at a
congressional hearing on Medicare last week and were escorted from
the room by Capitol police. At about the same time, House Minority
Leader Richard Gephardt and Democratic colleagues set up a table on
the Capitol lawn and conducted a mock Medicare hearing in the rain.
These orchestrated rituals produced pictures for the evening news
and for the front pages of various newspapers, promoting the view
that Republican proposals for shrinking Medicare benefits were wrong
and unfair. They were "pseudo-events," a phrase invented by the
historian Daniel Boorstin to describe happenings staged for the sole
purpose of getting publicity.
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