Propaganda: What is Whataboutism?
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If you have followed politics in the last 4 years… or ever, you have seen whataboutism in action.
Whataboutism is incredibly simple. When two people are opponents, person B will say something about person A that reflects poorly on them. All person A has to do is deflect by calling person B a hypocrite and providing evidence of that hypocrisy.
This is how it generally plays out.
- Politician A is accused of X
- Politician A is running for office against someone who was accused of Y
- Politician A, to deflect from their problems, says “what about politician B’s Y?”
- This stirs up their voter base, the news grabs hold of it… because clicks, and Politician A gets to plan a bit more without pressure.
Whataboutism was an extremely popular technique among Soviet Union leadership; If they were asked about the atrocities in their country, they would merely deflect to the atrocities being committed in western countries.
In fact, it’s still used by politicians all over the world to deflect blame.
But why is it used? Because it’s simple, and shockingly effective.
The simplicity comes from the fact that the opponents transgressions are usually true.
For example, if the United States criticizes the Russian Federation for silencing dissidents, Russia can come back and say something like, “what about when you tear gassed protestors in Washington DC?” That would turn blame on the United States, and buy Russia some time for a response — or to keep quiet and let things blow over.
The truth of the opponents actions is only part of the equation. The effectiveness of this strategy comes from studying human behavior.
Think about the last time you encountered a double standard, or someone making a hypocritical statement. How did you feel?
You probably felt a strong feeling of anger or disgust. But why?
We seem to be naturally inclined to hate those who believe that certain standards don’t apply to them. With a hypocritical action, this is at play.
By exploiting a true transgression of the opponent and coupling it with the peoples’ hatred for hypocrisy, whataboutism is a very effective, albeit slimy response to an opponents’ accusations.
Still whataboutism can be a dangerous strategy to use. Reputation matters, and if you say “what about x?” to someone who has a mostly great reputation, you will be seen as a whiner and it won’t work. But, if you use it on a country like the United States — who has a mixed reputation internationally — it can work pretty well.
Whataboutism is dangerously effective, but careful analysis has to be taken to make sure that the right factors are in place to use the strategy. Not to mention there’s a need for an amoral approach to life, business, and politics.
