The Power of the Image (This is one of those rambling posts)

[redfiona99]

I suppose I should have warned about half-naked Russian Presidents, but that reaction is what I was on about. Because after the initial reaction of what the hell, you go 'for a man of 55, he's in decent shape'.

So the why comes into play, because can you imagine any other politician trying the macho fishing routine? And get away with it?

I mean Gordon Brown has too much sense to try it, ditto Ming Campbell (who would probably be the only other one who could get away with it).

I can only imagine Tony Blair trying it, trying to charm the fish into submission, while George Dubya would find some way of looking even more foolish that usual doing it, and if David 'Call Me Dave' Cameron did it, you'd be looking over his shoulder to see the man who'd put the fly on his line for him.

My main reason of interest in the photo is the UK press's reaction to it, which was mostly to laugh, because what was the Russian President doing looking so silly, and why are the Russian public falling for it (I have no idea if they are by the way, and I don't trust the British press when they say they are).

Because apparently it does. So the question becomes why, to the journalists does it look silly?

Is it a politician outside of his normal environment, outside of his normal clothes? A comedian somewhere along the line said that a lot of comedy is the interpolation of two things that should not go together.

If that is the case, it leads to a question - what on Earth do journalists want? They complain when politicians wear suits, they complain when they don't. It's really quite unfair.

Comments

[pyroyale.livejournal.com]

I think (in this case) it's partly because he's the *Russian* president.

After the mess with the poisoned spy, the war of words between the UK and Russia and the tit-for-tat expulsion of diplomats the papers were grabbing for something that would make the big bad Russian dictator less frightening. And fishing topless manages that! They considered it silly because it lessens the threat. Consider it similar to the hysteria and front pages Saddam Hussain in his underwear received.

Journalists always have their own agenda. The only politicans that could get away with something like this are ones that they currently like - I imagine Gordon Brown, for example, wouldn't get as flamed as David Cameron as everyone seems to love Brown but hate Cameron (as you said though Brown has more sense which is probably *why* they currently like him!)

[wolfshift.livejournal.com]

ZOMG politicians have bodies under their suits???! NO WAY!

[redfiona99.livejournal.com]

I know. It is disturbing.