READING COMPREHENSION | The art of saying nothing

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In Talking Point (page 70), John Riach looks at the language of politics. Reread his article,“THE ART OF SAYING NOTHING”, and try the exercises on the opposite page.

As the next American electionapproaches, everyone in politics —from local politicians upwards tothe two main candidates for thepresidency — will be talking insound bites and bumper-stickerslogans. Voters have a betterchance of remembering shortcatchphrases than long speeches.But let’s be honest: political catch-phrases are just examples of theadvanced art of saying nothing. A candidate has to appeal to a widespectrum of voters in order to getelected. For that reason, he or shetries to avoid saying things thatcould alienate potential supporters. Although armies of advisers are on hand to make sure only the rightwords are said, the safest strategy is simply to be as vague as possible. This was the logic behind the cur-rent president’s promise of “change” and his battle cry of “yes, we can”. As Harvard language specialist Steven Pinker has pointed out, it’s hard to be against changing some-thing. Everybody can fill the promise of change with his or her own content. And “yes, we can” — butwhat exactly can we do? The disappointment felt by many young people who supported Barack Obamafour years ago can be traced back partially to his ability to eloquently say nothing and his inability tochange very much. With his opponent, Mitt Romney, the president is in good company. Romney wants us to “believe inAmerica”. That’s something that most people do anyway — and what does it have to do with a particularcandidate? Similarly, Romney’s promise of “a better America” is lovable yet at the same time empty.Negative statements by politicians are often empty, too. As Pinker says, politicians try to fill ordinarywords with so much negative emotion that they sound like swear words. For four years, Obama’s ideashave been called “socialist” — a term that most Americans don’t understand. In the months before the2010 congressional election, Merriam-Webster reported that “socialist” was one of the words that werelooked up most often in its online dictionary.Democrats reacted by calling Republicans “the party of ‘no’” for their efforts to block all the president’spolicies. New York Times language columnist Ben Zimmer says that — along with “yes, we can” — this isemotionally powerful because “yes” and “no” are among the first words we learn as children. I have to marvel at how simple phrases are remembered and how they often win an election. Think of“Are you better off than you were four years ago?” (the question asked by Ronald Reagan in 1984) and“It’s the economy, stupid” (the reminder given to Bill Clinton by his campaign team in 1992). Romney’scampaign is building on that tradition with “It’s still about the economy, and we’re not stupid” and“Where are the jobs, Mr President?” This year, few people believe that either candidate has an answer to the problem of unemployment. Butpay attention, and see if you hear arguments or just more empty rhetoric.

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What does it mean?

Match the explanations (1–4) to the highlighted expressions from the article.

2.

What does it say?

Are the sentences below true (T) or false (F) according to the article?

1.

Perfect pairs

Underline the word in blue that goes with the following noun to make collocations from the article.

3.

a) American politicians campaign with bumper stickers.b) It helps politicians to gain support if they make general statements.c) American voters think that Barack Obama is a poor speaker.d) Politicians use swear words.e) Most Americans believe that President Obama is a socialist.f) The author is surprised how often simple phrases win elections.

a) We offer our customers a wide / large spectrum of services.b) The actual / current president promised change four years ago.c) Being vague is the safest / securest strategy.d) I believe that his latest statement is just blank / empty rhetoric.

T F

1. they are available to help.

2. you find it surprising and impressive.

3. you find its origin or cause.

4. you make them dislike you.

a ➯

b ➯

c ➯

d ➯

Just words?

Which expressions marked in blue in the text are defined below?

4.

a) It announces a person’s opinion on the back of his or her car. a _______________

b) You might say it when you are angry. a _______________

c) You can hear it at a wedding, funeral or political rally. a _______________

d) You connect it with the famous person who first made it popular. a _______________

e) It is taken from a longer speech and often used because it is particularly effective. a _______________

f) Soldiers and politicians give it to encourage their own side. a _______________

a) If you alienate people,

b) If things or people are on hand,

c) If you marvel at something,

d) If you trace something back

to something,