[Opinion] The Media Culture War Performing Maga's 'Mental Victory'

Although there is a high possibility that prices, interest rates, and the overall U.S. economy will be negatively affected, President Donald Trump, who is confident that manufacturing will revive in the long term, is waging a tariff war against the world. Despite concerns that it will be the most foolish trade war in history, President Trump, who is shaking the global economic order by calling tariffs "the most beautiful word," is conducting "another war" within the United States.

Last week, President Trump was appointed chairman of the board of directors of the John F. Kennedy Center, a representative cultural and artistic institution in the U.S., and dismissed board members. The progressive-leaning Kennedy Center had staged a performance featuring drag queens, which became a source of controversy. He did not hide his ambition to turn the Kennedy Center into a stage for MAGA (Make America Great Again)'s "spiritual victory," saying, "Join me in my vision for a golden age of arts and culture."

President Trump became the first sitting president to watch the NFL Super Bowl. Pop star Taylor Swift attended the final match between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles to support her boyfriend and Kansas City's star player, Travis Kelce. The scoreboard frequently displayed the faces of Swift and President Trump. The cheers were for President Trump. After the game, he mocked, saying, "No one had a tougher night than Swift, who lost to Kansas City." This was a Trump-like grudge against Swift for supporting Democratic candidate Kamala Harris. Now, players who kneel during NFL games to protest racial discrimination can no longer be seen. Instead, they perform celebrations reminiscent of President Trump after touchdowns.

Right-wing culture is rapidly spreading in the U.S. now. The second-term Trump administration has declared the progressive agenda of the Joe Biden administration dead and is expanding its influence over the culture that Americans are passionate about, including entertainment and sports. The media has defined this phenomenon not as a cultural conflict but as a war. Since his first term, the Trump administration has fought fiercely against media outlets, cultural and artistic figures, and Hollywood stars. It even clashed with strongly conservative figures like Clint Eastwood and Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, now that President Trump has succeeded in reclaiming the White House, the victory in this war seems to have passed into his hands for the time being. Leading American companies are responding to Trump’s policies by abolishing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, showed where American corporate culture is headed by abandoning political correctness and choosing political alignment, stating, "Respecting diversity based on inclusion and running a great company is a different matter from issues of masculinity and femininity."

Last month, the White House announced that it would allow access to social media single-person media. More than 11,500 applications were received. Naturally, there is a political motive behind this. President Trump, who harbors hostility toward critical mainstream media, achieved great success by appearing on conservative podcasts during the presidential election. The most efficient weapon in the cultural war that carries out Trump’s "spiritual victory" is the media. He has prepared to expand and accelerate the battle through a "media cultural war" based on new media.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.