Published 2025-07-09
tag(s): #politics #random-thoughts #film-tv
I was filling up my thermos with hot water for my morning mate, to chow down on a bagel with cream cheese. A true clash of cultures, the typical Argentinian drink[1], and a New York City staple, acquired in a street cart.
And on the lunch area TV, there was this news ticker thing about Superman being canceled
(paraphrasing) and I was like what? and when I got back to the desk, a quick search
later:
"Superwoke:"
Fox News rages that new Superman film has "pro-immigrant themes"
Feel free to follow that cancerous link, and share my outrage. Actually, if you haven't yet...stay here. Let's go over a couple quotes that caught my attention, and then I will make an argument to not follow the link. I fell into the trap so that, hopefully, you don't.
There are so many conflicts in the Middle East, the Ukraine-Russia war, Texas floods...and
this is what you decide to use your screen time on?
Then again, you have to fill 24 hours of "news", so at some point you are going to veer into
banality, it is almost unavoidable. This has been said a lot of times before, but doesn't stop
being true.[2]
The movie's director said [...]Superman is the story of America. An immigrant that came
from other places and populated the country, but for me, it is mostly a story that says basic
human kindness is a value.
, and this in turn caused these reactions:
"I'm going to skip seeing Superman now. Director is an absolute moron to say this publicly the week before release," conservative radio host and OutKick founder Clay Travis groused. Fox News star Laura Ingraham, who has demanded that celebrities with liberal political opinions "shut up and dribble," made sure to inform her followers that this was "another film we won’t be seeing."
Positive outcome: I learned what "grouse" means.
Now, all superhero movies have been pushing what they would call "woke" themes. So how come
this particular statement is the one that caused this Travis guy to skip the movie. Is this a
real stance, or something he is making up now just to sound angrier?
And same goes to Laura Ingraham. After a quick search (didn't know who she was), I found out she is very quick to tell everyone to shut up...and apparently fond of telling people what to watch, since she is suggesting her followers join her in not seeing the movie. But, again, is that a real sentiment? Probably, she only cared to comment about this just to have some fabricated anger.
Yes, you read these statements, probably got annoyed (or mad) that such hateful people get paid to spew their stupid opinions...and then what?
For starters, how long can you be mad, before it is bad for
you, as I argued
before?
And then, what about the people they are influencing? If you go to a radio host, or a Fox News
star, for your media recommendations...is there any point in arguing about anything with you?
What kind of dialogue can you expect to have with people who get that mad about a comment like
"Superman is an immigrant"? Or someone who sees the screenshot above in the (allegedly) news,
and gets more engaged, instead of switching channels?
If you buy into the fabricated hate for a movie that hasn't even premiered, what kind of
critical thinking are you equipped with?
But let's go one more level deeper in the reflection: I got triggered by the news, then looked for the link, read the article, got mad enough to spend time thinking about the manufactured hate. If I keep engaging with this too, aren't I as much a "victim" of the machine as the target audience of Fox News?
Sometimes Juan would get annoyed about something a classmate said, and I would explain to him,
"their words only have as much power as you give them". I think I should take my own advice to
heart.
I engaged with the "Superwoke" moniker, because I thought it sounded too ridiculous to be
true, but the more I read, the more serious it all turned, and then I starting getting more
invested.
If we all ignore these things more, they will naturally stop. The more the crazies are
screaming into a void, the less their opinions will matter. No?
I don't think I have a conclusion.
Whenever someone falls for an obvious lie, I like to remind myself it could happen to me too,
to stay intellectually vigilant.
This is similar, "oh the conservatives got all triggered by a stupid movie", well, guess what,
I was getting all triggered by their stupid opinions on a stupid movie. They got me with the
funny and silly Superwoke, and I fell into the rabbit hole without even realizing.
Let's not engage with these ridiculous pretend news anymore. Or at least I will try not to.[4]