Infamous mass murderer Charles Manson died yesterday, and Newsweek wasted no time comparing the psychopathic killer to President Donald Trump.
In an article published by the failing newsmagazine, titled, “How Murderer Charles Manson and Donald Trump Used Language to Gain Followers,” columnist Melissa Matthews draws comparisons between the evil cult leader and the president.
“Manson orchestrated the brutal deaths of actress Sharon Tate and six other innocent people in the 1960s, which leave many wondering how he convinced followers, made up of a former Sunday school teacher, a church choir singer and a one-time homecoming princess, into committing such brutal acts,” Matthews wrote.
She continued: “According to psychoanalyst Mark Smaller, past president of the American Psychoanalytic Association, part of Manson’s power lay in the type of language he used. Notably, Manson was able to speak in a way that engaged those who felt marginalized or alienated.”
Though she added that her source, Smaller does not believe there’s any comparison between Trump and Manson, Matthews attempts to make one anyway:
“Smaller is clear that he does not believe President Donald Trump is similar to the convicted killer, or that their followers have any shared beliefs or characteristics, but he did say we can look to the current president to see how language is used to form a bond with followers,” she continued.
“‘Our current president speaks in an emotional or effective way to large numbers of people in our country who feel a kind of alienation or disconnection from the government,’ [Smaller] said. ‘They feel very responded to and become his political base.’”
“According to the psychoanalyst, cult followers like those in the Manson family are so seduced by feelings of acceptance and understanding that they accept their leaders’ ideologies regardless of how destructive or dangerous they may be. ‘It’s not even the content of what that charismatic leader says,’ [Smaller] said. ‘He or she is able to do it in an emotional way.’”
Matthews relied on another psychiatrist – Dr. Carrie Barron of Columbia University – to connect Smaller’s analysis to Trump.
Matthews wrote: “‘There’s a very distorted dark side of empathy,’ [Barron] said. ‘You can use empathy to get inside another person and manipulate. You know the inner workings of another person. You’re able to perceive that without thinking about it.’
“For example, manipulators might connect to their followers by holding their hands while speaking or looking them in the eyes.”
“But while it’s clear that manipulators, like cult leaders, prey on people using language, Barron said there’s usually a combination of factors that make them successful. And she warns that many times the perpetrators appear more vulnerable than they really are, though there’s still a lot that we don’t know about these types of people, according to Barron.”
AAN Staff
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