Rumors

                When dealing with politics you will always have wedge driving aggression rumors, which “[divides] groups and [destroys] loyalties”, and this is what lead to an investigation of how Hillary Clinton received donations for her presidential campaign (Knapp 497). It also helped destroy her credibility and she loss some supporters because of it.    

                The rumor began when someone claimed that Clinton approved a quid pro quo deal with Russia, giving away 20% of uranium, to gain monies for her foundation. The rumors began with a book written by Peter Schweizer called Clinton Cash. However, Donald Trump turned the rumor into an even bigger deal. He changed the rumor slightly by saying that she solely approved the arrangement of 20% of America’s uranium to Russia.  He used this allegation at least three times during his presidential campaign and is why I consider it to be a wedge driving aggression rumor. He used this rumor to gain support for his presidency and for people to also lose faith in Clinton.

                What makes this rumor bothersome is that Clinton had little to no involvement with the approval of transferring the uranium to Russia. First, the only person who has the sole authority to approve or veto that deal was the president, but he was not involved.  Next, there were nine cabinet members who actual approved the deal and Clinton was not one of them. The Assistant Secretary of State, Jose Fernandez, was one of the nine members who represented the State Department, and he said that Clinton was not involved in the matter. Lastly, the donations that her foundation received did not coincide with the date of the uranium agreement. The funding was given to her before the deal was even considered.  

                This rumor would be considered a conspiratorial plot by Daniel Goleman standards.  That type of rumor puts fear and anxiety into people. It makes them think that something that was so sacred to America, uranium, was secretly given away for one person’s self-gain. Then, this rumor fits into all the classification that Robert Knapps made for rumors. This rumor was simple and short, and changed rapidly for the need of a certain person’s presidential campaign. This person had power and could persuade a massive amount of people at one time. It also had vital information left out of it, like names of the members who approved the agreement, and was exaggerated immensely. Furthermore, the rumor could catch on and stick because of the email scandal that Clinton was involved in. Lastly, the rumor encourages “shared human sense-making” because Americans looked for the answers by discussing it on social media, and with friends and family. People wanted to believe in it because it would further discredit Clinton as a viable candidate. It would validate what each person was already thinking when more people agree with the rumor.

                Rumors are great for sparking conversation out fear or anxiety for finding the truth. However, it does not always bring you closer to the truth. This holds true for Clinton and was a hurdle for her during her campaign. 

Link to article https://www.snopes.com/hillary-clinton-uranium-russia-deal/