The Politics of Editing

Editing has always been political. Soviet montage theory was explicitly designed to create ideological meaning through the collision of images. Modern political advertising uses the same techniques — juxtaposing a candidate's face with disturbing images creates associations the audience processes without conscious analysis.

Documentary editing creates apparent objectivity from subjective choices. Which interviews to include, how long to hold a reaction, what to place before and after a statement — these decisions shape the "truth" while maintaining the illusion of neutrality.