These days, when you hear about a “manifesto,” it’s usually in connection with a shooting or terrorist attack. It wasn’t always that way. In Dan Taberski’s Manifesto, audio documentary maker Dan Taberski (Hysterical, 9/12, The Line) dives into the long, complicated history of that most confrontational of documents, exploring many different examples from recent decades. Along the way, he attempts to compile a manifesto of his own, a response to the tumultuous times in which we’re living.
Though there are only six episodes, Taberski covers a lot of ground with his Audible series. He talks to some of the leading figures of the Occupy Wall Street movement, who managed to inspire many more people than they’d originally imagined with their manifesto, but ultimately couldn’t channel that energy into actual results. Then there are the Free Staters, who got thousands of people to move to New Hampshire with the aim of building a libertarian utopia – much to the annoyance of many native Granite Staters. There’s even a Thomas Jefferson impersonator, who takes his job very seriously, and while in character answers Taberski’s questions about what he was feeling when he wrote The Declaration of Independence.
Amidst all these idealists, Taberski also looks at Apple’s famous 1997 "Think Different" ad campaign, often referred to as the company’s manifesto, to discuss how the idealism inherent in the making and proclaiming of these declarations can be subsumed by corporate cynicism.
The series also explores the split in the notorious hacker group Anonymous between those who wanted to use their collective might to go after nefarious organisations and affect positive social change, and those who just wanted to mess with people. Be prepared to learn far more about something called "Operation Slick Pubes" than you probably wanted to…
Taberski is an excellent navigator across these turbulent waters. His show is a genuine marvel, one that gives you the sense that he’s thinking through things in real time, honestly contending with the contradictions and conflicting feelings brought up by the huge array of different people he encounters, while never losing the overall thread. Taberski is a warm, personable narrator who often addresses his audience directly, and as such, it feels as if we are a part of this journey. That invites us to think through our own opinions in a bracingly immediate way.
Beyond his skillful delivery, Taberski is also a very funny host. When asking an Anonymous member how the pubic hair for the aforementioned operation was collected, the Anonymous member replies, "That is such a good question.” Taberski’s dry response – “Thank you… I’m a journalist!” – is delivered in a hilarious deadpan. Even when the ground being covered is a lot more serious, it’s never too long until you hear his wonderful, hearty laugh.
And yet, there’s also a real sadness to Dan Taberski’s Manifesto. As with many podcasts this year, the series is, in large part, inspired by America’s semiquincentennial, which Taberski describes as "a birthday party held inside a burning building."
He understands the desire to corral that amorphous pain and fear and despair and rage at the way the things are right now, which seems so overwhelming and intractable, into concrete action. As such, when he’s talking to manifesto makers throughout the series, there’s always an element of awed respect that they’ve gotten further than 99% of us in actually managing to corral their frustrations into something tangible, even when he might not agree with their goals. Perhaps this explains some of the public’s fascination with Luigi Mangione.
It’s that combination of the light and the dark that provides the conclusion here. Taberski doesn’t have an answer for all the ills of the world – it would be unfair to expect that of him. But he acknowledges the need for something big, and potentially scary. Simultaneously, he recognises that amidst the arduous battle for a better world, we still need peace, and some hearty laughter of our own, if we aren’t all going to lose our minds before we get to whatever is on the other side of… this.
Ultimately, while it would perhaps be a stretch to call Dan Taberski’s Manifesto hopeful, it’s still a fascinating exploration of times when others have channeled their hopelessness into positive action and an honest, thoughtful look at how we might begin to do the same.
