The Kavanaugh Files

About Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and her testimony on September 27, 2018, The New York Times’ Peter Baker wrote: “For a dozen days, Dr. Blasey had been an abstraction rather than a person, the focal point of one of the most polarized debates in a polarized capital without anyone having seen her, met her or heard her. But on Thursday, she became a very human being, telling a terrible story about Judge Kavanaugh in compelling terms that brought many women to tears and transformed the battle for the Supreme Court. She came across as Everywoman — an Everywoman with a Ph.D. — at once guileless about politics yet schooled in the science of memory and psychology, ‘terrified,’ as she put it, to be at the center of the vortex. By the end of her testimony, even Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, the Republican committee chairman, thanked her ‘for your bravery coming out.’”

Actor Robert M. Thaxton Stevenson performs a section of Christine Blasey Ford’s opening statement entirely verbatim, using her original words, gestures, stutters, and stumbles. New names have been assigned, but they preserve the cadence of the original speech patterns. When necessary, pronouns and other words have been changed to match the inverted gender of the performer.

As you watch, consider the following questions:

• What happens to your perception and understanding of Blasey Ford’s remarks when the gender of the speaker is flipped?
• How does the flipped gender of the speaker affect your experience of the emotions on display throughout the remarks?

Original Source Material: News 19 WLTX, 27 September 2018

Time Stamp: 15:18-18:22

On September 26, 2018, Wall Street Journal writers Corrine Ramey and Jacob Gershman wrote of Arizona prosecutor Rachel Mitchell: “While Ms. Mitchell has specialized in sensitive legal work throughout her career, largely spent in Maricopa County, she has never faced such intense national scrutiny. Those who have known Ms. Mitchell in Arizona describe her as caring, competent and fair. A Republican, she isn’t known for being visibly political, say people who know her professionally. ‘You’re not going to have a Perry Mason moment,’ said Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, referring to the fictional defense attorney. ‘Rachel is not going to pound away on people trying to break them down. When you’re being respectful of individuals like this, you’re going to pursue the truth.’”

Actress Heleya de Barros and actor Scott Michael Morales perform a section of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony as she is being questioned by Rachel Mitchell, but Morales portrays the words and gestures of Rachel Mitchell. The text is performed entirely verbatim, including Blasey Ford’s and Mitchell’s original words, gestures, disfluencies, and stumbles. New names have been assigned, but they preserve the cadence of the original speech patterns. When necessary, pronouns and other words have been changed to match the inverted gender of the performer.

As you watch, consider the following questions:

• What happens to your perception and understanding of the exchanges between Blasey Ford and Mitchell when Mitchell’s gender is flipped?
• How does the flipped gender affect how you experience the line of questioning and the responses to the questioning?

Original Source Material: PBS NewsHour, 27 September 2018

Time Stamp: 59:59- 1:04:03

In an article for New York Magazine (October 1-14, 2018), Heather Havrilesky wrote, “Imagine that a woman accused of a crime shows up for a Senate hearing and mostly cries and shouts about how persecuted she feels. Imagine she loses her temper several times during her opening statement and refused to answer yes-or-no questions.”

Actress Suzy Jane Hunt performs a section of Brett Kavanaugh’s opening statement entirely verbatim, using his original words, gestures, stutters, and stumbles. New names have been assigned, but they preserve the cadence of the original speech patterns. When necessary, pronouns and other words have been changed to match the inverted gender of the performer.

As you watch, consider the following questions:

• What happens to your perception and understanding of Kavanaugh’s remarks when the gender of the speaker is flipped?
• How does the flipped gender of the speaker affect your experience of the emotions on display throughout the remarks?

Original Source Material: PBS NewsHour, 27 September 2018 / Time Stamp: 10:10-13:14

In his analysis on CNN.com on September 28, 2018, Chris Cillizza identified that “with an impassioned attack that displayed his clear anger, frustration and impatience with both the process and the Democrats sharing the dais with him, [Graham] gave Republicans from the White House on down a shock to the system -- a wake-up call that fundamentally altered the remainder of the Kavanaugh hearing.”

Actress Rachel Tuggle Whorton performs Lindsey Graham’s speech during his allotted time for questioning Brett Kavanaugh (voiced by Daryl Embry) at the hearings on September 27, 2018. The text is performed entirely verbatim, including Graham’s original words, gestures, stutters, and stumbles. New names have been assigned, but they preserve the cadence of the original speech patterns. When necessary, pronouns and other words have been changed to match the inverted gender of the performer.

As you watch, consider the following questions:

• What happens to your perception and understanding of Graham’s remarks when the gender of the speaker is flipped?
• How does the flipped gender of the speaker affect your experience of the emotions on display throughout the remarks?

Original Source Material: Fox News, 27 September 2018

On September 28, 2018, Amber Phillips of The Washington Post cited Senator Amy Klobuchar’s questioning of Brett Kavanaugh as one of the “5 moments from the Kavanaugh hearing that have both sides buzzing.” The exchange between the senator and the judge appeared to unsettle both of them, and following a short recess, Kavanaugh returned and apologized to Klobuchar for his response to one of her questions.

Actress Suzy Jane Hunt and actor Daryl Embry perform this section of Brett Kavanaugh’s testimony as he is being questioned by Senator Amy Klobuchar, but with the genders inverted. The text is performed entirely verbatim, including Kavanaugh’s and Klobuchar’s original words, gestures, disfluencies, and stumbles. New names have been assigned, but they preserve the cadence of the original speech patterns. When necessary, pronouns and other words have been changed to match the inverted gender of the performer.

As you watch, consider the following questions:

• What happens to your perception and understanding of the exchanges between Klobuchar and Kavanaugh when their genders are flipped?
• How do the flipped genders affect your opinions of the initial exchange and the apology that follows?

Original Source Material:

Part 1: PBS News Hour, 27 September 2018

Part 2: CBC News, 27 September 2018

Timestamp: 6:57:46-7:00:28