A few notes about narratives in today’s world.
We need to acknowledge that the narrative is not the story or, more accurately, that it often has as much connection to what really happened as Rice Krispies has to rice (or, if you like, that oat milk horchata with double whip has to real coffee). There might be rice and coffee somewhere in the ingredients; the narrative might share a few facts with actual events but is really just a heavily processed item.
You have an event, and the narrative is what is created to lead you to what you think you should think about the event. George Floyd dying on a street while in police custody, Jan. 6 protesters in the Capitol, a President Joe Biden wandering off during an event. Those are facts.
The narrative purports to provide meaning, to help you to “understand” what is going on. Floyd is about systemic racism; Jan. 6 is about insurrection; Joe Biden was just curious about what was happening off-camera, and is still sharp as a tack despite what right-wing conspiracy theorists would have you believe.
Political narratives:
1) Mimic the human inductive process of assigning larger meaning to events, but then seek to exploit through interpretation the gap in human understanding between what one sees and reality.
2) The narrative is manipulative, it is meant to guide you toward a predetermined conclusion.
3) Narratives are designed to operate within a time-bound system. They are not meant to stand the test of time, but rather to move the ball down the field toward a larger outcome.
So, having said that, why should we believe a single word that Jake Tapper writes in his book?