Pete Daoust
It refers to making a situation seem something it is not by creating the situation in such a way that the spectators react in a predetermined manner. This phrase was popularised a few years ago by the Robert De Niro film by the same name - "Wag the dog", in which Whitehouse media men created a false press release showing some war-like scenario unfolding in order to take the pressure off of the president, and create a favourable reaction in the populous for the president to take "appropriate" response. The response obviously wasn't appropriate, as the scenarion was false from the beginning.
The question which gives rise to the phrase "wag the dog", is: Does the dog wag the tail, or does the tail wag the dog? You see the tail moving, you assume the dog is wagging it, and enjoying it, but maybe the tail is wagging the dog, and the dog is enjoying the attention!
Printed copy · Anthology Volume 6, page 1163
