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The biggest news story right in America is our slide into authoritarianism.
The mainstream press is - intentionally - refusing to cover it.
Here’s an example./1
The mainstream press is - intentionally - refusing to cover it.
Here’s an example./1
Yesterday the president* said he wished we could commit war crimes against migrants, and called his opponents traitors for their attempts to hold him to the rule of law.
Each of these should be huge news. Scandals.
I didn’t see them on the home pages of CNN, MSNBC, or NYT. /2
Each of these should be huge news. Scandals.
I didn’t see them on the home pages of CNN, MSNBC, or NYT. /2
It’s possible they had articles that mentioned these things. What I’m saying is, these things are worthy of having their own news articles - framed as what they are, a president* pushing for authoritarian powers. /3
We do occasionally see stories about that in these big outlets, but they’re almost always opinion pieces, not straight news.
That’s a conscious editorial choice to say our descent into authoritarianism is a matter of opinion.
It’s cowardly and dangerous. /4
That’s a conscious editorial choice to say our descent into authoritarianism is a matter of opinion.
It’s cowardly and dangerous. /4
So why are they doing this?
Here’s my take, in the context of their willful naïveté when Barr’s letter came out. /5
Here’s my take, in the context of their willful naïveté when Barr’s letter came out. /5
But here’s the short version. They mainstream press is looking away from American authoritarianism because that’s what they always do. It’s what they’re built for. /6
Worth noting the political news those big outlets had on their home pages. Barr and Mnuchin stonewalling and lying like the lackeys they are. The quotidian details of a descent into authoritarianism. But the framing was mostly partisan - “Barr did this, Dems said that.” /7
That he said, she said framing is a go-to move when the press wants to avoid calling out the GOP. They’re choosing a subjective framing instead of an objective one that relies more on fact and expert opinion. A steady attack on democracy becomes two teams on a playing field. /8
Another important point. They avoid putting all these news stories into the big picture. It’s the equivalent of calling every white supremacist terrorist a lone wolf. /9
Or reporting on each mushroom in a fairy ring without describing the ring. Because they don’t want to cover the underlying roots and connections. /10
So where does that leave us? We have to get the word out ourselves, online and in real life. We have to support the outlets and journalists who are covering this. We have to demand better of the big outlets, but stop expecting it. Right now they’re part of the problem. /end
