1. You may be wondering WTF is happening at the New York Times.
Let me explain in plain English.
2. Google and Facebook are destroying the journalism industry. The legacy publications that have survived are under pressure to appeal to the widest possible audience.
When the NYT plays "both sides," it's not about journalism. It's about the business model.
3. The NYT does some amazing journalism but, in a lot of cases, it's poorly positioned to challenge people in power. It needs ACCESS to powerful people for its reporting. And it needs to be a comfortable place for powerful corporations to advertise.
4. The NYT times is happy to suck up your anti-Trump dollars with these "truth" t-shirts. But, as any Times reporter will tell you, they do not oppose Trump. It's a scam perpetrated by their marketing department.
5. Unfortunately, journalism that is aligned with power, rather than opposed to it, is becoming the norm. Local independent outlets are being bought up by huge corporations. Coverage is being neutered and homogenized.
6. If you are looking for an alternative model that is focused on taking on power, check out my newsletter, Popular Information. Our scoops come from primary source documents and ordinary people.
3. America PAC also used Musk's extreme wealth to manipulate people, giving them the impression that they could "win" $1 million by signing a petition when it was not a lottery and the people who received the money were predetermined
1. Trump is not a policy wonk and is not eager to talk about what specific policies he would pursue if he returns to the White House.
But in the closing hours of the campaign things are coming into focus.
Follow this thread for details
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2. One point of contention is Project 2025, the 922-page blueprint written by members of the first Trump administration under the auspices of Heritage.
3. Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts, told the Financial Times that he is "personally close" with Trump and talks to him "often." Roberts says that "based on conversations with President Trump and his associates… some large percentage of these recommendations will be in the mix for implementation."
He chose, despite his conflicts, to intervene in the paper's editorial decisions & spike an endorsement of Harris
Bezos claims people who care about journalism have no choice but to accept his decisions — and trust his benevolent leadership
2. The only alternative giving him a pass, according to Bezos, is to rely on "off-the-cuff podcasts, inaccurate social media posts and other unverified news sources."
But it is possible to do meaningful journalism without being under the thumb of a conflicted billionaire
Independent outlets like @ProPublica, @404mediaco, @MarshallProj, the @TexasTribune, @MotherJones, the @TheProspect, @BulwarkOnline and, yes, Popular Information do it every day
1. @ElonMusk is spending 9-figures to elect Trump, appears alongside Trump at rallies, and his Super PAC is coordinating w/the Trump campaign
Musk just produced the most misogynistic ad in the history of politics
Coverage of the ad has ranged from muted to non-existent
2. "America really can't afford a 'C-Word' in the White House right now," America PAC posted, adding a laughing emoji. "Kamala Harris is a ‘C word,’" the narrator of the ad says. "You heard that right. A big ole ‘C word.’"
3. The "joke" of the ad is that Harris is a "communist." Of course, Harris is not a communist. And the ad makes no effort to show she is a communist. The line is only included as a pretext to repeatedly use a crass, misogynistic slur against Harris.
1. Three GOP state senators in North Carolina have demanded an investigation of state Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs
They claim that Riggs has "blatantly violated" the Code of Judicial Conduct
Riggs' transgression? She mentioned reproductive rights in a campaign ad.
2. In a TV ad, Riggs says that "women should be in charge of our own reproductive health care"
She notes that the GOP nominee for Governor, Mark Robinson, supported a total abortion ban and her opponent "could decide if [Robinson's] ban becomes law"
3. In a letter to colleagues announcing their request for an investigation, the Republican Senators claim that the North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct "prohibits any judicial candidate, regardless of the office they seek, from taking a position on any issue that may appear before the court."
This is false.
The North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct states that judges "should abstain from public comment about the merits of a pending proceeding in any state or federal court dealing with a case or controversy arising in North Carolina." Riggs’ ad does not comment on any pending court proceeding.