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.
Trump just repealed an executive order that established basic non-discrimination requirements for federal contractors that was signed by Lyndon Johnson and has been in place for 60 years
It survived Nixon, Reagan, Bush I, and Bush II. And even Trump’s first term.
And now it is gone
2. FACTS:
Executive Order 11246 does not require quotas
It does not require "reverse discrimination"
It requires government contractors to have a plan to reach out to women and other protected groups and collect data about their workforce
3. It has been an extraordinarily effective program. Prior to 11246 there were very few women or minorities working for government contractors. Now, that is not the case.
What will the impact of repeal be?
We may never know since we'll stop collecting data.
1. Donald Trump took the oath of office yesterday — the first person to be sworn in as president while hawking an eponymous meme coin
It is brazen corruption $TRUMP is effectively a "For Sale" sign on the White House, facilitating anonymous bribes in any amount
Follow this 🧵 for details
2. While meme coins are nominally tied to digital "artwork," they function primarily as a speculative asset.
On Sunday, the price of one $TRUMP coin soared to over $75, putting the value of the 200 million $TRUMP coins in circulation at nearly $15 billion.
Right now, $TRUMP is trading at $37.66.
3. 80% of all $TRUMP coins are reserved for Trump. At its peak, the value of these coins exceeded $50 billion, making $TRUMP, which did not exist a few days ago, the dominant source of Trump's wealth.
The $TRUMP coins owned by Trump are currently locked but will be released during his presidency
1. Elon Musk posted on X that he would provide a “free” month of internet access to those impacted by the deadly wildfires
But Musk left out a costly detail: To claim the free month, residents first would have to spend a minimum of $349 on a Starlink hardware kit
2. Musk also promised to "position Cybertrucks with Starlinks and free WiFi in a grid pattern in the areas that most need it in the greater LA/Malibu area." The post immediately earned Tesla and its newest luxury vehicle a wave of press attention.
3. But the actual deployment of Cybertrucks for relief efforts appeared to be limited. According to a post by Tesla later on January 12, eight Cybertrucks with Starlink kits were deployed in the area.
1. "You deserve leadership in Washington that does not answer to the lobbyists… or to the corrupt special interest but answers only to you," Trump said during his 2024 campaign
After he won, TRUMP IMMEDIATELY NAMED A CORPORATE LOBBYIST AS HIS CHIEF OF STAFF
2. Wiles joined Ballard Partners in 2011. After helping Trump in 2016, Wiles decided to help Ballard "set up a Washington office rather than join the new administration."
Ballard raked in $70M in fees during the first Trump presidency
1. Yesterday, Elon Musk — who for some reason is in charge of deciding what federal government programs are unnecessary — declared that the concept of homelessness is a "lie" and "propaganda."
Musk also suggested that virtually all unhoused people are "violent drug addicts" who cannot be helped.
Musk needs to educate himself. Starting with five basic facts.
2. FACT: 17% of unhoused people are children
A 2023 survey found 17 percent of unhoused people were children under the age of 18