Thread by @Reilly2020

It’s late and for many Montanans, tomorrow only brings a fresh hell of bad news from the fascists now running our state and blooming in full force in our communities. 1/

I think back to June 2019 and the Montana Newspaper Association conference that inspired me to run for Governor. At the main banquet, I sat at a table with an Indigenous journalism professor and a half-dozen white men who talked for an hour about the ‘Skins.’ 2/

They were talking about the Washington Football Team mascot, laughing and joking like complete and total assholes. You know how many other women or people of color were in that room? Less than a handful. It was a sign of what was to come in Montana. 3/

Sure, it was vindicating to see the Indigenous professor rise when called as emcee. The look on the white men’s faces when it was revealed that this man was there to direct the program was priceless. But I was still filled with impotent rage. 4/

Adding to the fact that I had to smile and be friendly to journalists who had stolen from me all while being ignored by a man who took tens of thousands of dollars of my business, the menfolk at the table dismissed my concerns about shutdown of press access to GOP candidates. 5/

Tonight’s freak show in Sidney, Mont. was something I saw coming years ago. So many journalists brushed off concerns I voiced that night at the MBA dinner. Every one of them who did was a self-important white man. They dismissed real danger and I felt someone had to stand up. 6/

So I filed for office to be mocked as a candidate. I didn’t care; no one else was taking the danger of authoritarianism seriously, especially not our 4th Estate. A moneyed religious zealot was at the time the only candidate for Gov and #mtnews just printed puff pieces on him. 7/

After filing for office, I then experienced the distilled self-importance of journalists here and their snide dismissal of a candidate like me. I witnessed many violations of journalistic ethics, all much greater than a publisher of an arts paper running for public office. 8/

I did what I could but now my coffers are empty and my hope is thin. If I’ve done some good for the state in standing up for truth and transparency with my publications, I hope that’s my legacy. Instead of turning away, I turned up, year after year, to try to tell the truth. 9/

Here’s some truth: my community sits atop a 1.7 million gallon petrochemical plume off gassing toxins. Without continued reporting, folks unknowingly buy homes that give them cancer as BN works in lockstep w/the GOP to censor this truth and avoid responsibility. 10/

I see toxic authoritarianism and cult-like religious movements here only growing and I wonder about the folks in MNA, not leadership there or the reporters in the trenches, but the people in #mtnews who could make a difference but are still silent. 11/

I’ve always elevated truth about public health/climate change in my publications. I was even willing to stand up and fight against bigotry and sexism, too. Unfortunately, I was born the wrong gender to make a difference in Montana (unless I want to sell my soul to the GOP). 12/

When Gov Schweitzer called me to kvetch last spring, I asked him why he reached out. He said he wanted to tell me I was right. In my essays I railed on about all of this but no one was ready to hear it, least of all #mtnews. His affirmation was no consolation. We’re effed. 13/

Here we are, Montana. I’m so thankful for @daily_montanan and news outlets who are now holding elected officials accountable. But without local news sources covering the rise of authoritarianism AND reaching readers on the ground, we’ll face far worse than we’ve seen so far. 15/

This is the final warning I can give. I’m worn out with the bigots and racists and the folks who should know better but cannot even acknowledge that women and minorities deserve equal opportunity, which means liberal white newsmen need check their self-importance at the door. 16/

I’m worn out and tired of the toxicity. As predicted, elected officials are now shutting out any press they don’t like from their rallies, ignoring constituents who they should hear and represent, and pissing on the Montana Constitution. We are now in crisis. 17/

Do you know why people still buy houses full of poison gas in Livingston? $$. Follow this money and it leads to the coffers of the @GOP leaders here. And protecting BN is just the tip of the fossil fuel-covered GOP iceberg. But where is the reporting connecting dots? 18/

Does anyone remember what Trump did to America? 1/6? That’s nothing compared to what the @GOP has planned for our state. This is Code Red. Hey, #mtnews: no more racist jokes or demeaning perfectly capable women. We need a solid and fair Fourth Estate to right this ship. 18/

Help by making donations to news sources trying their best. If you’ve a business, place ads in papers and eff Facebook/Insta. Free online journalism struggles to reach folks on the ground. I just had to bankroll a paper for three years w/40k+ readers but only 5 advertisers. 19/

If we want to stop authoritarianism from taking hold here, we must support news outlets that value diversity, reach wide audiences and strive to hold elected officials accountable. If we fail, it will be because we did not read this writing on the wall. FIN/