🧵Our national news media, describing lying GOP candidates as mere "skeptics," has taken sides in the battle for democracy. Fascists who lie about our electoral system aren't viable candidates for office. Media must stop softening their immorality. We need pro-truth frames. 1/
Fascism expert @ruthbenghiat explains: "The GOP's aim is to debase the whole idea of elections, so the fundamental democratic idea of relying on elections to choose leaders is compromised." The midterms are a referendum on how well America's newsrooms have conveyed the threat. 2/
Euphemisms like "election denier" convey validity to a strategic disinformation campaign. 70% of GOP voters believe lies they've been fed. News media creates a nationwide permission structure to "deny" elections. A candidate who "disputes the 2020 results" is lying. 3/
"Dispute" suggests there's something to dispute. There's nothing to dispute. "Deny" suggests something occurred to be denied. There's nothing to deny. Describing liars this way is itself a way of lying to readers - on behalf of fascists. If you're MAGA, does this read as bad? 4/
It gets much worse. Here's how @washingtonpost & @rubycramer, just weeks from election day, portrayed Kari Lake, a person who lies to everyone whose vote she wants. Voters deserve the blunt truth about candidates who lie. The subhead dubs her a "Republican phenom." Lake PR. 5/
.@MarkJacob16 nails down what's so wrong with this type of glossy coverage that only manages to imperceptibly nod at the danger. 6/ #FixMediaNow
Any frame other than one forcefully identifying the dangers of anti-democracy MAGA candidates, is a dangerous violation of public trust. Media cultivates reality. Everything we know about national politics is filtered down from coverage like that of @rubycramer. 7/ #FixMediaNow
🚨We've developed a series of guidelines for pro-democracy, pro-truth election coverage that we URGENTLY recommend our national media adopt.
⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️ mediaanddemocracyproject.org/prodemocracyco…
We'd love it if you checked them out and shared them as widely as possible.
A 🧵The @nytimes is failing democracy & being run as a Trump/GOP protection racket. Editorial #FrontPage CURATION shapes narrative. What is - and isn’t prioritized - reflects opinion & bias. 1/n cc: @MarkJacob16 @ruthbenghiat @mtomasky @anatosaurus @AnandWrites @NewsJennifer
Given the breadth of PUBLIC information about corruption and impropriety this is long overdue.
Thank you @propublica for doing journalism. NYT is bitter and jealous about you receiving the Pulitzer for your heroic work.
NYT is vanishing SCOTUS corruption.
2/
@propublica .@AOC introduces substantial articles of impeachment.
NYT does not deem a New York Congressperson taking such a drastic measure #FrontPage worthy.
Is @nycscribe deciding whether such articles receiving a vote in a GOP-led House make it newsworthy? 3/
@jonathanvswan @maggieNYT @jdawsey1 @peterbakernyt @danbalz @semaforben @AsteadWH @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @NBCNews @AP @CNN @CBSNews @ABC @MarkJacob16 @NewsJennifer @ElieNYC @NoLieWithBTC Trumps plan will kill and maim children AND defund public schools. There is no doubt of this.
#TrumpIsUnfit but corporate media refuses to say so. This enables and licenses Trump.
@PostGuild @NYTimesGuild have you any say in the newsroom? Is this the Fourth Estate?
ALERT: #FraudulentEuphemism
Editors’ language choices have tremendous impact on Americans understanding of our world.
Today WaPo normalizes dictatorship & makes destruction of American democracy sound sexy with: “muscular Oval Office”
1/n
@ruthbenghiat @mcopelov @Will_Bunch
This piece provides important context and “stakes” of the 2024 election. Thank you @bethreinhard
It’s unfortunate WaPo editors have softened the edges of the facts presented by their choice of euphemisms.
FYI “Post-constitutional” = dictatorship
2/ @TimothyDSnyder
@bethreinhard @TimothyDSnyder We need regular Project 2025 coverage and discussion of dictatorship and fascist movements, not soft-pedaling “violating norms of exec overreach”.
IDEA: How about a weekly Sunday deep dive A1 on Project 2025?
🧵BREAKING: Newsrooms Rush to Communicate That Trump's Felony Conviction Doesn't Matter
While many front pages prominently carried news of Trump’s guilt, our most influential newsrooms are already communicating to the public that they should not consider this a very big deal. 1/
Newsrooms can make a big deal out of, and paint as a beyond the pale scandal, anything they want. That they haven't made those choices for Trump suggests a willful desire not to. News execs are choosing to normalize Trump and downplay his disqualifying behavior. Terrifying. 2/
Would any other politician receive such framing? Consider, none of the articles had to be written at all. Each of those outlets could have chosen to use the occasion of Trump’s historic conviction to instead call for him to drop out of the race. Alas, a bizarre whitewash. 3/
🧵Epic 4th Estate Failure: News orgs @WSJ & media stars like @maggienyt @jdawsey1 w/#FreeEvan bios have been mute on Trump’s insane extortion/brag 5/23/24.
Journalists should see themselves in Evan in a second Trump term (or more).
That @SallyBuzbee @nycscribe cannot muster the courage to stand up for Evan in any meaningful way - tells you legacy news orgs are not worried about “democracy” and are enabling American fascism.
2/
@SallyBuzbee @nycscribe Please read this by @brianstelter in @newrepublic the future of journalism and media under Trump rule is ominous.
Journalists need to sound the alarm. This is not normal.