Thanks Parker. It’s incredibly frustrating that legacy media worked overdrive to ignore what was right in front of them. They’re stunned that a documented liar lied to them.
I think about this story a lot when thinking about the forced naivete and credulousness of the Beltway media. Covering the Biden administration was boring for them. They were excited to get Trump back.
"I think it’s important for people to understand the context, that we’re coming out of four years of Biden and things haven’t been great,” one White House print reporter told CJR. “There’ve been fewer eyeballs on the press briefings and less attention than under Trump, so people just don’t understand some of the very frustrating things that we’ve dealt with and that we hope are going to be rolled back.”
"forced naivete and credulousness" is a great way to put it. Are they really this stupid or just pretending? I suppose for the victims it doesn't really matter.
The White House Stenography Corps just didn't have enough shiny objects dangled before them during Biden's term. Now, it's shiny objects 24/7, a firehose of lies that they can repeat to a credulous audience.
I still see headlines that start with "Trump says..." or "Krisit Noem says..." so the lie gets the headline, the proof that it is a lie is buried in the story. They're just never gonna learn, are they?
This is so excellent! It should be required reading for everyone who wants to understand why we’re in this mess and to realize that journalism isn’t always “fair and balanced reporting.” Doing background research is essential if we want the truth! Thanks for writing this wonderfully informative piece.
Do journalists read books anymore? When I did my internship covering the Colorado Legislature in 1996, we interns had informal “seminars” with The Denver Post political guru, Fred Brown. The hardest thing about Fred’s office was finding a place to sit. Books were everywhere. On the floor. On shelves, and, yes, on chairs. They weren’t for decoration. He was a voracious reader.
Which brings me to my point. One of the reasons, among many others, for BigMedia’s abject failure is the ignorance. My blog, which I confess I’ve neglected, warned of this even before yours or many others’ timelines. I invite you and others to meander through The Quintessential Curmudgeon but I call your attention to two links:
Then, in 2017, I read a book that changed my outlook and, to some extent, my life:
“Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America,” by award-winning Duke University historian Nancy MacLean. This book not only laid out the plans we’re seeing implemented now but Dr. MacLean also provides several deep insights into how James McGill Buchanan contaminated our nation with ultra-libertarian ideas. It’s past time for our opinion leaders to help the people understand all this.
To do so, after “Democracy in Chains,” read these books in this order:
“Dark Money” by Jane Mayer;
“Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right” by Anne Nelson;
“The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism” by Katherine Stewart;
“Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation,” by Kristin Kobes Du Mez.
People must understand this is a long-term plan hatched in the 1950s by Christian nationalists, who won the support of the millionaire/billionaire class. The seminal support for the movement came from Charles Koch and David Koch. Give them credit: With all that money, they have successfully outflanked the progressives in this country. And, give the Democrats their due for the feckless failure to see, understand and counter this movement. But here we are.
There will be no compromises from the billionaire class. QED, we’re on the edge of a civil war. When the populace finally feels the effects of this on their lives — on their new reality, they will take to the streets. But by then, the general population will be too weak to sustain the protest; and, except for the wealthy, the middle and lower socio-economic groups will be struggling to survive.
The endgame is a Convention of the States under Article V of the United States Constitution to roll back our Constitution to the 1850s. It will leave only two functions for government — militarized law enforcement and national defense. Our preview for what’s to come first came in Texas and Florida. These two states were the testbeds for some of the divisive social issues. Meanwhile, the immigration issue was used to stir up the MAGAts against “the others.” This isn’t about immigration. It’s the testbed for the oligarch’s version of the Brown Shirts from 1930s Germany.
There is so much more to this, but we know the first step to solve a problem is to understand it. It’s not my original thought, but I agree that the future of our democracy will lie in the hands of the military. We’ll then see whether their oath to the Constitution out weighs their loyalty to the fascists.
Agreeing with what you said, yet just a twist on your question.
Do Americans read books anymore or "opinions" that are more than a headline? Or attempt to understand anything that they don't passively digest from talking heads at Fox and others? Or "facts" from an algorithm, which is just corporate elites who pander to Trump telling you what you should know?
You are fortunate to have had Fred Brown in your life. There are far too few "Freds" today
Thanks for your comment. I've been a voracious reader all my life. I started reading the New Orleans Times-Picayune at age 9. I devoured the Hardy Boys and Tom Swift. All of those experiences were the gateway to learning that reading was the key to understanding the world around me.
It would be one thing if Trump and his cronies were subtle about their intentions. We know they're anything but subtle, however, and the mountain of evidence you point to quickly disparages the notion that this couldn't be foreseen.
Speaking of surprise, by the way, it doesn’t shock me that groups/organizations attuned to human rights saw Project 2025 for the blueprint it is before the press did. When the needs of the most marginalized are front of mind, you take these threats acutely seriously.
Every real reporter gets a blizzard of statements, accusations, denials, etc., every day. They stop and consider the source and the source’s track record of honesty and accuracy. All I’ve ever asked is for our wealthy political observers to treat Trump and his cohort the same way. And they steadfastly refuse to do it.
I dropped ALL subscriptions (even the guardian was pretend-ignorant). Dropped cable. I did this 2years ago, when they all went with trump. Only substack since then. I kept fb so I could share the truth with my friends.
Thanks Parker. It’s incredibly frustrating that legacy media worked overdrive to ignore what was right in front of them. They’re stunned that a documented liar lied to them.
I think about this story a lot when thinking about the forced naivete and credulousness of the Beltway media. Covering the Biden administration was boring for them. They were excited to get Trump back.
"I think it’s important for people to understand the context, that we’re coming out of four years of Biden and things haven’t been great,” one White House print reporter told CJR. “There’ve been fewer eyeballs on the press briefings and less attention than under Trump, so people just don’t understand some of the very frustrating things that we’ve dealt with and that we hope are going to be rolled back.”
https://www.cjr.org/political_press/white-house-press-corps-gears-up-second-trump-term-lahut.php
"forced naivete and credulousness" is a great way to put it. Are they really this stupid or just pretending? I suppose for the victims it doesn't really matter.
The White House Stenography Corps just didn't have enough shiny objects dangled before them during Biden's term. Now, it's shiny objects 24/7, a firehose of lies that they can repeat to a credulous audience.
and a new ballroom and triumphant arch, not to mention a drag (not LGBQT type) around the monuments in DC at high speeds. do they need anything more??
I still see headlines that start with "Trump says..." or "Krisit Noem says..." so the lie gets the headline, the proof that it is a lie is buried in the story. They're just never gonna learn, are they?
OMG; I feel like I’m smoking crack every time I hear somebody say they “had no idea it could get this bad”.
It was not just foreseeable, it was foreseen!!
Big Media is a pillar of the corporate sector. They will always err on the side of defending the status quo, because they are owned by the 1%.
This is so excellent! It should be required reading for everyone who wants to understand why we’re in this mess and to realize that journalism isn’t always “fair and balanced reporting.” Doing background research is essential if we want the truth! Thanks for writing this wonderfully informative piece.
Do journalists read books anymore? When I did my internship covering the Colorado Legislature in 1996, we interns had informal “seminars” with The Denver Post political guru, Fred Brown. The hardest thing about Fred’s office was finding a place to sit. Books were everywhere. On the floor. On shelves, and, yes, on chairs. They weren’t for decoration. He was a voracious reader.
Which brings me to my point. One of the reasons, among many others, for BigMedia’s abject failure is the ignorance. My blog, which I confess I’ve neglected, warned of this even before yours or many others’ timelines. I invite you and others to meander through The Quintessential Curmudgeon but I call your attention to two links:
https://www.thequintessentialcurmudgeon.com/2016/12/how-much-is-trump-like-hitler.html
https://www.thequintessentialcurmudgeon.com/2015/11/again-i-am-not-so-sure.html
Then, in 2017, I read a book that changed my outlook and, to some extent, my life:
“Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America,” by award-winning Duke University historian Nancy MacLean. This book not only laid out the plans we’re seeing implemented now but Dr. MacLean also provides several deep insights into how James McGill Buchanan contaminated our nation with ultra-libertarian ideas. It’s past time for our opinion leaders to help the people understand all this.
To do so, after “Democracy in Chains,” read these books in this order:
“Dark Money” by Jane Mayer;
“Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right” by Anne Nelson;
“The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism” by Katherine Stewart;
“Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation,” by Kristin Kobes Du Mez.
People must understand this is a long-term plan hatched in the 1950s by Christian nationalists, who won the support of the millionaire/billionaire class. The seminal support for the movement came from Charles Koch and David Koch. Give them credit: With all that money, they have successfully outflanked the progressives in this country. And, give the Democrats their due for the feckless failure to see, understand and counter this movement. But here we are.
There will be no compromises from the billionaire class. QED, we’re on the edge of a civil war. When the populace finally feels the effects of this on their lives — on their new reality, they will take to the streets. But by then, the general population will be too weak to sustain the protest; and, except for the wealthy, the middle and lower socio-economic groups will be struggling to survive.
The endgame is a Convention of the States under Article V of the United States Constitution to roll back our Constitution to the 1850s. It will leave only two functions for government — militarized law enforcement and national defense. Our preview for what’s to come first came in Texas and Florida. These two states were the testbeds for some of the divisive social issues. Meanwhile, the immigration issue was used to stir up the MAGAts against “the others.” This isn’t about immigration. It’s the testbed for the oligarch’s version of the Brown Shirts from 1930s Germany.
There is so much more to this, but we know the first step to solve a problem is to understand it. It’s not my original thought, but I agree that the future of our democracy will lie in the hands of the military. We’ll then see whether their oath to the Constitution out weighs their loyalty to the fascists.
Agreeing with what you said, yet just a twist on your question.
Do Americans read books anymore or "opinions" that are more than a headline? Or attempt to understand anything that they don't passively digest from talking heads at Fox and others? Or "facts" from an algorithm, which is just corporate elites who pander to Trump telling you what you should know?
You are fortunate to have had Fred Brown in your life. There are far too few "Freds" today
Thanks for your comment. I've been a voracious reader all my life. I started reading the New Orleans Times-Picayune at age 9. I devoured the Hardy Boys and Tom Swift. All of those experiences were the gateway to learning that reading was the key to understanding the world around me.
It would be one thing if Trump and his cronies were subtle about their intentions. We know they're anything but subtle, however, and the mountain of evidence you point to quickly disparages the notion that this couldn't be foreseen.
Speaking of surprise, by the way, it doesn’t shock me that groups/organizations attuned to human rights saw Project 2025 for the blueprint it is before the press did. When the needs of the most marginalized are front of mind, you take these threats acutely seriously.
I know you have issues with The Bulwark, but they have been on top of this for a long time.
Every real reporter gets a blizzard of statements, accusations, denials, etc., every day. They stop and consider the source and the source’s track record of honesty and accuracy. All I’ve ever asked is for our wealthy political observers to treat Trump and his cohort the same way. And they steadfastly refuse to do it.
Thank you Parker. At this point, every major institution in this country has betrayed the citizenry including the MSM. Unclear what next steps are.
I dropped ALL subscriptions (even the guardian was pretend-ignorant). Dropped cable. I did this 2years ago, when they all went with trump. Only substack since then. I kept fb so I could share the truth with my friends.