Right-Wing Media IS "Mainstream" Now

The Right-Wing Media Machine regularly rails against mainstream media, often calling it "lame-stream media," or even "the real fake news," as Sean Hannity often calls it.

Trouble is, that form of news is no longer "mainstream." Not even close.

Fox News currently occupies nearly 50% of all cable news viewership, according to Nielsen ratings. Which means everything else, CNN, MSNBC, Newsmax, OAN, all fits into that remaining half, and only one of those is ostensibly progressive-leaning. Newsmax and OAN carry roughly 9% of cable news viewership, meaning the right-wing side of biased news is only just shy of 60%. With CNN twisting in the wind like a weather vane, it's fair to say that two-thirds of cable news is now right-wing.

Newspapers are dead, with most of them having been bought up by oligarchs and hedge funds, stripped down to their barest essentials, and most of their reporters shown the door. We famously saw the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post refuse to endorse Kamala Harris, not because the staff felt this was right, but because of owners' edict. Both publications suffered backlash, but the owners are rich enough not to care.

Radio? According to the Center for American Progress, a startling 91% of political talk radio is conservative-leaning.

Television? Forget it. Roughly 40% of all local television networks are owned by Sinclair, a right-leaning broadcast company. True, they've been looking to sell off about 30% of what they currently own, but they're still dominant. Right behind them is Nextstar Media Group, which owns nearly all the rest, and dominates all television media in general with roughly 70% of all television stations, local or otherwise.

And then came recently this report from CNN, showing how 40% of young voters, particularly young men, get their news from social media sources, most of which lean to the right. In particular, X.com and Joe Rogan were frequently cited as news sources.

In fact, I think we can safely say that when Elon Musk blew millions on buying Twitter, which seemed to be a horribly stupid waste of money, he was wasting all that cash to have an outsized effect on the 2024 election.

And it worked!

And yes, everybody of sound mind is currently leaving X.com. An "X-odus," if you will (I wish I'd been the one to come up with that). But, as frequently is the case among us liberals, it's too little, too late. And what's left of X.com will continue as an even more depraved right-wing conspiracy-theory-ridden hellhole than ever before.

And that's before factoring in all the other social and digital media outlets which are right-wing. Or, for that matter, factoring all the foreign propaganda (looking at you, Russia & China) which poisons the social media of even balanced platforms.

Let's face it, Kamala lost for precisely the reasons I outlined in my earlier blog post.

Two words: Institutionalized disinformation.

So we need to re-define our terms. "Mainstream media" must now be regarded as the media of the political right. "The liberal media" simply no longer exists. Frankly, it hasn't existed for a very long time. Everything else which has heretofore been regarded as "mainstream," must now assume a different name. Legacy media seems to be the term which is winning out. And most of it isn't even left-leaning. The bulk of it is just the balanced media; the responsible media.

There is no counterweight.

So we're basically fucked as far as media is concerned. The oligarchs came in, and took away freedom of speech by buying up all the free speech outlets they could, then filling our ears with outrage porn aimed at defaming the Left. There's no way we can fix this easily. And we can't re-balance the airwaves by simply re-launching Air America Radio (remember that one?), or somehow bolstering NPR, or turning to the quixotic podcasts done by Keith Olbermann and Thom Hartmann.

We need to pass some laws requiring balance!

I'm not advocating censorship, any more than it is censorship to require a food product to faithfully report a package's contents on its label. The law recognizes that if a food company mislabels its contents, the consumer who buys it could get seriously sick. We need a similar set of laws governing our news outlets, and for precisely the same reason.

No one should be able to mislabel propaganda as "news" anymore! That's simply fraud!

I look forward to the possibility that Fox News might get forced to change its name to "Fox Infotainment" or some such. Certainly, the likes of Hannity, Gutfeld, and others will continue to spew their liberal-hatred as much as they are able.

But at least they might do so with a little less legitimacy. With reduced artificial authority.

No more institutionalized disinformation! It is our #1 enemy and, assuming we ever get another shot, stopping it must be our #1 priority.

Eric

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Don't Call RFK Jr A "Vaccine Skeptic"

I am a Skeptic.

I say this using a capital "S," because it is not just a self-description, it is a creed. I've been part of the Skeptic movement for over almost 30 years now, having joined it in 1997 shortly after the untimely death of my hero (and hopefully yours, too) Dr. Carl Sagan. I was a member of the Center for Scientific Inquiry (CSI) way back when it was still called "CSICOP" (the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims Of the Paranormal).

So it absolutely frosts me when everyone in the media keeps describing RFK Jr. as a "vaccine skeptic."

He is no such thing.

A Skeptic (capital "S") doesn't dismiss claims outright. A Skeptic investigates. A Skeptic confirms. Even if the claim is absurd, the Skeptic investigates anyway. If someone claims to have seen a UFO, the Skeptic will not simply dismiss it outright. He will look into it. He will likely find a much more rational explanation than our humble planet being visited by extraterrestrials, but he will at least take a look. Or at least count on the appointment of someone else (usually from Skeptical Inquirer magazine) to go take a look.

The classic example of this is Joe Nickell, who regularly made cable TV paranormal shows as the guy who looked into claims of haunted houses (back when cable TV was still a thing) and debunked them. Like the gang from Scooby Doo, he always found a human explanation rather than an actual ghost, but he never guffawed or ridiculed people for their beliefs. Instead he looked at the evidence, and found a natural rather than a supernatural reason for a seemingly ghostly encounter. In nearly all cases, the ghost-claimant acknowledged that Nickell was probably right.

Rejecting a claim outright with no investigation is not skepticism. It is cynicism.

In RFKJ's case, it is even worse than cynicism. RFKJ has taken a position of faith regarding vaccines. He ignores the mountains of evidence showing how vaccines are effective at preventing disease and instead embraces wild conspiracy theories which were debunked long ago. Such as claiming thimerosal, used in tiny amounts as a vaccine preservative, causes autism in children. He ignores that no vaccines administered to children under the age of 6 ever contains thimerosal, and hasn't done so for generations. He also ignores that thimerosal uses ethyl mercury, which the human body can expel in waste. Methyl mercury, an entirely different molecule, cannot be expelled from the body. RFKJ regularly confuses or conflates the two. What's more, any vaccine which contains thimerosal has it in only about 50 micrograms. For scale, that's roughly the equivalent of eating 2 cans of tuna.

I don't eat a lot of tuna, but I've certainly eaten a lot more than 2 cans' worth in my lifetime. I suspect you have, too.

RFKJ is no more a skeptic than a creationist is a "skeptic" regarding evolution, or a flat earther is a "skeptic" regarding our spherical planet. He is no more a "skeptic" than someone who denies we landed on the Moon in 1969, or that the Holocaust ever happened in Nazi Germany. These are conspiracy theories -- cults of the fantastical which prey upon those who are prone to jumping to conclusions.

In taking a position of faith regarding vaccine denialism, and founding an organization to promote and bolster his mad claims, he has literally made himself a cult leader.

So call him a denier. Call him a crackpot. Call him a fool for misusing his worm-eaten brain.

But please, stop calling him a "skeptic."

You soil the word each time you make that mistake.

Eric

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Why Biden Met With Trump

A lot of people were incensed by the above photograph. Those who know Trump effectively wants dictatorial control see this as a betrayal. Why would Biden agree to shake this monster's hand?

I found this picture offensive, too. I mean, who has a roaring fireplace in 50-degree weather?

But here's where Biden's integrity and intelligence outshines many of us. He recognizes that a peaceful transfer of power will ensure less animosity between Trump and the Democratic Party. He knows that if Democrats are to get another shot at all, it will depend upon Trump not seeing all Democrats as enemies. It will depend upon him merely circumventing the process rather than destroying it.

I know, I know, it sounds very much like the "roll into a fetal-position ball and the bear will get bored with you and go away" sort of defense. It's admittedly weak sauce. I get it. But honestly, it's one of the few options we've got with a realistic shot at working.

In my earlier blog post, I pointed out that Trump may well leave the democratic process alone so long as he gets his own way - for now. This gives us a narrow lane of opportunity to prevent a complete slip into fascism. I know perfectly well that J.D. Vance will not be so magnanimous, which makes our situation even more precarious. Vance outright admitted he is a fan of dictatorial systems.

Which leads me to part 2 of this blog post. I normally ignore the various emails I get wanting me to send money to them. A lot of these so-called funding drives and/or petitions are scams. But this one especially drew my ire:

That is exactly the ONE thing we can't do!

This junk email came from the Progressive Turnout Project. DON'T sign their petition! DON'T give them any money! This petition is so stupid I can't even begin to say. 

1) We're getting this email NOW?! AFTER the goddamned election?! I know we liberals are great at swimming after the ship long after it's set sail, but damn!

2) Why the hell should we expel Trump (assuming that's even possible) just to supplant him with J.D. Vance?

Why exchange an incompetent, hopefully temporary, dictator with a more competent, permanent one?!

Hang in there, folks. These are precarious times where we have to navigate some very treacherous waters. We cannot afford any more stupid mistakes. The only way we survive is by outsmarting the opposition.

And possibly outlasting them, too.

We need to use all our defenses, whether they be kindness or camouflage.

Eric

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The Next Big Lie

Responsible news sources called Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen "The Big Lie." And so it was. In fact, it was just one of many lies designed to convince people that up is down, black is white, and day is night, grass is purple, and voting for a criminal rapist/racist is actually a good idea. But under Trump's pending neo-Grover-Cleveland era, there is a new Big Lie coming. You can feel it already starting in various right-wing media outlets, and it's going to be very easy to sell. At first.

The lie will go something like this: "You see? Liberals said Trump was going to be a dictator. But he's clearly not. Life goes on just like before. It was all paranoia."

And that argument will seem true - until suddenly it doesn't.

Because Trump will probably interfere with the midterms. And it's even more likely he will mess with the 2028 election, especially if a "blue wave" hits him hard in 2026.

If he's still alive, that is. As the oldest elected president in history (he is currently older than Biden was when he was elected) he could very well die in office. And then it's J.D. Vance, the person who was caught on video espousing pro-totalitarian, pro-dictator views, who will preside over the election interference.

And then our elections will have no more of a (small "d") democratic outcome than the elections in Russia do.

It will be at that point when we tell the disciples of right-wing media, "I told you so." But of course, if they haven't hearkened to reality by now, they certainly won't then. They'll pretend those elections are absolutely legit, even though we on the left, and the remaining free nations of the world, will know better.

What will we do then? I can only imagine. But it will likely have to be drastic.

The jackboots aren't coming any time soon. Tanks will not be rolling through our city streets right away. That will likely take years. The move toward totalitarianism will be slow, and many of us won't even notice the moment the "Miracle of Philadelphia" finally expires. But it will.

Unless Trump fumbles the football at the goal line, and We the People actually get another shot. I'm not counting on that, but I won't rule it out, either.

Watch for it. It's coming. The Big Lie 2.0.

Eric

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Five Reasons To Hope

I've been rather doom-and-gloom in my posts lately. That's for good reason, of course, but always being negative doesn't do our collective mental health any good. So in this post, I thought I would do something positive and outline five reasons why we might have hope that democracy isn't quite dead yet. We may yet be able to snatch democracy from the jaws of fascism. (And if we do, we'd better make damned sure we don't blow our opportunity.)

Here are my five reasons. See if you agree:

1) Trump is utterly incompetent. We're seeing it already, as a transition team he should have had fully assembled way back in June or July has yet to name any but the most rudimentary of cabinet members, such as Chief of Staff. This is exactly the same mistake Trump made in 2016, and he never quite recovered from it. In fact, at no point during his first four years did Trump ever have a fully staffed cabinet, or diplomatic corps. There is a realistic chance that what saves democracy isn't the failure of those who defend it, but the ineptitude of those who would destroy it.

With Captain Wrongway Peachfuzz back at the helm, the one thing you can count on is a bevy of mistakes.

2) Because Trump won this election with an actual majority, he may not be tempted to subvert it in the future. Trump really and truly believes that he will always win. Twice now he has overcome being behind in the aggregate polling average up until the last possible minute, at which point he somehow manages to win. By winning an actual majority this time, he (and Vance, we hope) may come to believe that the vote will always go his way, and will therefore not attempt to subvert the electoral process in either 2026 or 2028.

You can count on a delusional man to maintain his delusions.

3) Biden can use these last remaining months to blunt Trump's future retribution. Perhaps he will give a blanket presidential pardon to all those Trump has named as enemies, preventing Trump from using the Justice Department to enact revenge. Perhaps he will enact other measures to blunt any future takeover or move towards totalitarianism. I very much hope he will, and it's something to watch for. Hell, I hope he pardons his son, Hunter, too. That would be a nice, parting kick to the Republican groin.

You can count on Biden in his final days, just as you could these past four years.

4) There will be a strong sense of betrayal which will play to our favor. The entire crossover vote will feel the pain of buyers' remorse as Trump's administration unfolds in a way other than what they expected. Muslims who voted for Trump or didn't vote altogether because they didn't like the Biden administration's approach to the genocide in Gaza will be shocked to see Gaza utterly destroyed to make room for new Jewish settlements. Young black men who voted for Trump in order to shake things up will find themselves dismayed as they and/or their friends fall victim to reinstated "stop and frisk" policies, racial profiling, and immunity for police brutality. White women who chose religion over a woman's autonomy will find themselves shocked by one news story after another of a woman dying of sepsis as doctors, too afraid of abortion bans to give the appropriate care which was needed in a timely fashion, end up waiting until the last possible minute, which proves to be too late for the patient. Latinos who voted for Trump will be shocked as their friends, and possibly even their relatives, are suddenly arrested and deported, despite many of them being documented.

You can count on customer complaints when you sell a phony product.

5) If the worst truly happens, and blue states are forced to secede from the Union, the majority of those within the MAGA echo-chamber will undoubtedly say, "Screw 'em! Let 'em go! We never liked those damned liberal states anyway! Good riddance!"

You can count on MAGA's irrational hatred of "woke liberals" to help prevent a Civil War.

Eric

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White Rose Movement 2.0

There was a time when those whom we think of today as "the Founding Fathers," were doing something radical, and more than a little bit foolish.

In the late 1700's, to stand against the might and power of the British Monarchy was foolhardy, to say the least. But some brave men actually did. They had names which were well-off, but not particularly well-known. Names like Hamilton, Jefferson, Franklin, Payne, Washington, Hancock, and Madison.

And what they wrought was a democracy which lasted almost 250 years.

Until this past November 5th, that is.

But their boldness came at a true fulcrum point -- a moment in history when great Men (in the non-gendered sense) are either made, or fall. In the end, their gamble paid off, and they forged a great democracy. It didn't last forever, but it was the first of many to follow.

Now is such a time.

There was also a time when people stood up to the likes of Adolf Hitler within Nazi Germany. They knew they were risking their lives to do so. They knew the price of failure. But they chose to stand up for what was right and good anyway. They chose to fight.

Their anti-Hitler movement was known as the "White Rose" movement. Many within it died. But a good many others succeeded after Germany lost the war.

Now is such a time.

Now is the time for the likes of Oskar Schindler (of "Schindler's List" fame) to stand up and save lives.

Now is the time for the likes of Dietrich Bonhoeffer to stand up for human rights, just as Jesus Christ would have in such a situation.

Now is the time for "Tank Man" to stand up to the massacre of Tiannamen Square. Remember that news story? When a lone, Chinese man, armed with only a shopping bag, stood up to a line of tanks and shouted, "Why are you attacking us?!" That type of courage is needed right now.

And we should also remember another great man, Mahatma Ghandi, who, like our nation's founding fathers, stood up to the might of the British Empire -- and won.

In all these crises, those who stood up were not always the ones who were victorious.

But they were all remembered.

Now is that time. Now is OUR time. White Rose 2.0! Now is when we fight back against Trump and Trumpism, as all people of conscience must.

Now is when we succeed, or fail. We may not win. But in resisting, we will never lose.

Either way, we will be remembered.

Eric

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A Message Of Hope For A Post-Democracy America

Well, I thought I was going to take a break from blogging, but...

Democracy has always had one, glaring flaw: that people have the power to vote for its own destruction. Last Tuesday, that's precisely what happened.

It's not Kamala's fault. Don't blame her. Sure, she had some missteps, mostly in not distancing herself from Biden enough and not speaking out enough for Gaza. But she ran a flawless campaign otherwise. As I've said before, in a sane world, she wins in a landslide. Trump, on the other hand, ran a reckless campaign, made one gaff after another, had one October surprise after another go against him, played to his twisted base instead of to the rational center, and somehow won anyway. No, this is not Kamala's fault. 

It wasn't "the economy, stupid." Not with inflation down to 2.1%, record job growth, and grocery prices slowly coming down. If Trump had presided over these economic numbers, he and all his followers would be bragging loud enough to rattle everyone's windows! Biden somehow gets zero credit.

No, the real problem, as I've been saying for years, is the Right-Wing Media Machine giving the illusion of legitimacy to utter falsehoods.

Two words: institutionalized disinformation. That's what did us in.

On the surface, the election seemed to have an air of democracy to it. The flawed Electoral College actually agreed with the popular vote totals for once (something we haven't seen for the Republican side since 1988). But here's the thing: There can be no true democratic choice if voters are being systematically and maliciously misled.

As I pointed out earlier, propaganda disguised as news IS election interference.

And that leads into a thorny question for political scientists everywhere: If the general public is fooled into thinking that day is night, up is down, back is front, and demented criminal rapists/racists somehow make good candidates, can there truly be a democratic choice? Or does institutionalized disinformation render the democratic process impossible?

I would argue it does. We just saw proof.

For a long time, we have been less a democracy and more an oligarchy. We have now, officially, slipped down to 100% oligarchy. Our votes were bought, because our news media was bought. And now we face the likelihood of becoming an outright dictatorship. Because roughly half of us were duped into thinking that was actually a good idea.

Because institutionalized disinformation, bought and paid for by the ultra-rich, drove us utterly insane.

So what do we do now? Cry in our beer? Wallow in depression? Wait for the Technological Singularity to come and save us? Flee to some other country while we still can?

No! HELL, no!

I will NOT give up! 

And most importantly, I will not SHUT up!

I intend to be at the vanguard of the last guardrail keeping Trump in check. I will endeavor to be a policy maker within the Democratic Party, seeing as how the current leadership is obviously too incompetent to target the primary problem. I will undermine Trump and the Right-Wing Media Machine in every way I can.

And I ask that you join me.

So my message of hope is simply this: It's never truly over if we decide it isn't over.

One way or another, we will find a way to bitch-slap this mass delusion called Trumpism into the dustbin of history. Where it belongs.

Truth! Above! All!

(But I'll also have a go-bag packed, just in case.)

Eric

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