By Chauncey DeVega, a senior politics writer for Salon. His essays can also be found at Chaunceydevega.com.
One of the great errors of the American mainstream news media in the Age of Trump is an assumption that democracy is a settled matter in this country and that Republicans and Democrats are both equally invested in normal politics and consensus where the differences are just “partisan” and not existential. In the Age of Trump (and the years and decades that brought us here), that is manifestly not true. Public opinion polls and other research show that today’s Republican Party and larger “conservative” movement no longer support pluralistic multiracial democracy. Any members of the news media who conclude “everyone already knows” about Donald Trump’s violence so “why keep reminding them, it is old news,” is committing a number of gross errors in logic and inference.
Most Americans do not follow the news and current events closely. Moreover, political scientists and other experts have repeatedly shown that the mass public is ignorant and not highly sophisticated in terms of their political decision-making and knowledge. Even worse, public opinion polls now show that a larger percentage of Americans are possessed by collective amnesia and are actually yearning for a return to the horrible years when Donald Trump was in the White House.
This refusal to adapt and change for the better in service to real pro-democracy journalism and its dictate to pursue the real truth and not just what is comfortable and the “consensus”, is one of the many reasons why the mainstream news media has lost credibility with huge swaths of the American public.
Channeling Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels, Donald Trump and many of his MAGA followers have already targeted the American mainstream news media and its reporters and journalists as “enemies of the people.” To that end, Trump and his enforcers are threatening and planning (as publicly documented in Project 2025, Agenda 47, and elsewhere) how they are going to put “disloyal” and “non-complaint” (in their words “unpatriotic”) reporters, journalists, and other truth-tellers in the back of those pickup trucks right next to President Biden and their other enemies. Those threats are not metaphorical. They are literal.
When the autocrat, fascist, or some other enemy of democracy tells you what they are going to do you should always believe them. They are not kidding. Unfortunately, too many members of the American news media refuse to do so — and it will only be their undoing. They were repeatedly warned. Denial will not save them.
Bruce Gerencser, 66, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 45 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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I know many who are hoping for the end of the Trump years. Unfortunately, they also have views aligning with the Conservatives as well, and are oblivious to the fact that now most Conservatives are with Trump, if only out of cowardice.
What I am sick of is the media still reporting Trump’s word vomit as breaking news. Still treating him as a serious candidate. The left leaning news I read criticize Trump, but the mainstream news still acts like it’s all normal. Like those babbling Truth Social posts are on the level with the Gettysburg Address or I Have a Dream speeches.
Enough! The media needs to ignore the nonsense and start reporting on his and his followers actions and threats. Start reporting on his obvious mental decline. Start asking why the courts seem so willing to bow to him.
I guess that’s too much to ask.
The American media,both right and left don’t do enough to help average people protect themselves,and when it comes to things like Project 2025, most people haven’t heard of it,nor the people chomping at the bit to implement it. Celebrity scandals and local crimes take up most of the reports. A little while ago, I just read that Iran may go after Israel within 48 hours, because they hit important people in Iran’s military there in Syria- and they didn’t bother to warn Biden first ! Netanyahu is treacherous,he needs to go. And Putin says now that Russia is geared up for a confrontation with NATO. France has some troops in Ukraine, now that is just stupid ! I don’t have TV, so I don’t know if by now this is broadcasting yet in real time. NPR in LA went into some detail about what would happen if Russia hits us here- 1.6 million dead. They never said this before today. As in, what if….? Talk about creepy! The warships there in the Red Sea, Putin won’t say just why they’re arriving now, but it’s possible they’re there to assist Iran . And this red cow thing now,all simultaneously. Because of all this b.s. going on , being in a small town like Ney makes sense, from a safety standpoint.
One thing I don’t see in the American media( and very irresponsible) is not looking into and promoting biofuels for cars and other vehicles, like switchgrass, and steam engine tech, even fusion, because of how suddenly regular fuels we’re used to can be choked off- I mean ,how we’re at the mercy of the Middle East, the UAE has the largest oil refinery in the US( Texas). And Iran has announced on Reuters.com, that they may close the Straits of Hormuz, which is between the UAE, and Iran. The Houthis will help to enforce this, should it come to that. If this happens, what will the average American consumer do ??