The Witness Chronicles, 10/30/24

The Washington Post thing

I Am Not Canceling My Washington Post Subscription

It’s still the most sane media source out there

This election has seen a shameful decline in journalism with revered media like the New York Times whitewashing the truth in the name of ‘fair and balanced’ coverage. Or phony news media like Fox and and the far right mouthpieces like Newsmax pretending they are legitimate sources of unbiased information.

In this sea of shame masquerading as journalism, the Post has been the best source online for coverage of an election that could very well be the last in the long history of our democracy. I often disagree with their editorial choices and am not comfortable with it being owned by one of the wealthiest men in the world, but generally they have stuck to their longtime principles.

Other sources, notably The Guardian out of Britain and PBS News, have also been reliable sources. They tilt towards liberal, as does the Post but they also show us events from both sides and perspectives.

Boycotting a source like the Post because they have chosen not to endorse a candidate is understandable, but for me it risks us losing an important voice of reason in an unreasonable media landscape. But there is another thing to consider.

First, media endorsements do not change minds. Neither do celebrity endorsements. One exception might be the Taylor Swift endorsement of Kamala Harris because the Trump campaign pushed a fake image implying she was behind him. But her backing did one major thing: it got a large number of young people to register, a not insignificant achievement.

Whether they will vote is another question.

The Post has not always endorsed and there is the question of how a media source that does can be seen as fair and balanced. And, because of the extensive coverage this story has had, we know their intention was to endorse Harris, no big surprise. But there is a bigger story here and it is about the role of mega billionaires in politics.

The federal government is the single biggest customer for Elon Musk’s businesses, representing an estimated $18.5 billion in annual sales, including SpaceX and Tesla. Musk has gone all in on betting that Donald Trump wins, though his businesses are so essential to the government that he has little to lose if Harris wins.

Jeff Bezos, owner of the Post and reportedly the decision maker behind not endorsing, is also in the space business and may fear retribution by Trump if he endorses Harris. We saw the same thing with the LATimes, also owned by a billionaire doing business with the government.

There is a huge amount of fear in the air right now, generated by the right with open threats of revenge for perceived wrongs done to Donald Trump, a man who demands loyalty but never returns it.

In this charged atmosphere, whether a media property endorses or not is big news. But we need organizations like the Post to help us navigate the confusing and cloudy information maze and to shed light on the flood of lies and fake stories generated from dozens of sources.

The intent behind all of this is to make us question what the truth is. And what facts are. And vital things like scientific research and the reality of climate change. When we live in a world veiled by uncertainty, that veil provides cover for the rise of authoritarian figures like Trump, Putin, Netanyahu, and Orban, men who oppose freedom of speech by the media.

While I may not respect the reasoning behind the Post’s decision, I believe it is essential that they continue their work and that we continue to support them. The right openly tells us they will shut down basic rights, including the right to free speech. Without responsible media, the door will be open to achieving that goal.

If you ‘like’ this, please consider supporting my writing with a small donation through Buy Me A Coffee, a site for supporting creators, or by upgrading to the paid subscription option. I realize not all readers can afford to help out and that my writing needs to earn your support, so all my content is available to all subscribers. Thank you, ME