Trump’s War on Independent Media
It’s an uncharacteristically subtle attack that’s not getting nearly enough attention
First things first. I’ve been quiet for the past month because I had a total knee replacement. It’s not because I have nothing to say. I will write more as I am able, but for now, I will focus on short pieces with a narrow focus.
Trump’s manipulation of local media
If you look at Russian media, you’ll notice that the state controls everything. This is where Trump wants to take America. With Trump supporters scattered throughout the country, we are starting to see a movement toward media manipulation that should concern everyone.
Rachel Maddow has covered this well, but for those who prefer to read the news, I will also cover it here.
A subtle but effective strategy for stealing the public’s attention
This is just one example, but if this effort succeeds, you can bet it will happen elsewhere — so don’t think it’s not important simply because it is local to somewhere you don’t live.
First, we must remember that Trump’s strategy is to push the envelope to see what he can get away with. Once he succeeds, he pushes again. This is why paying attention to what he does now is essential, even if it seems like it’s happening in some faraway place that doesn’t affect you.
The news on Long Island
In Long Island, New York, the paper of record has historically been Newsday, an independent publication without political or partisan ties. When certain public information is required by law to be disseminated throughout Long Island, it gets published in Newsday. At least, it used to.
However, that has recently changed.
A local Trump-supporting official in Long Island has rescinded that paper’s status as the paper of record and decided that all publicly required notices will now be published in the New York Post instead. This means anybody interested in the announcements regarding the public records in Long Island must now look for them in the New York Post — a Trump propaganda rag.
What’s almost as troubling as the change being announced is that the coverage of this change buries the lede. It attempts to cover this as a benign event — a simple matter of the Post “expanding its coverage.” But if you read the second paragraph of the article, you see the most critical part:
“The expansion coincides with Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman designating the New York Post as the county’s official newspaper, a title previously associated with Newsday.”
Like FOX TV, The New York Post is controlled by Rupert Murdoch — the same media mogul who was forced to pay over $700 million to Dominion voting systems for lies told about the 2020 election.
While this notice calls out Bruce Blakeman by name, it fails to mention that Bruce Blakeman is a Trumper — and not just any Trumper. Blakeman is also participating in an organized plan to rally local private militia to “supplement” law enforcement.
Like the Proud Boys, or the Oath Keepers, Blakeman’s private militia will be poised to fight for whatever cause he and Trump deem worthy. It should be clear by now that this is a man we should watch very closely.
The Long Island shenanigans are not the only line of attack Trump and his minions are executing to undermine independent media. They have also turned their attention to NPR and PBS
NPR and PBS are being targeted by the FCC
Public broadcasting receives a minor amount of money directly from the government. The bulk of their budget comes from big donors. If you watch PBS or listen to NPR, you know that those donors promote their organizations by announcing their contributions as part of the programming on those stations.
Trump’s FCC wants to stop that. They want to prevent the big donors who help make PBS/NPR possible from receiving public recognition for their contributions.
Imagine if the FCC told the executives at Pepsi that they were free to give money to any television show they wanted to, but they couldn’t advertise their product during the commercial breaks. Of course, it’s not exactly the same with PBS, but the goodwill of people and their willingness to get involved with the organizations that promote PBS/NPR do have some value to these organizations. Therefore, taking away their ability to benefit from that could diminish the motivation for contributing large sums of money to them. And that is exactly what Trump wants.
If they can slowly remove the motivation for large donors to contribute large sums, both PBS and NPR could slowly fade away. And that’s the plan.
How we can fight back
These are but two examples of how Trump and his like-minded representatives are using subtle means to slowly cripple independent media — media that is non-partisan and focused on news rather than manipulation of the public designed to benefit the rising oligarchy.
Our biggest challenge is to stay aware and alert so we do not fall prey to these manipulations. If you live on Long Island, you should be able to search The New York Post for public notices without reading the rest of the nonsense they post.
As we’ve learned from the algorithms Meta (Facebook) and Twitter employ, the minute you start accessing information designed to titillate rather than inform, you’ll be tracked, and more will come your way. Protect yourself. Nobody else is going to.
And if you are a fan of NPR or PBS, this would be a good time to consider increasing your monthly contribution.
That’s all I can manage for now. Until next time, be safe and be smart. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.