The Washington Post editorialized a couple of days ago about the explosion of local "newspapers" that are actually just hyperpartisan attack sites in disguise. Here's the fifth paragraph:
Stories are generated by robots and sometimes stuffed full of made-up quotes — a trend known as “pink-slime journalism.” The name is borrowed from a pasty meat byproduct added to ground beef sold in supermarkets to unsuspecting consumers. A tally of these websites by Columbia Journalism Review researcher Priyanjana Bengani found that hyperpartisan liberal “local news” sites were dwarfed by their conservative counterparts. The number is staggering: at least 1,100 sites through numerous networks run by at least five distinct corporate entities, in every state, all of them traceable through a confusing web of limited-liability companies to businessman Brian Timpone.
Why the fifth paragraph? Because for some reason the Post's first four paragraphs are all about fake liberal newspapers, even though by their own count there are 1,100 conservative versions of pink slime journalism and only 62 liberal versions. But if you just skimmed the first few paragraphs and then turned the page you'd never know this. You'd think it was an exclusively liberal phenomenon.
My old friend Monika Bauerlein, CEO of Mother Jones, is also upset at this little drive-by shooting:
Apologists on both sides of the political spectrum argue that all outlets these days are biased, even when they don’t admit it — so what’s the difference? But the distinction is obvious. People know more or less what they’re getting when they tune in to Fox News or open up a copy of Mother Jones. These institutions’ primary purpose is to make money by putting out news, and they don’t profess in their very name to be independent.
I would be pretty careful about comparing a small, nonprofit magazine—or anything else, for that matter—to a massive, moneymaking juggernaut of outrage and fake news. It's true that the point here is simply that both outlets aren't pretending to be something they aren't, which is fair enough, but why not show a little more care and compare, say, Mother Jones and National Review? Or Fox News and MSNBC? Nobody who even tries to do honest journalism deserves to be in the same sentence as Rupert Murdoch's cancer on the soul of America.
Conservatives are highly motivated to inflict harm wherever they can on anyone they can, there is not even a trivial equivalence of this among any other group.
It sounds like Facebook Fodder for Profit. I wouldn't be surprised if it's mostly conservative fake papers because that's where the money is in terms of who is mostly like to share the articles.
I think there is a difference in motivation and intent. The conservative fake-news news sites are reaching for a larger audience and looking to spread their ideology far and wide. Often they do this by hammering on "sensitive" issues like crime, inflation, or our New and Ever Present Gender Discourse.
The liberals don't even bother reaching for a larger audience. Hell, they don't even put the effort in to creating sites. They are happy to just preach to the choir on Twitter and soothe everyone with stories about how everyone else are just fascists.
Ir works both ways. Watch the entire clip; it's only four minutes long.
+4
I love that map. Apart from New York and maybe a couple of others, the shading just reflects the population ranking of the states. The big reveal: California, Texas, and Florida have big populations.
Yeah, what the map says to me is that Brian Timpone is an evil genius who can make lots of bucks showing ads to people who are hungry to read stuff that makes liberals (especially those in charge of their state) look bad.
And the best (and worst) part is that it's easy enough to predict what will get clicks that he can have bots do it and not pay writers.
Kevin wrote:
"Nobody who even tries to do honest journalism deserves to be in the same sentence as Rupert Murdoch's cancer on the soul of America."
I assume you are aware that Fox could cease operations tomorrow and we would still have that same cancer on the soul of America. Fox has proven to the world that inciting fear and anger in elderly whites is a viable business model. If they stop doing it then a dozen other networks will immediately start moving for that market niche. There's gold in them thar hills!
It may be that liberals will eventually find a way to counteract this. Or it may be that America will be irrevocably torn apart because so many of us are constantly being told to hate our neighbors. I don't know which is more likely.
I agree. How about everyone recognize that the Golden Rule - do unto others as you would have others do unto you - is the the foundational principle of every legitimate religion and philosophy, including science and capitalism. Then recognize that putting hypocrites - people that fail to abide by that principle - into leadership positions is a really bad idea. Then act on that basis by voting Democrat in 2022.
Speaking of Mother Jones and fiercely independent journalism, why have they seemingly studiously avoided any mention of the brouhaha in LA over the leaked tape. I would think that something which leads to the President calling for city council members to resign is at least noteworthy.
Which “side” coined the term “pink slime” anyway?
I read the WaPo article far enough to catch the deception. Worst kind of both-sider-ism.
Looks like the WaPo editorial board reads jabberwocking because the article now compares Fox to MSNBC not Mother Jones.
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