Category Archives: News Media

Time for Some Left-Wing Cletus Safaris

Posted on June 29, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Over the last decade, multiple news organizations have inflicted Cletus Safaris on their readers, in which a reporter goes to a diner or some other folsky communal spot and talks with MAGA diehards with the goal of Elucidating The Real … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, News Media | 2 Comments

The Political Press Corps Still Does Not Understand What the Epstein Files Mean for MAGA

Posted on June 11, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Or maybe they’re just afraid to say it. Yesterday, the NY Times ran a palace intrigue story about the Trump administration’s attempt to manage the fallout from the Epstein files. It’s clearly informed by Vice-President Vance’s people, but it’s still … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, News Media | Comments Off on The Political Press Corps Still Does Not Understand What the Epstein Files Mean for MAGA

Axios and War-Based Trollbait

Posted on January 6, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Or, if you prefer “Every time I’ve become needlessly angry online it’s because of some dumb shit published in Axios.” It’s trivially easy given roughly 250 House and Senate members (not to mention their ‘senior staffers’) to find someone who … Continue reading →

Posted in Bullshit As a Load Bearing Structure, News Media, Venezuela | 1 Comment

Three Ways to Help Change the Media Environment

Posted on October 31, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

Before I get into the meat of the post, I realize that there would be campaign finance issues, even in a country where the law is now spelled lol. But it’s a (hopefully) useful thought experiment. In the 2024 election … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, News Media | 2 Comments

How Do We Support a Gajillion Independent Journalists?

Posted on October 30, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

As the left, construed broadly, is slowly realizing that so much of politics is downstream of the information environment, we have to start thinking seriously about how to fund a more favorable information environment. Ana Marie Cox gets at what … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, News Media | 1 Comment

“Simply Untethered to Facts”

Posted on October 7, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

Yesterday, I briefly mentioned how a recent opinion temporarily staying Trump’s takeover of the Oregon National Guard* used the phrase “simply untethered to facts.” It’s from this section of the opinion: …this Court concludes that the President did not have … Continue reading →

Posted in News Media, Resistance Rebellion And Death | 2 Comments

Liberals Need to Learn That the New York Times Is a Conservative Newspaper

Posted on August 6, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

By conservative, I do not mean MAGA or White Christian evangelical (nationalist), but they are conservative. In case you missed it, there seems to be a real disconnect between what The Harvard Crimson and the New York Times are reporting … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, News Media, Resistance Rebellion And Death | 1 Comment

The Elimination of Federal Funding for NPR and PBS Provides an Opportunity for Democrats

Posted on July 21, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

Last week, Republicans passed what was called the recissions bill, which among other things, eliminates all federal funding for PBS and NPR, including the local affiliates. This is awful, but there is an opportunity here, if Democrats are willing to … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Democrats, News Media | 1 Comment

The Free Press Isn’t So Free Anymore

Posted on July 16, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

The fear of retribution is powerful (boldface mine): I suspect it will take Color Revolution-style resistance—perhaps including state violence against peaceful protests—before mainstream news acts like Trump’s abuses of power are newsworthy again. But Trump would have to be hard … Continue reading →

Posted in News Media, Resistance Rebellion And Death | 2 Comments

Material Reality Versus Propaganda ‘Reality’

Posted on July 9, 2025 by mikethemadbiologist

The relative importance of material reality versus propaganda, as Brian Beutler notes in this bit about immigration, is something professional Democrats need to wrap their heads around (boldface mine): I think it’s definitely fair to say Biden and Democrats underestimated … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, News Media | 3 Comments