“Refuse to do live interviews with proven liars like Trump, Elise Stefanik and Ron Johnson. Tape them and properly fact-check them.”
Don’t just tape them and properly fact-check them—“here’s what Ron Johnson said and by the way it’s not true.” Make the fact that they lied the story. The entire story. And if they come back on, make the first question “Why did you lie to us last time and why should we believe anything you say now?” And the second question and the third.
The flak I caught in my last newsroom job for asking why we never used the word “lie” about Donald Trump was … not encouraging. And very enlightening.
Thank you, Mark, for your words here. Been feeling a little paralyzed by fear lately, while also feeling annoyed at the number of (and wording of) the fundraising text messages I’ve been receiving. Your post is helping me get more clear eyed and focused. Especially the last part about doing this as a gift to our children and beyond.
When I was in school I learned about things like post-Reconstruction and Japanese American internment and thought “God I’m glad I don’t live in one of those times where everyone was so stupid. What could they have been thinking?” Now, unfortunately, I know.
From a historical perspective, most Americans live like nobility, in bubbles of extraordinary pampered wealth. At the same time, they are overwhelmed by anxiety, engendered by a hyper-competitive, advertising-laden infosmog that constantly is telling them they are insufficient and need more. The anxiety is what makes them susceptible to the hateful nonsense spouted by Trump and his minions. The solution is awareness and critical thinking--and taking action to defend our democracy, as you suggest.
These are not abstract possibilities; the consequences of Trumpian governance are being felt by American citizens this very minute. All one need do is look across state lines. If you are in Oregon, you have the freedom to decide if, when, and how to have children. If you live in Idaho, you don't. If you live in Iowa, you do not have the freedom to raise your child as you see fit. If you live in Minnesota, you do. If you live in Utah, your child cannot read award-winning books unless you can afford to buy them. If you live in Colorado, you and your child can check those books out of the library. All of these things are the consequences of voters' decisions. Whether or not these freedoms, and more, are taken away nationwide will be a consequence of our decisions between now and November 5: to vote or not; who we vote for; do we vote in every race; do we urge others to vote; do we urge others to join us in speaking up... We do not need to imagine. We need to help everyone else see what is already happening.
Thanks for this. Top of my list is supporting voter registration and getting out of the vote given that *everything* is at stake: For our Republic and our allies, for women, immigrants, the LGBTQIA+ community, every minority, and all people of faith who reject White Christian Nationalism and its variants as bearing *zero* relation to the exhortation to love thy neighbor and embrace the bonds of civic reciprocity. Have courage - together, we can do this.
You have suggestion for what the press and public should do but you left out one other incredibly important set of actors—Democratic Party politicians and elected officials.
They, in particular, need to act like this is an emergency situation. They need to be driving a strong & consistent message on this but too often they default to lame "bipartisan" bromides that actually *mask* the severity of what we face. Too many Democratic senators are content to coast rather than convene hearings to drive the news cycle. The Democrats have assented to let Hunter Biden be investigated and yet where's *their* hearings in the Senate on why the hell the Saudis gave $2 billion to Jared Kushner?
Yes, I agree us voters need to get out and support the Dems in the fall. But the party also needs to be shoring up its base and not talking down to it on issues like Gaza.
It would be cool if the MSM could dedicate a section of its reporting (not on the front page) to the question "Ask yourself if it matters." THERE they could report all the gaffes by both candidates, stories about the stupid shoes, and the question of age. On the latter, there could be the addendum: The two candidates are going to be both old men. Suck it up. Live with it.
I hate to tell the MSM, but by the time you are in your 70s and older, 4 years difference in age means squat in itself. It is how you ACT in your later years that matter. Remember "don't trust anyone over 30?" When you are 26, 4 years older is elderly. When you are 77, 81 is part of your own cohort.
I shared this post, with this introduction: "I agree with Mark we all must be frightened about the consequences of the coming election, and we must do everything in our power to save our democracy. These are not idle threats we are facing. The consequences of losing this election to the wannabe dictator would be dire. Please take these warnings I have posted and will continue to post very seriously. Please share the warnings with your friends, and ask them to share them, and ask them to support or join grassroots organizations working to get out the vote among the youth, the apathetic, and the disillusioned and beg everyone to vote blue in November. Please."
I totally agree and like other have been fearful and angry and depressed all at the same time. I am not sure how we get the media to stop normalizing the GOP. They are all about making money and unfortunately covering Trump/GOP makes money.
Additionally people do not want to hear talking points - I just read that more people think the economy was better under Trump. Of course they are looking at prices and not the bigger picture. Also the situation in Gaza is getting way too much negative press and Trump plays to that (of course he wants to be like Bibi)
Oh. My. God. I am alarmed! And so is everyone else I know! AND, I'm already doing everything you suggest (except social media, which I left in 2017)...but I still feel like it's not enough. :( Thank you for the list of actions nonetheless. It is something I've been yearning to see the media (meaning MSM) provide. Don't just wind people up. Give them a job to do!
I agree we should be alarmed. Trump is a very dangerous candidate, and if elected, he will bring with him people who will put authoritarian practices in place. We should not minimize the danger he presents. Meanwhile, I think some in the media are helpful, but not others. I'm disappointed in the overemphasis on polling and the assumptions made by the NY Times. The last poll released on March 2 favors Trump. But Simon Rosenberg (of Hopium Chronicles on Substack) says "there are problems with the NYT poll - It has Trump winning both Hispanics and women - an impossibility." Also, he says "the poll has almost twice as many rural voters in its sample as was the case in the 2020 election. It has Trump winning all his 2020 voters, and keeping his party unified - something that is not happening" in voting in the primaries or in polling in the early states. (For more details please read Simon Rosenberg's Hopium Chronicles on Substack.) Such polls by the NY Times seem counterproductive. and they are discouraging. I know people who are writing letters to the editor or to the journalists themselves, and that will be my strategy too.
Is complaining the same thing as "doing something?" Over the past few years, we have been diligently working on a sustainable model to address the decline of local journalism and accountability. Our approach is radically innovative, and the state and local news leaders we've spoken to understand its vision and value, leading to partnerships with several of them. However, when we reach out to national industry leaders and organizations whose feedback and involvement could be beneficial, there is a nearly universal lack of responsiveness. It's not just a failure of imagination; it's a failure to stand up when the time and opportunity arrives.
I know these are your opinions, but when you take something so out of context, to whit: "Dictator on day one", you lose credibility in my mind. He was referring to shutting down the border and letting the oil companies drill. And he said he would only be a dictator for one day. Read the story, for goodness sake. Context DOES matter. You made him sound like Mussolini. You appear to do what you accuse the media of doing. You know better.
“Refuse to do live interviews with proven liars like Trump, Elise Stefanik and Ron Johnson. Tape them and properly fact-check them.”
Don’t just tape them and properly fact-check them—“here’s what Ron Johnson said and by the way it’s not true.” Make the fact that they lied the story. The entire story. And if they come back on, make the first question “Why did you lie to us last time and why should we believe anything you say now?” And the second question and the third.
The flak I caught in my last newsroom job for asking why we never used the word “lie” about Donald Trump was … not encouraging. And very enlightening.
Thank you, Mark, for your words here. Been feeling a little paralyzed by fear lately, while also feeling annoyed at the number of (and wording of) the fundraising text messages I’ve been receiving. Your post is helping me get more clear eyed and focused. Especially the last part about doing this as a gift to our children and beyond.
When I was in school I learned about things like post-Reconstruction and Japanese American internment and thought “God I’m glad I don’t live in one of those times where everyone was so stupid. What could they have been thinking?” Now, unfortunately, I know.
From a historical perspective, most Americans live like nobility, in bubbles of extraordinary pampered wealth. At the same time, they are overwhelmed by anxiety, engendered by a hyper-competitive, advertising-laden infosmog that constantly is telling them they are insufficient and need more. The anxiety is what makes them susceptible to the hateful nonsense spouted by Trump and his minions. The solution is awareness and critical thinking--and taking action to defend our democracy, as you suggest.
Nailed it!
These are not abstract possibilities; the consequences of Trumpian governance are being felt by American citizens this very minute. All one need do is look across state lines. If you are in Oregon, you have the freedom to decide if, when, and how to have children. If you live in Idaho, you don't. If you live in Iowa, you do not have the freedom to raise your child as you see fit. If you live in Minnesota, you do. If you live in Utah, your child cannot read award-winning books unless you can afford to buy them. If you live in Colorado, you and your child can check those books out of the library. All of these things are the consequences of voters' decisions. Whether or not these freedoms, and more, are taken away nationwide will be a consequence of our decisions between now and November 5: to vote or not; who we vote for; do we vote in every race; do we urge others to vote; do we urge others to join us in speaking up... We do not need to imagine. We need to help everyone else see what is already happening.
Thanks for this. Top of my list is supporting voter registration and getting out of the vote given that *everything* is at stake: For our Republic and our allies, for women, immigrants, the LGBTQIA+ community, every minority, and all people of faith who reject White Christian Nationalism and its variants as bearing *zero* relation to the exhortation to love thy neighbor and embrace the bonds of civic reciprocity. Have courage - together, we can do this.
I've got 400 postcard stamps and I'm ready to use them: https://www.turnoutpac.org/postcards/
You have suggestion for what the press and public should do but you left out one other incredibly important set of actors—Democratic Party politicians and elected officials.
They, in particular, need to act like this is an emergency situation. They need to be driving a strong & consistent message on this but too often they default to lame "bipartisan" bromides that actually *mask* the severity of what we face. Too many Democratic senators are content to coast rather than convene hearings to drive the news cycle. The Democrats have assented to let Hunter Biden be investigated and yet where's *their* hearings in the Senate on why the hell the Saudis gave $2 billion to Jared Kushner?
Yes, I agree us voters need to get out and support the Dems in the fall. But the party also needs to be shoring up its base and not talking down to it on issues like Gaza.
It would be cool if the MSM could dedicate a section of its reporting (not on the front page) to the question "Ask yourself if it matters." THERE they could report all the gaffes by both candidates, stories about the stupid shoes, and the question of age. On the latter, there could be the addendum: The two candidates are going to be both old men. Suck it up. Live with it.
I hate to tell the MSM, but by the time you are in your 70s and older, 4 years difference in age means squat in itself. It is how you ACT in your later years that matter. Remember "don't trust anyone over 30?" When you are 26, 4 years older is elderly. When you are 77, 81 is part of your own cohort.
I shared this post, with this introduction: "I agree with Mark we all must be frightened about the consequences of the coming election, and we must do everything in our power to save our democracy. These are not idle threats we are facing. The consequences of losing this election to the wannabe dictator would be dire. Please take these warnings I have posted and will continue to post very seriously. Please share the warnings with your friends, and ask them to share them, and ask them to support or join grassroots organizations working to get out the vote among the youth, the apathetic, and the disillusioned and beg everyone to vote blue in November. Please."
I totally agree and like other have been fearful and angry and depressed all at the same time. I am not sure how we get the media to stop normalizing the GOP. They are all about making money and unfortunately covering Trump/GOP makes money.
Additionally people do not want to hear talking points - I just read that more people think the economy was better under Trump. Of course they are looking at prices and not the bigger picture. Also the situation in Gaza is getting way too much negative press and Trump plays to that (of course he wants to be like Bibi)
Oh. My. God. I am alarmed! And so is everyone else I know! AND, I'm already doing everything you suggest (except social media, which I left in 2017)...but I still feel like it's not enough. :( Thank you for the list of actions nonetheless. It is something I've been yearning to see the media (meaning MSM) provide. Don't just wind people up. Give them a job to do!
EXCELLENT! Excellent, excellent, excellent advice, Mark Jacob’s. Thank you!
I agree we should be alarmed. Trump is a very dangerous candidate, and if elected, he will bring with him people who will put authoritarian practices in place. We should not minimize the danger he presents. Meanwhile, I think some in the media are helpful, but not others. I'm disappointed in the overemphasis on polling and the assumptions made by the NY Times. The last poll released on March 2 favors Trump. But Simon Rosenberg (of Hopium Chronicles on Substack) says "there are problems with the NYT poll - It has Trump winning both Hispanics and women - an impossibility." Also, he says "the poll has almost twice as many rural voters in its sample as was the case in the 2020 election. It has Trump winning all his 2020 voters, and keeping his party unified - something that is not happening" in voting in the primaries or in polling in the early states. (For more details please read Simon Rosenberg's Hopium Chronicles on Substack.) Such polls by the NY Times seem counterproductive. and they are discouraging. I know people who are writing letters to the editor or to the journalists themselves, and that will be my strategy too.
Is complaining the same thing as "doing something?" Over the past few years, we have been diligently working on a sustainable model to address the decline of local journalism and accountability. Our approach is radically innovative, and the state and local news leaders we've spoken to understand its vision and value, leading to partnerships with several of them. However, when we reach out to national industry leaders and organizations whose feedback and involvement could be beneficial, there is a nearly universal lack of responsiveness. It's not just a failure of imagination; it's a failure to stand up when the time and opportunity arrives.
I know these are your opinions, but when you take something so out of context, to whit: "Dictator on day one", you lose credibility in my mind. He was referring to shutting down the border and letting the oil companies drill. And he said he would only be a dictator for one day. Read the story, for goodness sake. Context DOES matter. You made him sound like Mussolini. You appear to do what you accuse the media of doing. You know better.