Who is more to blame for the position the mainstream media finds itself in than the political mainstream media itself? They were giddy with Trump's transgressive behavior from the moment he came down the escalator and preening in their achievement of bringing Hillary Clinton down to his level -- or lower -- in the eyes of the public. Every day that went by in Trump's first term and every day of this one is a blatant demonstration of the asymmetry of their coverage of Republicans compared to their coverage of Democrats. Every daily action from Trump and every utterance from his mouth brings a caustic, contemptuous chuckle when applying the simple counternarrative; 'what if' Obama, Hillary, Biden, or Kamala had said or done that.
The political MSM has been awful for decades, the arrival of Trump simply made their institutional flaws and inadequacies impossible not to see and it is not an exaggeration to say that their fecklessness helped escort America over the threshold into fascism.
I am all out of fucks to give for the institution that couldn't rise to the level of simple self-preservation if not the actual defense of democracy, whose false 'objectivity' blinds them to the immediacy of the crisis and whose amorality directly feeds the immorality of the perpetrators of that crisis.
The abdication of our mainstream news outlets from their responsibilities is chilling.
The writing is on the wall, but in what way can it matter if we willingly put on blindfolds and choose not to read?
How will our journalists respond, I wonder, when colleagues among them are dragged away and imprisoned? Or have they sacrificed all courage and integrity in favor of expedience?
Your essays have really hit the mark lately (pun intended). This is an especially
insightful piece precisely because you use the history of Nazism to point out the frightening similarities in the patterns of behavior that are now emerging. History may not repeat itself, but human behavior does, and can even be pathological. Your work is a clarion call to pay attention! Sure hope more folks read your work and learn from it
You connect all the dots while the MSM won’t or can’t. In the WP I worked at for 34 years, there would have been stripped across the top of the front page with a headline in large font an overview of this moment.
Yes it reminds me of Germany 1933. The administration wants to control all media sources . Press, radio, internet. I worry about independent media such as this.
When the Nazis came to power in 1933, the German constitution guaranteed freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Through decrees and laws, the Nazis abolished these civil rights and destroyed German democracy. Starting in 1934, it was illegal to criticize the Nazi government. Even telling a joke about Hitler was considered treachery. People in Nazi Germany could not say or write whatever they wanted.
In Nazi Germany, listening to foreign radio stations (often called "Feindsender") was illegal and could carry severe penalties, ranging from fines and confiscation of radios to imprisonment and even the death penalty
It is slowly happening. Its all intimidation and threats presently.
It sure is. I just don’t get it. They don’t seem to be worried at all about self preservation or their jobs. Or for the owners - their ownership . The fact that they sanewash his gibberish every day is astounding. Especially when they were on a campaign to show that Biden was mentally incapable to handle the presidency. The hypocrisy just mind blowing!
“ Don’t just take my word for it. The Reporters Without Borders organization compiles a World Press Freedom Index that shows how the United States is slipping. On a scale of 0 to 100, Norway ranks as the top country for press freedom with a rating of 92.31. The United States went from 76.15 in 2020 to 65.49 in 2025 – from “satisfactory” to “problematic.” The United States now ranks just below Sierra Leone, Romania, and Liberia.
The American right wing’s assault on the press is a key reason for this. As Reporters Without Borders put it, Trump is "both mimicking and inspiring authoritarian and quasi-authoritarian regimes around the world" as they try to intimidate journalists.
I stopped watching CBS evening news when they canned Jeff Glor. Stopped watching Saturday Morning when they again fired Jeff Glor, Stopped watching the CBS Morning show when Tony Dokoupil lashed out at Ta-Nehisi Coates. Last night I stopped watching 60 Minutes for the first time in over 40 years. CBS Sunday Morning is the only program I will watch.
Mark, I don't like saying it, but journalism in the US has been dwindling for decades.
In 1970 a friend spent some weeks one summer in college interning at an international news desk in Paris. She was more or less a gopher, but saw which articles were being sent where. She noticed that many "hard" news items from European countries and the Mideast were NOT even forwarded to the US. She asked why not. Here's the answer: "Americans don't want news. They want to be entertained." Iowa, entertainment sold ad space, and ad space drove the train.
Don't get me wrong. I think the profession is important, and I have great respect for you and all the "real" journalists who work to get the truth out in the open. But I'm not sure many of the people in the field see it that way anymore (it's a way to earn a living with some fun perks like free lunches and press clubs if you're in the right cities), and I'm darned sure the bosses don't see it that way. Witness the dearth of real journalism in CORPORATE media now. I bet the name Jeff Bezos rings a (badly cracked) bell.
Add to that its enthrallment with Trump for a full decade now, and you got a good picture of reporting in the US these days. Les Moonves said it well.
this is an important issue and it's clear that our freedom of the press is under threat, which is shameful. but in many other countries journalists risk their lives for their work. Let's remember Alsu Kurmasheva and Evan Gershkovich, two journalists who were imprisoned in Russia for practicing their profession
Who is more to blame for the position the mainstream media finds itself in than the political mainstream media itself? They were giddy with Trump's transgressive behavior from the moment he came down the escalator and preening in their achievement of bringing Hillary Clinton down to his level -- or lower -- in the eyes of the public. Every day that went by in Trump's first term and every day of this one is a blatant demonstration of the asymmetry of their coverage of Republicans compared to their coverage of Democrats. Every daily action from Trump and every utterance from his mouth brings a caustic, contemptuous chuckle when applying the simple counternarrative; 'what if' Obama, Hillary, Biden, or Kamala had said or done that.
The political MSM has been awful for decades, the arrival of Trump simply made their institutional flaws and inadequacies impossible not to see and it is not an exaggeration to say that their fecklessness helped escort America over the threshold into fascism.
I am all out of fucks to give for the institution that couldn't rise to the level of simple self-preservation if not the actual defense of democracy, whose false 'objectivity' blinds them to the immediacy of the crisis and whose amorality directly feeds the immorality of the perpetrators of that crisis.
The abdication of our mainstream news outlets from their responsibilities is chilling.
The writing is on the wall, but in what way can it matter if we willingly put on blindfolds and choose not to read?
How will our journalists respond, I wonder, when colleagues among them are dragged away and imprisoned? Or have they sacrificed all courage and integrity in favor of expedience?
The implications are horrifying. Well, enough!
Your essays have really hit the mark lately (pun intended). This is an especially
insightful piece precisely because you use the history of Nazism to point out the frightening similarities in the patterns of behavior that are now emerging. History may not repeat itself, but human behavior does, and can even be pathological. Your work is a clarion call to pay attention! Sure hope more folks read your work and learn from it
You connect all the dots while the MSM won’t or can’t. In the WP I worked at for 34 years, there would have been stripped across the top of the front page with a headline in large font an overview of this moment.
Yes it reminds me of Germany 1933. The administration wants to control all media sources . Press, radio, internet. I worry about independent media such as this.
When the Nazis came to power in 1933, the German constitution guaranteed freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Through decrees and laws, the Nazis abolished these civil rights and destroyed German democracy. Starting in 1934, it was illegal to criticize the Nazi government. Even telling a joke about Hitler was considered treachery. People in Nazi Germany could not say or write whatever they wanted.
In Nazi Germany, listening to foreign radio stations (often called "Feindsender") was illegal and could carry severe penalties, ranging from fines and confiscation of radios to imprisonment and even the death penalty
It is slowly happening. Its all intimidation and threats presently.
Keep up the good work, Mark. These are really scary times for us paragraph manufacturers—and for those who rely on us to keep them informed.
It is chilling to watch the MSM give in to Trump one by one.
It sure is. I just don’t get it. They don’t seem to be worried at all about self preservation or their jobs. Or for the owners - their ownership . The fact that they sanewash his gibberish every day is astounding. Especially when they were on a campaign to show that Biden was mentally incapable to handle the presidency. The hypocrisy just mind blowing!
Very sobering
Thank you though
Excerpt:
“ Don’t just take my word for it. The Reporters Without Borders organization compiles a World Press Freedom Index that shows how the United States is slipping. On a scale of 0 to 100, Norway ranks as the top country for press freedom with a rating of 92.31. The United States went from 76.15 in 2020 to 65.49 in 2025 – from “satisfactory” to “problematic.” The United States now ranks just below Sierra Leone, Romania, and Liberia.
The American right wing’s assault on the press is a key reason for this. As Reporters Without Borders put it, Trump is "both mimicking and inspiring authoritarian and quasi-authoritarian regimes around the world" as they try to intimidate journalists.
I stopped watching CBS evening news when they canned Jeff Glor. Stopped watching Saturday Morning when they again fired Jeff Glor, Stopped watching the CBS Morning show when Tony Dokoupil lashed out at Ta-Nehisi Coates. Last night I stopped watching 60 Minutes for the first time in over 40 years. CBS Sunday Morning is the only program I will watch.
Mark, I don't like saying it, but journalism in the US has been dwindling for decades.
In 1970 a friend spent some weeks one summer in college interning at an international news desk in Paris. She was more or less a gopher, but saw which articles were being sent where. She noticed that many "hard" news items from European countries and the Mideast were NOT even forwarded to the US. She asked why not. Here's the answer: "Americans don't want news. They want to be entertained." Iowa, entertainment sold ad space, and ad space drove the train.
Don't get me wrong. I think the profession is important, and I have great respect for you and all the "real" journalists who work to get the truth out in the open. But I'm not sure many of the people in the field see it that way anymore (it's a way to earn a living with some fun perks like free lunches and press clubs if you're in the right cities), and I'm darned sure the bosses don't see it that way. Witness the dearth of real journalism in CORPORATE media now. I bet the name Jeff Bezos rings a (badly cracked) bell.
Add to that its enthrallment with Trump for a full decade now, and you got a good picture of reporting in the US these days. Les Moonves said it well.
this is an important issue and it's clear that our freedom of the press is under threat, which is shameful. but in many other countries journalists risk their lives for their work. Let's remember Alsu Kurmasheva and Evan Gershkovich, two journalists who were imprisoned in Russia for practicing their profession
Great job Mark.
It’s happening locally too: https://open.substack.com/pub/willfries/p/global-concern-grows-after-city-challenges?r=17md5s&utm_medium=ios
Trump working to DESTROY DEMOCRACY.
None of them are remotely attempting to hide what their plan is. IMO We are doomed unless a Civil War starts.