NYT uncovers hundreds of local news orgs pushing republican PR

[Roland99]

A Partisan Future for Local News?
A Times investigation uncovered a secretive pay-to-play network that seeks to rewrite the rules of American local journalism.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/28/podcasts/the-daily/local-news-partisanship-brian-timpone.html

Local news in America has long been widely trusted, and widely seen as objective. But as traditional local papers struggle, there have been attempts across the political spectrum to create more partisan outlets.

Few can have been as ambitious or widespread as the nationwide network of 1,300 websites and newspapers run by Brian Timpone, a television reporter turned internet entrepreneur.

He has said that he sees local news as a means of preserving American civil discourse. But a Times investigation has found that Republican operatives and public relations firms have been paying for articles in his outlets and intimately dictating the editorial direction of stories.

Today, we speak to the Times journalists behind the investigation.

Full investigation
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/18/technology/timpone-local-news-metric-media.html

And article at top has a link to the full audio

Listen and subscribe to ‘The Daily’
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher

[RAB910]

1. I saw it with the GOP's move to destroy our nation and rob us of our rights and freedoms

Every local news station reported on the GOP's obscene move to pack the court with American hating radical judges as business as usual.

[bullwinkle428]

2. We knew about this shit happening during the Shrub administration. Why should

anyone assume it hasn't gotten worse since then?

[dalton99a]

3. Kick

[UpInArms]

4. There is a link to all of the "manufactured news" organizations

Within the article ... I cannot do a copy paste ...

It is called “Metric Media and Affiliated Sites”

Found a link ...

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/e/2PACX-1vTY6gW8su8k-BxuQo6CkwEDfsQq3TnVdqEOOqtjOeZ6YeYiXyZ-ZjZnN6pDKmQHpfZ9sXhUHmnduKUr/pubhtml?gid=0&single=true

[Roland99]

5. nice! thanks!

[UpInArms]

7. Thank you for your OP

The rapid decline in local newspapers is a terrible thing ... and having “manufactured” and paid for news stories will lead to a great deal of misinformation, especially for rural communities.

[erronis]

16. Wow - I count 1,257 "news" outlets in that list.

I visited a couple. Had to rinse my eyeballs.

[jmbar2]

23. Great resource - thanks

Pretty lame papers.

I've been seeing ads on Craigslist for people to write articles for $50/article (500 words). Wondered if it was the same group.

[niyad]

6. KNR

[2naSalit]

8. K&R

[James48]

9. It's actually a very old idea in the USA

In the 1800’s, that’s exactly what newspapers were- publications of political perspective. Most small and medium towns Would even have competing newspapers- with competing political points of view. The idea that news sources were NON political was a 20th century invention. Even a Post WWII trend, I would say.

I’m a history buff, and a news guy, and I knew that 50 years ago. We’ve come full circle.

[Drunken Irishman]

11. Hence why a lot of older, smaller papers were/are called the Republican or the Democrat.

[azureblue]

18. goes back before then

The ante bellum southern newspapers were used to push secession and civil war. The plantation owners who relied on slavery, told the newspapers to push secession as "northern invasion" and "they will take your crops, burn your farm, and rape your women! To arms, to arms!"

The same methods the GOP uses now - lies, half truths, fear, hate, to promote an ulterior motive - the enrichment of the upper class.

[Ligyron]

28. Then there's the "Yellow Journalism" of William Randolph Hearst's empire.

Demonize Mexican furriners with their marijuana cigarettes and Chinese w their habit of smoking a bit of opium after work.

Some of that propaganda surely had to help usher in the Harrison Act criminalizing narcotics and leading to the enormously expensive mess we still put up with and live with today.

[bucolic_frolic]

10. Who would have guessed? /nt

[Dustlawyer]

12. Sinclair owns 2 of our 3 stations and they push propaganda 24/7.

[BigmanPigman]

15. Sinclair, that's the name of the news group

that I read about a few years ago. It's regurgitated news with a conservative slant and getting bigger each year.

[Duppers]

22. Search DU GD for Sinclair

For just the last few months - there's a wealth of info.

[Ligyron]

29. We have one here too.

Forcing trusted and well liked local TV personalities to read hostage videos echoing RW BS as if it was their own opinion and belief.

[CaptYossarian]

13. This is why I'm so glad DU has a Places section at the bottom of the main page.

How else would I know what's really happening here in Wisconsin? There was so much covered up during the Teflon Tommy reign of terror and somewhat less during Walker's regime (thanks to Ed Schultz, John Nichols, and Chris Hayes).

The local rural outlets just adored Sean Duffy and the rest of the Nazi Party. I started tapping into Madison's "Channel 3000" online to see what indoor plumbing (my euphemism for objective reporting) looked like.

Maybe KO can do "Worst State in the Nation".

[EleanorR]

14. K&R

[Ponietz]

17. And historically legitimate papers have been hands-off, at best

Albuquerque Journal for one. “US President: No Endorsement”.

No longer capable of incurring the wrath of the corporofascist state.

[ananda]

19. Is that the Sinclair effect?

We need a law....

[Wounded Bear]

25. Undoubtedly. There used to be laws against this...

large conglomerate were not allowed to own multiple stations in local markets. That's all gone now.

Sinclair has been gobbling up stations around the country for quite a few years.

[yaesu]

20. I know all local TV stations here are pushing tRump talking points, going out of their way to

make him look good.

[rainin]

21. This is likely the primary reason 40% of the country still votes republican

We fix this...and republicans are finished. And we can fix this! Make private ownership of news against the law, for starters.

[aggiesal]

24. There was a law ...

where no 1 person or entity could own no more than 2 media sources per media region
1 TV, 1 Radio Station or
1 TV, 1 Newspaper or
1 Newspaper, 1 Radio Station

It was ripped apart by RayGun's deregulation onslaught.

Taking private ownership away is NOT the way to go.
That would make all news sources government controlled & propaganda news for the party in power, and I don't want that either.

I believe the previous law worked well for a long time, but the (R) know that legit information has a liberal/progressive bent.
The old saying "The truth is liberal", and (R)'s definitely don't want that.

The reason for RayGun's existence.

[Wounded Bear]

26. A better explanation of what I said in post 25 above...

[rainin]

30. Not government controlled. Locally controlled and publicly funded n/t

[aggiesal]

31. Like PBS? n/t

[rainin]

32. I know wiki isn't a definitive source, so feel free to research further

But, many of these claims are sourced if you wish to investigate further

"During the 1970s and early 1980s, the majority of NPR funding came from the federal government. Steps were taken during the Reagan administration in the 1980s to completely wean NPR from government support..."

"While NPR does not receive any direct federal funding, it does receive a small number of competitive grants from CPB and federal agencies like the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce. This funding amounts to approximately 2% of NPR's overall revenues.[24]"

[aggiesal]

34. Yes, but everyone at NPR works for the government and is paid by the government ...

along with PBS and Voice of America are all government run.

And again everything starts with RayGun and his famous 9 words "I'm from the government and I'm here to help.",
is where the defunding of these programs started and the politicization was put into hyperdrive by GW McIdiot.

I believe that the 2 media limit per media market worked so well that the (R)'s hated it enough to remove that regulation.

Let's go back to that.

[benld74]

27. Sinclair - Remember the name, GOP is their game

[Blue Owl]

33. K&R for exposure