Roy Exum
In 2006 the newspaper USA Today named “the internet” among the newest wonders of the world and, about the same time, newspapers like the same USA Today, The Chicago Tribune, and the Chattanooga Times Free Press, realized their future wasn’t nearly as shiny. How could that be, the industry wondered. Newspapers dated back to the 1600 century. During the American Revolution there were already 30 in our nation and newspapers grew and grew like wildfire until, collectively, they became one of the largest industries in the United States.
But as America’s habits changed, and we wanted our news and other information as fast as a microwave can travel in this age of instant gratification, computer websites filled the breach. Suffice it to say that over 2,000 newspapers have shuttered in the last 15 years.
Or, how about this: Within our nation there are currently 3,142 counties and county-equivalents in the 50 states. (Tennessee has 95). There are 1,449 counties with only one daily newspaper and most of those are printed just once a week. To take it further, there are 171 counties that have no newspapers at all. In a trend called “news deserts” – this being where there is no local newspaper outlet – websites like “The Chattanoogan” have taken the place of daily subscriptions. As a newspaper’s circulation dries up, the advertisers flee, and as one after another closes shop, the lack of -revenue is largely to blame. Yet now another culprit is hastening the demise of ‘The Fourth Estate.’ (The four Estates of the Realm of Democracy under such a system are – in order – the Clergy, Nobility, the Commoners, and – since 1837 -- the Press.)
What is identified as “Social Justice Journalism” has become so entrenched in newspapers and television that ‘we, the people,’ struggle to know what is the truth and what is not. You never heard of “fake news” until the last year or two – now it is rampant. There are wacko sites on the Internet, both far left and far right. The misinformation that is spewed out every day runs counter to the principles and ideals of not just journalism but the very truth of mankind itself. More and more writers inject their personal opinions into ‘straight news’ versus ‘opinion news,’ or op-ed. I am an opinion writer. I can also write ‘straight news’ better than most, but to diddle around with my biased opinions is far more fun.
Even now, I strive to undermine my columns with what I believe to be the basic truth. Sure, I’ve been led astray sometimes and admitted it, but if a writer disregards the truth, he will quickly be disregarded by the readers – a bad thing. Some of the best national writers get around the precept of honesty by carefully omitting the truth when it better serves their bias. This is also a bad thing. Any story will tell itself – present the truth, the facts, and enjoy being the messenger. I love my role.
An example: The Nashville Tennessean has been a liberal bastion for years. In its days of integrity and splendor, it was a great newspaper – I had a mail subscription for years before online access became available – but, my heavens! to learn our state’s largest newspaper has dropped 40 percent of its readership in the last two years can’t be blamed solely on the Internet. Ben Cunningham, identified as the President of the Tennessee Tax Revolt, told Chris Butler, a writer for the online Tennessee Star website, “The decline of The Tennessean is no surprise.
“The news reporting is thinly-veiled social justice journalism by reporters (messengers) who are always skeptical of conservatives but have no self-awareness of their own liberal bias,” Cunningham said. “The editorial page has devolved into tedious moralizing where every day it’s the same old self-righteous finger wagging directed toward what it regards as unwashed hillbillies.”
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AN EXCERPT FROM ‘SOCIAL JUSTICE JOURNALISM’ BY CHRIS BUTLER
[This is a portion of a story written by Chris Butler for The Tennessee Star, an online news website (www.tennesseestar.com) that appeared Nov. 23, 2019.]
As The Nashville Business Journal reported Friday, of the 200 daily newspapers at the newly merged Gannett Co. that file print-circulation numbers publicly, more than 80 percent have lost circulation at a faster rate than the national average. About 10 percent are declining at twice that rate or more.
“The Tennessean has seen a 39.3 percent drop in its circulation between 2017 and 2019 — the second biggest drop among Gannett’s biggest papers (those with circulation of at least 25,000 in June 2019). In 2017, The Tennessean had a circulation of 58,611; its 2019 circulation is 35,560,” according to the website.
“Among its biggest papers, the only Gannett paper to see a steeper drop is The Commercial Appeal in Memphis, where circulation dropped by 47.1 percent.”
The website went on to say Gannett “is now under intense pressure from shareholders to fulfill its vow to cut $300 million in expenses, and it’s likely that it’ll turn to its most under-performing newspapers to do so.”
As The Star reported in March, two Tennessean reporters interjected their own left-wing biases to scold Republicans and Williamson County parents who were upset about the county school system administrators training teachers about “white privilege.”
One of the two reporters, Elaina Sauber, tried to portray Williamson County as a hotbed of racism, but she did not seem to have enough evidence to back that claim up.
Both reporters bickered with Williamson County parents on social media.”
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Among the comments Butler’s story generated came this one: “If the Tennessean were to be introspective, their reason for the loss in readership would surely be that “Deplorables can’t read!” Go ahead, keep underestimating us “nincompoops”.
Isn’t it funny that the ‘nincompoops’ have become much more vocal since Donald Trump replaced Barack Obama? Having grown calloused to the whine of the liberal elites, I have witnessed a very distinctive mood change in America as conservatives are publicly countering the Leftist minority, most particularly in the ‘red states.’ Liberals are now being openly castigated whereas prior to theTrump era the conservatives were indeed the silent majority.
Watch carefully and you can see how the liberals are destroying the Democratic Party almost as fast as they have sullied the once sterling reputations of newspapers and network TV. By infiltrating the ranks of the media, they have, in essence, helped to destroy freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
The worst part is they have no idea what their bias will bring. The ever-proud lefties at The Tennessean will lose their jobs. While they’ll blame Trump and ‘play the race card’ as they do whenever they are confused, at some point they must question their success … but, first, they must define it.
royexum@aol.com