From Dr. Derek Ellerman
Americans, especially older Americans, have some funny ideas.
About their country, about economics, about war and peace and many other things. He has some funny ideas about journalists.
If the Twitter files are not broken A misconception that anyone in power gives a damn about truth or freedom, perhaps Caitlin Johnstone’s experience will help.
An idea All Americans need to toss on the ash heap of history, the profession of journalism and the people who make it popular, dedicated to reporting the news.
Perhaps nothing is more destructive to this country than that disgusting lie.
“I’m quitting Twitter” đhttps://t.co/1Q8yQ5qjbK pic.twitter.com/Y8wjXNrJsv
â Alan Wozak (@Simian Wozak) January 10, 2023
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Where News Goes to Die
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Even if you’re not “on Twitter” or think it’s dumb, without the absolute need to follow Twitter files, the popular notion that Americans are some kind of carefully observant Fourth Estate is a nasty lie. Many, many decades.
But to see a perfect example of how silly this is, look at the aforementioned Caitlin Johnstone case.
Make no mistake: she is a hard-left socialist. She and I probably agree on precious little. But I follow her because she is the best in foreign affairs.
However, being the best in foreign affairs is the biggest of all. (Just ask Donald Trump.)
Enter Mastodonâa try-hard âalternativeâ to Twitter for âjournalistsâ who are so upset that Elon Musk has made nominal compromises in the direction of free speech.
After Musk took over the role of chief tweeter, there were several announcements about the move to Mastodon. Here is just one example:
This site is dead. I’m on mustadon and Instagram. I’m not on TikTok because I’m older than 12. https://t.co/IEI2WAjxMYhttps://t.co/4LW7YG2nkn pic.twitter.com/AwB1kRkiaa
â James Felton (@JimFelton) November 19, 2022
So this place must be good, right? A group of journalists who take their craft very seriously, informing the American people about the workings of power.
right?
The utter failure of the journalist’s attempt to seek refuge from the horrors of freedom of speech in Mastodon is entirely predictable.
The funny thing is they don’t know: Mastodon, although horribly designed, is built on a blockchain / decentralization model, which they would otherwise scoff at. https://t.co/zMVYFuc7kB
â Glenn Greenwald (@greenwald) January 16, 2023
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is wrong
Johnstone shedding light on the true nature of Ukrainian kleptocracy and NATO’s role in fueling the current crisis in Eastern Europe is not welcome among these most serious journalists.
To wit:
Are you tired of billionaire Silicon Valley tech giants being censored for criticizing the US empire? Come to Mastodon, where you can be censored for criticizing the US empire by a small-time mom and pop narrative operator. pic.twitter.com/STMKQyqodh
â Caitlin Johnstone (@caitoz) January 16, 2023
Take a look at some of these posts removed from Mastodon. (By whom? I’ll be honest, I’m not sure, and frankly I don’t care.)
An article on how US interests are advanced by extending the war. An off-hand theoretical question. A video criticizing NATO.
Only the thought crime and misrepresentations were removed based on the apology given in the notice to Johnstone: âincitement to violence or promotion of violent ideologiesâ and âdo not intentionally share false or misleading informationâ.
No matter where you stand in the war, the war is violent. Violent opposition is non-violent. So we can discard the baloney excuse 1.
Who is to blame for “intentionally false or misleading information”?
Now, the most sensitive people, even if they strongly disagree with someone else’s opinion, do not demand that those views be silenced. Journalists, on the other hand, do.
As a thought experiment: find any journalist on Twitter and run an advanced search for what they said about Elon Musk.
It’s all variations on a theme, but that theme boils down to one thing: These rubes and plebs are not allowed to say what they want. For the sake of science, some of them have different opinions than me! I!
And, ipso facto, so it goes to “journalists’ alternative” Twitter freedom of speech.
Now, to be clear, I have nothing against Mastodon. I have never looked into it. And I am fully aware that some reading this will vehemently disagree with Johnstone’s views on Ukraine. But that is not the point.
I’m not saying all of Elon’s haters are making empty threats about leaving Twitter, but I still see a lot of Elon’s haters on Twitter. pic.twitter.com/WvLN9St6xZ
â Icarus Son of Daedalus (@Icarus_Flies) January 11, 2023
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This is a national security issue
Now, there are many reasons why journalists behave this way, but that’s a different piece. Point is, they are do Act like this. And it is very dangerous to our national security.
Remember WMD in Iraq? Remember “Russian missiles land in Poland”? Hell, remember anything that was said about the current war?
There I go again. The point is this: the fact of the matter is that the only way to keep a check on power, let alone hold it accountable, is to have an army of scribes dedicated to it.
We don’t have that. We literally have the exact opposite, And this is important.
Oh, you don’t watch MSNBC? Guess what: Millions of voters do.
Don’t you read the Washington Post? A lot of people do – and they go out and vote based on what they read there.
Even if you don’t know anyone who watches CNN or reads the New York Times, you know someone who hears third-hand narratives from them.
Think about how many times you’ve heard that from someone you know, it’s complete and utter malarkey.
Now, more importantly, think of all the times you’ve told someone you know a factual statement they’ve never heard before, like Hunter Biden’s laptop.
How many people know that there were 300,000 illegal border crossings last month alone? Almost none, because Americans underestimate illegal immigration.
Why? Because that information can only be found on alternative or conservative media sites. The mainstream press is busy running errands for Joe Biden.
To paraphrase and bastardize Lead Belly, journalists who believe you should have accurate information are sometimes a good idea.
This is wrong, and needs to be dispensed with as a basic understanding of living in these times.
This means that people must fully internalize this basic understanding. Set aside âWell, no All JournalistsâŚâ and other excuses. You are setting yourself up to play.
Now is the time to support and share sources you trust.
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