Never too late!

May 2, 2022

[Audio version here]

          The texts collected by the January 6th Committee from Mark Meadows contain an alarming insight that is already fading from view. They make clear that Sean Hannity was taking directions from Trump’s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and that Hannity was giving advice to Meadows on how Trump should manage his Big Lie strategy. In the most flagrant instance, Hannity asks how he should shape his coverage of the election to ensure a Trump victory. When Meadows provides the requested editorial direction, Hannity replies, “Yes, Sir!” In another instance, as Trump’s efforts to stay in office are becoming ever more desperate, Hannity tells Meadows, “We can’t lose the entire WH counsel’s office”—which had threatened to resign en masse if Trump appointed Jeffrey Clark as Acting Attorney General. Other texts show Hannity attempting to verify Trump’s claims of massive election fraud.

          We knew previously that Trump and Hannity “often spoke several times a day.” The Hill (5/14/18). But this is the first indication that Hannity gave and received direction from Trump’s White House on policy matters and editorial content, respectively. While Hannity famously claims that he is not a journalist, that distinction is undoubtedly lost on the avid consumers of Hannity’s program on Fox News. Hannity and Fox News breached every rule of journalistic independence and transparency by simultaneously acting as a mouthpiece and advisor for Trump. Of course, Fox News is free to flout the unwritten rules of journalistic integrity, but it should have the decency not to deceive its viewers about what is going on. Hannity could have said, “Trump’s Chief of Staff told me to tell you” [fill in the blank].”

          Hannity’s viewers may not have been bothered that Hannity was  not transparent about his role as an extension of the Trump media relations office. But the gauge for determining the gravity of Hannity’s transgression is not whether his viewers would have been offended. A free and independent press is vital to American democracy. Indeed, the Framers so firmly believed in the foundational role of a free press they included it in the First Amendment. They could not have imagined a day when the government told the press what to print or when the press told the president what to do. And yet, here we are.

          Bad things happen when the government and the press merge into a single instrumentality. Hackers have recently published emails from the Russian media “regulator.” Not surprisingly, the regulator used information gathered in its media oversight role to tell Russia’s secret police (the FSB) which citizens to investigate and arrest—because they held opinions contrary to official government policy. See WaPo, Hacktivists and cybercriminals wreak havoc in Russia.

          When the right to free speech is regulated by the government, even billionaires can be brought low in a matter of weeks. Oleg Y. Tinkov, one of Russia’s few self-made billionaires, criticized Putin’s war on Ukraine in March. The Russian government threatened to nationalize the Tinkov’s bank unless it severed all ties with the billionaire. Tinkov was forced to sell his 30% interest in the bank he founded for pennies on the dollar. Oh, and for good measure, Tinkov is prohibited from discussing the terms of the forced sale. See NYTimes, Russian Tycoon Criticized Putin’s War. Retribution Was Swift.

          The line between the government and the press should be bright and inviolate. Sean Hannity (and others at Fox News) have not only erased that line, they have done so in a manner that is both deceptive to their viewers and destructive to democracy. The lack of journalistic ethics at Fox News is encouraged and protected by Rupert Murdoch—a billionaire whose only loyalty is to profits. Rupert Murdoch’s insulating wealth allows Sean Hannity to desecrate the First Amendment with impunity.

          The January 6th Committee apparently intends to shine a light on the role that Fox News played in amplifying the Big Lie and advising Trump as he attempted to overthrow the election. Good. While that will not be enough to stop the biased reporting at Fox News, it may be enough to prevent a repeat of Hannity’s ethical lapses in the future. At the moment, an embarrassed Hannity is arguing that he is a “registered conservative” who voted for Trump. Of course, “voting for Trump” is not the same thing as “taking direction from Trump’s Chief of Staff” about what news to report. Let’s hope that this story will get the attention it deserves when the January 6th Committee holds its public hearings.

The concentration of media power in the hands of billionaires.

          The above-mentioned Rupert Murdoch is the 85th wealthiest man in the world. He controls Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, The New York Post, The Sun, The Times (Britain’s daily newspaper), Harper Collins, MarketWatch, Fox Network, and Fox Sports. As noted above, Murdoch has no regard for journalistic ethics or firewalls between news and commentary. But the situation is about to get a whole lot worse with Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter.

          The fact that Musk has neither the temperament nor the maturity to own Twitter is not an objection recognized in our value-maximizing business culture. Twitter’s shareholders will maximize their stock value, and nothing else matters. But it should. Like it or not (and I don’t) Twitter functions as a public square for the expression of ideas. Free-speech absolutists are giddy over Musk’s takeover of Twitter, believing that it will free Twitter of the pesky controls that seek to prevent the spread of disinformation that can kill people and democracies. I will grant you that regulating dangerous speech is difficult, but Elon Musk is ill-equipped to be the arbiter of free speech on Twitter.

          Fans of Musk’s takeover believe that he will allow free speech to blossom. But Musk’s own actions demonstrate that he favors free speech until it threatens his economic interests or ego—at which point he will fire you, hire private investigators to dig up dirt on you, or call you a “pedo” (pedophiliac). See a tweet by Derecka Purnell, “Elon Musk keeps tweeting that he loves free speech. So here’s a thread with just a few of the countless examples showing he couldn’t care about it less.” And Musk just asked his 80 million followers if “Twitter” should be renamed “Titter”—because that is what any 12-year-old boy would do.

          The problem is not just Musk. It is Zuckerberg (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), Bezos (WaPo), Murdoch, Bloomberg—all of whom rank within the 100 richest people in the world. See WaPo, How a billionaires boys’ club came to dominate the public square. [Let’s acknowledge that WaPo—owned by Bezos—had the independence to run a story critical of its owner.]

          Why should we care about this? Because of the “Fox News effect.” If Zuckerberg, Musk, or Bezos became extensions of an administration—Democratic or Republican—that would be bad for democracy. And with all due respect to the business skills of Bezos, Zuckerberg, or Musk, they are no more qualified than the person on the street to decide the free speech rights (or content) for hundreds of millions of Americans.

          What can you do? Support independent journalism, write op-eds and letters to the editor, post on social media responsibly, amplify legitimate sources of information, and educate yourself about biases in the news. I recommend that you check out News Literacy Project. The NLP website has lots of helpful resources for citizens, educators, students, and consumers of news.

Putin’s war on the Ukrainian people.

•           Per the AP, Russia’s concentrated efforts in Ukraine’s South and East are falling “behind schedule” for Putin’s anticipated “victory” celebration on May 9th. AP, Ukraine Fights To Hold Off Russian Advances In South, East.

•           Russia appears to be setting the stage for permanent control / annexation of regions in Eastern Ukraine by transitioning occupied areas to using the ruble. Institute for the Study of War. Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, May 1 | Institute for the Study of War.

•           A British tabloid is reporting that Putin will have cancer surgery “soon” and will transfer control of Russia to the head of the FSB (Nikolai Patrushev) during his recuperation. This report has not been verified, may be disinformation by Ukraine, or may be part of an internal Russian power struggle. At the moment, the most that can be said is that the report is an unverified rumor. If you read a story making this claim, please be sure to check the sourcing of the story. If it traces back to a British tabloid, it is rumor circulating as fact.

Concluding Thoughts.

          Over the weekend, my Managing Editor and I took a quick trip to our cabin in Sequoia National Park—the first time we have visited since the devastating KNP Complex Fire of 2021. Our cabin survived the fire, and my Managing Editor has posted a video blog of the devastation we viewed on the way to our cabin. The Aftermath of the KNP Fire in Sequoia National Park on the Mineral King Road (everydaywithjill.com).

          The purpose of our visit was to help start up our seasonal water distribution system that serves several dozen cabins. I am on the Water Board—not because of any technical expertise in water purification and distribution, but because of my legal background. I volunteered to help with the work of opening the system from scratch this weekend. Given my lack of technical expertise and practical plumbing skills, my job assignments on Saturday included the following:

• Go stand over there and watch, but don’t touch anything.

• Go look for leaks in distribution pipes, but don’t touch anything.

• Tell us how many times per minute the dial on this meter spins around, but don’t touch anything.

          I am, of course, exaggerating my inexperience and general uselessness for humorous effect. In truth, I was also allowed to carry heavy tools between job sites where others repaired leaks and installed water meters.

          Seriously, though, the weekend was an eye-opener. We drove through miles of landscape where the fire burned so hot for so long the only thing left was sterile soil and blackened sentinels where lush forests once stood. The winter snows were only 30% of average, and the entire Sierra Nevada will experience another dry summer—part of a decade-long “mega-drought.”

          We should always remember that “Data is not the plural of anecdote, and the weather is not the climate.” Still, something fundamental has changed in the ecosystem of the Sierra Nevada in the last decade. The effect of human activity on the climate is difficult to see—until it is not. We should listen to those who have the discipline and dedication to remain focused on climate change when other short-term crises have distracted the media’s attention from the most significant threat America (and the world) will face in the next century.

          The planet is resilient and forgiving—to a point. As we drove through miles of blackened soil and denuded forests, green patches emerged in fits and starts. It is too late to prevent all of the damage from human-caused climate change, but it is never too late to prevent even more damage. For those of us in the West, the mega-drought will be a test of will and conscience. Let’s resolve to do our part—including keeping climate change at the top of the list of urgent problems that deserve our attention.

          Talk to you tomorrow!