WAS: What Adults are Saying about What's Missing
In a news context vacuum information brokers need to be Baby Bear's porridge
As the 47 administration continues it mind-bending, performative theater in demonizing our own neighbors every hack proximate to a keyboard thinks they have the right to opine about the mayhem. Which of course, they do. But offering a reactive “take” about what may or may not be happening is not a parallel to offering insight that serves a valuable purpose. As always, in any media, information without context is just data. It’s not news or analysis, and surely isn’t the “truth” by any stretch of the imagination. It’s occurrence doesn’t “break” even though purveyors of information flow would have us believe otherwise. Its just data—unending bits of flotsam we all must swallow as a price to form some sense of a social “reality.”
But this dynamic is neither appreciated nor understood, or perhaps simply ignored, by both MSM and the rising tide of citizen “journalists” as found here at Substack. All media—but especially news media in digital times—have heavy influence in setting the cultural and social agenda of the day. “Day” as in both the sense of things until the sun next rises and also as indicative as “what’s going on” in our time, period or era? Endless “coverage” has paradoxically provided news with zero context and no ordering of the day’s events.
To be sure the 47 administration, in its endless pro-wrestling cosplay, is a challenge to cover, summarize and provide context. So far the administration’s actions can be fairly described as “unprecedented”, “authoritarian”, “traitorous” and even “vengeful.” Plus, virtually all of it is in some way or another is lawless. That’s a lot for an institution that sets a world agenda, not merely a domestic one. For anyone who even attempts to make sense of it the work is endless, difficult and with forethought that the stakes are high. To date few (from either the old or “new” reporting school) have even come close to succeeding and in some ways are making things worse.
As discussed here the collapse of legacy media has left journalists to fear for professional survival while facing threats of 47 endorsed violence, while their own bosses are kissing the White House’s ass. The recent dismissal of ABC’s Terry Moran is a textbook example of this. Media executives everywhere have shown that being a cuckold need not be limited to the bedroom—it can be abundant in the newsroom as well.
Such barriers help steer news that is broadly “sane-washed” and normalizes the madness of 47 and his “always looking for the camera” lieutenants. How they behave and what they say is straight out of WWE casting and reveals a gross narrative that is simultaneously ridiculous and predictable. The end result is a coverage tone that does not fully evoke the urgency of all things, nor does it fairly summarize the daily “gains” and “losses” of 47’s mayhem. This latter point is especially worrisome for it erroneously suggests 47 is steamrolling at will without any institutional push-back or guardrails. That simply is not correct and the daily record of things, especially in court, illustrate otherwise. Coverage is oddly cool—opting many times to not step on the wrong toes.
On the new media side the situation is even more distressing—at least here on Substack. Like all platforms it must combat bots, planted political operatives from many angles, the hide behind the keyboard anarchist who is against everything, poseurs and displaced MSM “stars” who still want the talking stick and paycheck (albeit smaller). Then it also offers endless folks providing their “take” on the day’s unprecedented events—fully reactive—as though the country was asked a universal survey question and their personal answer is to be written here.
This is not anything like news. No overt harm is found in anyone wanting to provide their take but it does substantially clog the channel’s information flow and too frequently turns it into social media blather. One’s take is welcomed and no more or less important than others. But simply sharing feelings or steam release is of little service to readers at a time of news context vacuum. A take is mere reaction which is great for pollsters and Focus Group moderators but terrible for all who seek an ordering story of some sort with a beginning, middle and end. Adding either analytical or connective value is the bare minimum needed toward providing context. Yet these “reactions” seldom jog near this standard—too often just sharing poster’s raw opinions and often, with little forethought or review. These views also skew heavily toward hyperbole. Too many things are championed as “game changers” or definitive evidence of one thing or the other when neither is remotely true. Then these posts beget subsequent reactions and on and on and on. In short, much is overstated and everything presented as too definitive. The collective coverage/sharing is too hot—where everything is careening off the rails at every curve.
Make no mistake Substack has many contributors who swim upstream against this trend. Contributors like Paul Krugman, Steve Schmidt, Heather Cox Richardson and Robert Reich all provide excellent, informed, accurate content with heavy context—much of it for free. Joanne Carducci (Jo Jo From Jerz) is a remarkable writer who uniquely blends searing analysis, humor and some of the most skillful use of profanity you’ll ever see! Spend an hour scrolling through the archives of these folks and you’ll get a decent perspective about the parameters and contours of America’s summertime madness circa 2025. Like Baby Bear’s porridge they are just right.
A news context vacuum (at the risk of hyperbole) is just as dire as whatever 47 conjures and commands. America’s nerves are frazzled and in such instances her people find healthy skepticism and critical analysis to be fleeting. This magnifies personal and social responses to danger and even being a participant in democracy. It creates for many mental health challenges—ambiguity is unhealthy for all animals because it confuses the instinctive fight or flight survival mechanism. Credible information—even on complicated and unprecedented topics—is absolutely vital. It having context is also vital. We are watching in real time how a democracy cannot survive without it.