Can We Trust the Mainstream Media? By Philip Tiger May

I often hear from individuals (primarily MAGA Republicans) that they 'just don't trust the mainstream media'. They tell me they think it's all dominated & controlled by left-wing operatives and is totally biased. While we know this is ridiculous and untrue, I've struggled to formulate a convincing argument as to why I DO trust the 'mainstream' media. I did some research on the major media outlets, and I believe it's telling. Here's a summary of my rationale.

First, probably even more so than almost any industry, the news business is extremely cutthroat. Being first with big scoop translates into readership/viewership. The bigger the audience, the more attractive it is to advertisers, which is where the money lies. Does anyone think for a nanosecond that if a news organization - say CNN - were involved in efforts to suppress or distort relevant, material information for a political party or individual, that other media sharks would not fiercely & immediately leap into action to bring that to their audience(s)? That would be HUGE news! If you look at the biggest, most impactful stories, usually all of the major outlets provide essentially the same information. Sure, it may contain a few different details & comments, but the gist is very similar. If there were a significant difference in the foundational facts of an issue, certainly one or more of the other outlets would bring this to light.

Second, let's look at some of the longest established, biggest entities in print and broadcast news and their ownership structure:

The New York Times - Ochs-Sulzberger family

The Washington Post - Jeff Bezos

The Los Angeles Times - Patrick Soon-Shiong

The Atlanta Journal & Constitution - Cox Media

The Miami Herald - McClatchy Co.

The Houston Chronicle - Hearst Media

The Chicago Tribune - Tribune Media

The Wall Street Journal - Murdoch family

ABC - Disney

CBS - Paramount

NBC - NBC/Universal

CNN - Warner Bros.

NPR - NPR, Inc

Reuters - Thompson Reuters Corp

Bloomberg - Michael Bloomberg

Associated Press - Non-profit, collectively governed by many media outlets

Crazy (wink, wink), but NONE are owned/parented by the same entity except Fox (which I don't consider to be a "news" network) and the WSJ. The size & complexity of the conspiracy that would be required to execute and maintain such a massive news coverup is incomprehensible and totally unrealistic. It is beyond ridiculous to imagine a universe in which all of these organizations would collaborate to suppress (or champion) a particular false news narrative. Simply wouldn't happen.

Food for thought.

Tiger May, IM Member