Where do I find the truth? – OpEd – Eurasia Review

I hope your Thanksgiving was peaceful.

Today I want to ask a less peaceful question that many of you are asking me: Where can we find trustworthy sources of information as we delve into the darkness of the Trump regime? What and who can we rely on? Truth?

I’ll tell you the sources I rely on in a moment, but first let me explain why reliable and independent news sources are under threat from a growing alliance of oligarchs and authoritarians.

The mainstream media doesn’t use the term “oligarchy” to describe the billionaires who use their wealth to monopolize information and turn it into propaganda – but it’s the most accurate term, because that’s exactly what happens: from Elon Musk’s X to to Jeff Bezos The Washington Post from Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News to Vladimir Putin’s global disinformation campaign to Donald Trump’s ongoing stream of lies on Truth Social and X.

Even the mainstream media establishment – most of which refers to corporate or billionaire ownership – during the 2024 campaign refrained from reporting how incoherent and bizarre Trump became, normalizing and “softening” his increasingly wild statements, even though they were about every little thing Joe Biden’s gaffes reported.

The New York Times headlined its coverage of the September 2024 presidential debate between Trump and Kamala Harris — in which Trump shouted conspiracy theories about a stolen election and Haitian immigrants eating pet cats and dogs — with the words: “Harris and Trump are betting on their own, starkly opposite ones Views on America.”

Trump has called the free press “scum” and an “enemy within.” He has threatened to revoke the licenses of television stations and jail journalists who do not reveal their anonymous sources. Last month, Trump sued CBS over conspiratorial claims that “60 Minutes” made favorable “edits” to Harris for the final portion of his interview with her.

Starting January 20, Trump and his billionaire sycophants – including Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy, Howard Lutnick, Scott Bessent, Doug Burgum and Linda McMahon – will control the executive branch of the US government, and Trump’s MAGA Republicans will take control of both chambers of the Congress.

Members of the Supreme Court (some of whom, like Clarence Thomas, have been recipients of billionaire gifts) have already signaled their willingness to consolidate even more power in Trump’s hands, free him from criminal liability for his actions, and open the floodgates even further big money in American politics.

All of this is a signal from the United States that the core principles of liberalism, including the rule of law and freedom of the press, are at stake.

Elsewhere in the world, alliances between business elites and authoritarians threaten the public’s access to the truth, without which democracy cannot thrive.

It’s a vicious circle: Citizens have become cynical about democracy because decision-making is now dominated by business elites, and this cynicism has given rise to authoritarian forces that cater even more to these elites.

Trump and his lapdogs worship Viktor Orbán and Hungary’s Fidesz party, which turned a once-vibrant democracy into a one-party state, muzzled the media and rewarded the rich.

Trump’s success is already emboldening Marine Le Pen and her National Rally Party in France; Alternative in Germany or AfD; Italy’s far-right Giorgia Meloni; and right-wing radical parties in the Netherlands and Austria.

Trump’s triumph will surely embolden Russia’s Vladimir Putin – the world’s most dangerous authoritarian oligarch – not just in Ukraine and possibly Eastern Europe, but also in his global disinformation campaign to undermine democracies.

Accordingly The Wall Street JournalMusk – the richest person in the world, self-proclaimed “first buddy” of Trump and linchpin of the US space effort – has been in regular contact with Putin since late 2022.

Evidence is mounting that Russia and other foreign agents used Musk’s X platform to disrupt the 2024 US presidential election campaign in Trump’s favor. Musk did little to stop them.

During the campaign, Musk himself posted a fake version of Harris’s first campaign video to his 200 million followers, with an altered voice in which he sounded like the vice president and said she “doesn’t know the first thing about running the country” and is the “last.” “. Diversity attitude.” Musk tagged the video “amazing.” It received hundreds of millions of views.

According to a report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, Musk posted at least 50 false election claims on X, totaling at least 1.2 billion views. None had a “community note” from X’s supposed fact-checking system.

Murdoch, another oligarchic champion of authoritarianism, has turned his Fox News around, Wall Street JournalAnd New York Post into ever louder forms of right-wing propaganda, which reinforces Trump’s lies.

Artificial intelligence could make it even easier for oligarchs and demagogues to manipulate the public. Trump has appointed right-wing FCC commissioner and Musk brother Brendan Carr as the agency’s chairman. Don’t expect him to do anything about weaponizing disinformation. Carr publicly railed against NBC’s appearance with Kamala Harris on “Saturday Night Live” during the election.

Bezos banned The Washington Post from the support of Kamala Harris. He obviously didn’t want to stoke Trump’s anger because Bezos’ other businesses depended on government contracts. The mere possibility of a Trump presidency forced one of America’s boldest newspapers to censor itself. Marty Baron, former editor of the postcalled the move “cowardice, of which democracy is the victim.”

The billionaire owner of the Los Angeles TimesPatrick Soon-Shiong, also blocked his newspaper’s planned endorsement of Harris, prompting the newspaper’s editorial chief to resign. Mariel Garza said she “doesn’t agree with us remaining silent,” adding, “In dangerous times, honest people must stand up.”

Honest people who stand up are exactly what it takes to resist authoritarianism and protect democracy – monitoring those in power, acting as watchdogs against abuses of power, denouncing those abuses, and sounding the alarm on wrongdoing and wrong policies .

But how can one “stand up” without reliable sources of truth?

So as we delve into the darkness of the Trump regime, please ensure that you and others you know have access to accurate information about what is happening.

Here are the sources I currently rely on for the truth: The Guardian, Democracy Now, Business Insider, The New Yorker, The American perspective Americans for Tax Fairness, The Economic Policy Institute, The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, ProPublica, Labor Notes, The Lever, Popular Information, Heather Cox Richardson and of course The Substack.