By: Mark Glennon*
The Illinois Local Journalism Task Force, created by state law in 2021, delivered its report last week. Its proposals are mostly about getting taxpayers to pony up and putting government in control. No mention of journalism’s own failures.
Let’s start with what the report has right. News sources, particularly in smaller communities, are struggling to stay alive or already are entirely gone. “The number of newspapers in Illinois has dropped by more than a third since 2005…. Five of Illinois’ 102 counties have no local source of news, and 33 rely on just a single source…. The Chicago Tribune, long the largest news organization in the Midwest, lost 82% of its newsroom staff from 2006 to 2022.” the report says. The evidence goes on and on, here and nationally.
The report is also right about a primary cause of the shrinkage: “To a large extent, legacy media have been overrun by the web.” The internet has crippled legacy media’s traditional revenue model, which was advertising. The web provides far cheaper and better targeted ads, so newspaper advertising revenue dried up.
Consequently, pay in the industry stinks, and nobody should have a problem with good journalists who complain about that.
It’s no exaggeration to say that democracy doesn’t work in communities without adequate news media because informed voting is impossible.
But that’s all the report got right. The task force’s remedies would be worse than the malady. Here are the options suggested in the report:
- tax credits for local news organizations or for subscriptions thereto;
- tax credits for businesses that advertise on local news sources;
- tax credits for hiring and retaining journalists;
- exemption from corporate income tax for local news organizations;
- advertising “set-asides” mandating that government spend a minimum percentage of its advertising on ads in local news/media outlets;
- direct grants to news outlets by the state and by private sources;
- state financed fellowship programs for journalists;
- forcing tech firms that include local news to share revenue; and
- donation by failing owners of their news outlets to a local organization.
The report also suggests consideration of these additional ideas on which the task force did not finalize a recommendation:
- college loan forgiveness for young journalists;
- subscription subsidies for citizens with low incomes; and
- state funded journalism courses and scholarships.
With all that state control over what media and journalists favor, perhaps you are asking, “Wait, isn’t the media supposed to be a watchdog over government, not a lapdog”? The report gives only token attention to that issue.
A better question would be why wouldn’t Illinois government, given its record, abuse those measures to protect and promote itself?
Consider that record.
Gov. JB Pritzker went on national television calling for a blatant and fundamental violation of First Amendment free speech rights. “There ought to be a private right of action for anybody that’s dissuaded or told something that’s false, that’s the important thing”, he told CNN. But the Supreme Court ruled clearly long ago that would unconstitutional. After all, it would be the government itself that would be deciding whom to prosecute for what it deemed false. “Mr. Pritzker is gaining a reputation as a hard-left culture warrior who is happy to silence political opponents,” a Wall Street Journal editorial said.
Under the guise of banning book bans, the General assembly passed and Pritzker signed a bill delegating control over what books libraries carry to a group run by an open Marxist. They passed an “anti-doxing” law that flies in the face of textbook First Amendment law, as we explained here.
Illinois Senators Durbin and Duckworth have been among the progressives jawboning tech platforms to do more censorship. And Illinois Congressman Sean Casten introduced a bill to strip courts of the power of judicial review — their power to declare laws invalid as violations of the First Amendment, or anything else.
Then there’s the state’s top legal officer, Attorney General Kwame Raoul. He seemingly couldn’t care less about the First Amendment and is all for government censorship. Last month, he was forced to cut and run on an attempt to muzzle pro-lifers after a federal judge ridiculed a law he primarily wrote that brazenly violated the First Amendment. Most recently, in what is sure to be a historic case pending in the U.S. Supreme Court, he signed an amicus brief attempting to quash online speech he doesn’t like. That one deserves a column of its own, which we will do soon.
Who will pay for all the tax credits and subsidies in the task force’s recommendations? You, of course.
Even the recommendations that don’t directly impact tax dollars will have a public cost, which the task force seems not to understand. An insight to their mentality is in their section about the mandatory set-asides for government advertising in local media. Estimated cost of the set aside, the report says, does “not involve new spending, as advertising dollars are simply reallocated to community and ethnic media.” Wrong. If forced to select something worse than the best bang-for-buck advertising option the government has, a cost is imposed.
The biggest problem with the task force report is what it omits entirely: recognition that much of media’s downfall is self-inflicted. The public is fed up with news media. Distrust is so broad that it surely harms even good outlets.
Poll after poll shows it. Less than a third of the nation says they trust the mainstream media “a great deal” or “a fair amount.” Half of Americans believe news organizations deliberately mislead them. Four in 10 say the press is doing more to hurt American democracy, while only about 2 in 10 say the press is doing more to protect it. And nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults say the news media is increasing political polarization.
A large source of that lost credibility is widespread embrace of what’s called “advocacy journalism” as a replacement for facts and objectivity. Too many journalists have embraced that replacement. A report published by Arizona State University’s journalism school contains dozens of quotes from major figures in journalism attacking the concept of objectivity. They should be ridiculed out of the journalism profession, but the task force report had word no condemnation of the trend.
Another central problem is that so much of Illinois media thumbs its nose at roughly two-thirds of its target market – moderates and conservatives — choosing instead to carry the water for today’s far left progressives. Never mind the matter of bias, that’s just stupid business practice. Illinois is in fact a moderate state and didn’t sign up for the progressive agenda it got, provided you look issue by issue. Most of Illinois’ legacy media seem blind to that, and that blindness runs through the task force report.
Not all is bad in Illinois journalism. Coverage of Chicago government is thorough, tough and fair, though critical coverage of state government is almost nonexistent. Local outlets, to the extent they are still around, are generally far more objective than statewide and national ones. Investigative reporters work hard, usually just to have the corruption they show ignored.
And there are rays of hope. For example, new, philanthropically supported outlets Center Square and Capitol News Illinois provide essential facts on state government. CWB covers Chicago’s crime problem candidly. The Cook County Record reports court action statewide beautifully.
I don’t have all the answers to the news media crisis, though I think much of the solution will have to come from philanthropic financial support. And I am certain the government shouldn’t be trusted to fix it and the crisis won’t end until news outlets take a good look in the mirror.
*Mark Glennon is founder of Wirepoints.
UPDATE 1/30/24: We received comments, linked here, made by a task force member, Senator Don DeWitt (R-West Dundee), at a press conference in which he largely agreed with the concerns expressed above.
Audio and summary 
If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
Learn to code lol. Machine language is binary, so that might be a bit triggering.
One answer, of course, is good news aggregation, and I dare say that Wirepoints and RealClear are the gold standard for that. We spend lots of time finding the best and most important stories, and are extra careful to include perspectives we don’t agree with.
RealClear is the gold standard. They typically link articles with one view point and near it is an article with the opposing position. You may view Wirepoints in that light but it’s not close. While you do post some articles with opposing views from your own, when that happens you typically provide commentary about how that author is wrong. You have your thumb on the scale as to how people should perceive certain stories. That’s ok as this site is more for political advocacy than true news aggregation. There is a reason 99% of your commenters align with the same… Read more »
That’s utter and total bullshit. We only post “some articles with opposing views”? We have published 64,000 articles here but just 2,600 are our own. Almost all of those that aren’t our own and are from mainstream sources that lean left, and they routinely are about what the those in power (the left) are saying. We are especially careful to publish op-eds from any significant officeholder or figure on the left. And what do we get in return? Squat from most of the local media who boycott us. It’s a different story with the national press that is quite fair… Read more »
How dare someone have an opinion different than yours. If your coverage is so balanced why don’t you see that in the comment section. You are an advocacy news site that pretends to be balanced. That’s the utter bullshit.
Commenters aren’t us. You are truly full of shit on this. And that the commenters lean one way on a truly balanced site like ours, that should tell you where the public stands.
Your website layout is divided into thirds. One third Chicago, one third Illinois, and one third with your “research and commentary”. If you think you are a news aggregation site like RealClear you are full on delusional. If you can’t determine why your commenters have the same political bend you’re purposely lying to yourself. By the way, it doesn’t matter what you think but how it is perceived by your readers. Sorry my opinion doesn’t put your website at the same level as RealClear. Maybe reflect on that statement rather than lashing out. Such a child when you or your… Read more »
Sounds like you know Bevan or McIntyre in some way because your shilling for them heavy. Very biased. RCP at one point was a small business and once they sold out to Forbes Media they ceased to be a small business and became a product shaped inside the beltway. Wirepoints is still a small but mighty small business and it’s true to it’s mission. I know you are a regular contributor like I am, however the bloviating your doing here is a tell of some sorts. I think when you sell your soul to a mass media company the content… Read more »
Also, I didn’t say you don’t publish opposing views. You are not balanced. No amount of ranting will change that. Only your actions.
We have posted literally about twice as many articles from progressive Sun-Time/WBEZ than we have our own articles. If you want to make a case that we are unbalanced, it would be that the left gets far more articles than the right. If you think there is an excess of articles from the right compared to the left, you are out of your mind and we have the numbers to show it.
Your articles stay up permanently until your next new “research and commentary” story is published. Who cares how many you publish when the home page is filled with 1/3 of your own stories with your own political advocacy. Do you really not have the intellectual honesty to admit you have your thumb on the scale? Stop with the delusion.
I count 11 of our own articles on our home page and 35 from other sources, which is pretty typical, and about half of those 35 are from sources we are not fond of. We segregate ours in a separate column to keep our opinions separate. Yes, they are on top in the daily email and on cellphones, but that’s because they have proved far more popular than articles from other sours. Our typically have many times the pageviews of even the top stories we highlight from other sources. I say again, nobody but nobody does a fairer job curating… Read more »
“Our typically have many times the pageviews of even the top stories we highlight from other sources” Thanks for making my point Mark. It’s not about the number of articles from sources you are not “fond of” but what actually garners attention and views. Which, by the way, also includes the comments of your delusional minions that whine about stolen elections or any other conspiracy theory. Be honest with yourself Mark. Does RealClear opinion pieces dominate their webpage both in prime real estate and attention? Not at all. That’s why they are the gold standard. Your site is built around… Read more »
You should familiarize yourself with a guy name Will Stancil and the meltdown every X timeline user has had to endured.
Your meltdown over the number and bias of articles is exactly the same.
You might be Will Stancil for all I konw.
Not sure why you would interpret my comments as a “meltdown”. Again, it’s a different opinion than yours or Mark and I have once again defended my position.
I don’t care if an article is biased nor did I bring up the number of articles from progressive or conservative media. Mark did that.
You know this site has a conservative flavor to it. If it didn’t, you and the others that seek out an echo chamber wouldn’t be here. RealClear is far more neutral than WP.
We will be making layout and cosmetic changes to our site soon. We have a dual mission: a) research and commentary, and b) aggregation. I say we have balanced those missions very fairly. If you or anybody else has a suggestion for how to do it better, please be specific.
Mark, You are assuming that I’ve been suggesting that you change your format to be more balanced. I have made no such suggestion. I merely pointed out that you are not at the same level of news aggregation as RealClear. Their commentary doesn’t drown out the aggregation. That seem to really upset you yet you admit your mission is driven by research and commentary. You also admitted that it’s that same R&C that people are most interested. You’ll never be able to balance the news with your commentary all over it. Again, that’s ok. Why would you change? My suggestion… Read more »
Name a few policies we’ve supported that aren’t “middle of the road.” And you still won’t accept that we have a dual purpose that RealClear does not have. Our curation is as fair as theirs.
I accept that you stated that you have a dual purpose and I actually believe that you believe that. Your R&C overshadows that which makes this a conservative advocacy site not a neutral news aggregation site. FYI, I don’t disagree with many of your policy positions but that’s because for many issues I lean conservative or libertarian. However, when your commentary is trying to drive policy you no longer are a news aggregation site and merely an advocacy site with the veil of news aggregation. If you open a bar that that has multiple TV’s, serves wings and nachos and… Read more »
Meltdown city going on over here.
“It seems to bother you that not every customer agrees with you.” Are you familiar with the comments section on Politico before they turned off comments? It was 3,000 comments on every article of partisans people screaming at each other. WP is more like a bunch of regulars at a collar county or downstate watering hole on a Friday night, except the national news media loves it because it’ gives everybody else a taste of IL’s degeneracy and dysfunctionality, because people love to watch a train wreck. The snooty local media decides to ignore WP because they believe that any… Read more »
You have no idea who our readers are, basing your claims on our commenters, which are far less than 1% of our readers. Everybody in media knows that commenters are not representative of readers. And as for Wirepoints being “conservative,” I say Wirepoints is mainstream and I ask you again for any examples of policy positions we have that aren’t supported by most or nearly most of Illinoisans. Maybe your definition of “conservative,” that you apply to us and even our more conservative commenters, is just a sheepish repetiton of what the regular media and today’s far left in power… Read more »
By comparison I look at Capfax usually daily. Millers format is to aggregate articles which he then adds his very pro machine comments to and his very pro machine commenters comment on. And nowhere as good as WP, they do have a good selection of article links.
I agree Where’s mine. Miller’s site is absolutely terrible. He has a political leaning to every piece he posts on his site and his overall format /layout looks like it was created in a time machine. That said, the comparison was WP and RealClear. WP is not in that category.
WP is certainly in the RealClear category but they’re in different markets. RealClear is national, WP is clearly local. And WP has more authoritative conservatve links too including their own research. While RC’s conservative links tend to be on the weaker side – plenty of American Conservative and American Thinker type links. This is a problem in the conservative space, the lack of good journalism (except WP of course) because as the saying goes, liberals read, while conservatives watch. Youtube/X/Rumble are dominated by the right, and even left leaning posters tend to start leaning right themselves after being redpilled in… Read more »
I have no issues with Mark’s format just take issue with his belief that he is neutral and in the same category as RC. I don’t see it. I gave my opinion and that clearly set off Mark and I defended my position.
I don’t know why you and others are so threatened by someone that has a different opinion than yours.
“with his belief that he is neutral”
THIS IS AGAIN A STRAWMAN. He never said he’s neutral. YOU said he’s neutral. He said he’s middle of the road, or supports positions that are supported by most IL residents. YOU keep putting words in his mouth. And these days, middle of the road IS centrist conservative because the left went full libtard with the men can get pregnant thing.
“Miller’s site is absolutely terrible”
Finally something we agree on! I used to read the public blog every day back in the Blago and Quinn era but it does nothing but raise my blood pressure these days.
So in your own comment you knew that it would be a bold statement to put yourself in the same category as RealClear but then you get upset when someone calls out your BS. Too funny.
Most online news sites would at least ‘shadow ban’ a troll like PPF. To WP credit, they have been very tolerant and let the community see the extremist.
Bingo!
So advocating that states pay their debt as per the constitution of the United States is extreme? Believing in free speech and exchange of ideas and opinions is extreme? WP should be celebrated because they don’t ban a dissenting opinion? Thanks for letting everyone know where you stand on expressing opinions. People are so used to the echo chamber environment that they can’t handle differing opinions and resort to labeling anything they don’t agree with as extreme. How sad. i believe in following the constitution of the United States, the state constitution and respecting the outcome of an election. Only… Read more »
The US Constitution dictates that I must receive my full pension, and not one dime less! Anything less would violate the very foundation of our country!
Who’s extreme?
PPF won’t happy until Kwame has to kneel before a bankruptcy judge.
It’s coming. Soon.
When RR? States can’t file bankruptcy so when exactly is your absurd prediction going to happen?
It was once inconceivable that a city like Detroit could declare bankruptcy. It happened. The money ran out, all the spending and debt that the city took on became untenable. That time for Illinois is coming, and soon. You would do better to start clamoring for spending restraint by your friends in Springfield, and maybe stop encouraging taxpayers to leave Illinois.
On a side note…
The overspending and Federal debt is the reason why the national pols want to raid the RRB, as it remains fully funded by rail employers and employees, unlike Social Security.
When? You and all the other sky is falling crowd never answer that question. States can’t file bankruptcy. Cities were able to file for bankruptcy for almost 80 years before Detroit pulled the trigger. Hardly “inconceivable”.
I guess by soon you mean in 50 to 100 years. lol
Not just a pension but all contracts. It doesn’t allow you to steal from public employees simply because you don’t like the way they vote. You don’t get to pick and choose which parts of the constitution you are going to follow.
“You don’t get to pick and choose which parts of the constitution you are going to follow.”
Sorry, PPF, but Elvis has left the building on that one. Have you heard about the border?
I have. Please enlighten us as to how the constitution has been violated. The border is one of the biggest issues and it appears that it may catapult DJT back into office. People are rightfully upset. With that said, how has the constitution been violated? If so, I’m surprised this issue hasn’t become before SCOTUS. It seems that SCOTUS has only ruled that the issue belongs entirely with the federal government.
I look forward to your analysis.
You are so full of shite it’s sick. Bloviating constantly. Love to speak like you are more intelligent than everyone else. Rules and laws are optional for you progressives. One set of rules for you and another set of laws for everyone else. Twist and shred the governing document for the country and only when they come for you do you start your incessant whining for protecting Americans who are here legally. Out of your damn mind is what you are. https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artI-S8-C18-8-1/ALDE_00001255/ Even so, the Supreme Court’s jurisprudence reflects that Congress retains broad power to regulate immigration and that the… Read more »
Are you unable to describe how it violates the constitution? Please explain in your own words if you are able. Your provided link doesn’t actually answer the question I asked. Very common among those that can’t articulate their point. Run to google and look for some type of confirming source but don’t truly understand what you are reading.
Also, I’m not a progressive. I just don’t yell at clouds screaming that everything I don’t like is unconstitutional. it’s called being informed. You should try it sometime.
Even so, the Supreme Court’s jurisprudence reflects that Congress retains broad power to regulate immigration and that the Court will accord substantial deference to the government’s immigration policies, particularly those that implicate matters of national security
None of what you wrote answers my question. Prozac implied that we are violating the constitution when it comes to the border. You have not offered up one statement that backs up his claim. Try again.
Somehow I don’t think you have the ability to make a cogent argument. Let me guess, more name calling.
The answer was in my link which you more than likely interpret differently. You continue to cry about it and it’s easy to see that you want to show your intelligence, so let’s see it. Instead of weeping and sobbing present the facts and educate me. Come on keyboard warrior. Let’s hear it. Put down the Kleenex and educate all of us with your constitutional law knowledge. This is an invasion and has been an invasion since 2016. It is a violation of Article I, Section 8, Clause 18. The constitution provides a framework for the rule of law in… Read more »
Just because you call it an “invasion” doesn’t make it so in terms of the constitution. Are they approaching the borders with weapons? Are they attacking as they cross the border? You’ve been brainwashed to believe it’s an “invasion” when it doesn’t even come close to the definition put forth by our founders. Did SCOTUS rule it an invasion?
Make up your own definitions all you want but it doesn’t make it so.
It’s absolutely an invasion in every sense of the word. Waiting for SCOTUS to make rulings is of no consequence. Courts are unable to enforce the law. The executive is supposed to perform that task according to the constitution. Transnational drug cartels control every aspect of the border. This includes blackmail, bribery, and murder. The cartel makes individuals disappear. This happens every day and most of it is unreported. They are ruthless. Each individual that is smuggled into the country is more valuable then the kilos they smuggled in and the cash that is smuggled back over the border. Human… Read more »
It’s an invasion.
It’s not an invasion in the context of our constitution Mark.
I’m amused by your observation apparently intended to demean: “Love to speak like you are more intelligent than everyone else”. Demeaning in reality? Au contraire, mon frere, in that your statement is true but in praiseworthy ways. When you read his postings they show a superior intellect both in terms of the writing style and content. Then, they are polite and thoughtfully expressed compared to the vile spewed so often here by the “shoot from the lip” gut-level commenters.
Trotsky was an intellectual. He sounds as if he is yet another Marxist with a different wrapper. So many that it’s hard to distinguish.
Please point to one example of a statement I’ve made that aligns with Marxism? I have made it clear that I respect and value the constitution as it provides an outline of the rules we all agree upon while also limiting the tyranny of the government.
You are making accusations with absolutely zero evidence. Try and actually discuss the issue rather than name calling. If you are capable.
Here you go: I believe in following the constitution of the United States, the state constitution and respecting the outcome of an election. Only someone that hates the constitution and fellow American voters would find that extreme. Weak and fickle. Lacking any form of reality and reasoning. Respect the outcome of the election? Are you serious? You believe that everything is on the up and up? I am not going to be such a wet blanket, you lost me there. Limiting the tyranny of the government? We are way beyond that now. Are you understanding the situation on the ground?… Read more »
So because I believe the election wasn’t stolen I’m a Marxist? Wow, you are dense. Thanks for letting everyone know your true ignorance.
They do show a superior one sided intellect. Not sure if it’s all that is broad based intelligence or academic but it is consistent in its leftward leanings. Easy to sense a Marxist. They always like to everyone else how to live.
I used to email back and forth with the editor of our local newspaper. I asked him one time if he knew what the demographics were in our area. He didn’t publish many articles that took that information into consideration. He told me he was aware of the demographics and the newspaper didn’t necessarily take it into consideration when printing. Nothing has changed. I stopped purchasing the newspaper. He ignored the demographics, so I ignored the newspaper and stopped financially contributing to a business that ignored me and the truth. (Note…look at the byline to decide if you really want… Read more »
Newspapers failed because they didn’t understand the Internet. Newspapers lost their Ad Revenue from Car Dealers, Grocery Stores, Classifieds, & Real Estate.
And nearly every penny of that internet revenue was captured by Google, Meta & Amazon, and in a distant 4th and 5th, M$ and Tik-Tok…
I assume once the state gets in the biz of funding local news then they will also get in the biz of deciding what’s news worthy. Assume for our dem machine monopoly that will mean ZERO hint of anything that they consider “carnival barker” news (WP, IPI, etc). Then 1.) Would state get in biz of funding/ allowing only left “advocacy journalism, or mission driven journalism” which seems to dominate the ST/WBEZ non-profit model often by printing very far left blog-rags like South Side Weekly or numerous others? 2.) Also, what would be most frightening is if state got in… Read more »
Once upon a time Old Joe was an avid print journalism reader. I had the WSJ home delivered when it was about 25 cents a copy in the 90s. I even subscribed to the Trib. I remember having to wash newsprint ink off my hands after reading the Sunday paper. The problem is that the WSJ became overpriced and the Trib became too woke as well as too expensive. Indirectly I pay thru my cell phone plan for news now at $50 per month. News and calls and text and email for $50 per month ain’t bad. Yep, print journalism… Read more »
My downstate liberal utopia still has a print media that does nothing much more than cheer the local political team line accompanied by second to none high school sports coverage rather than do any investigative reporting. Rumors say that the City sends a subsidy, wink wink grant, to the publisher out of the “tourism” budget. We don’t get to read about things like the coincidence of lower pension funding something or other at a time when a huge oversized public safety building was built and instead read cheers about a particular growth situation without a serious look at the TIFs… Read more »
Who cares about investigative reporting? It’s not going to do any good if alternative media keeps framing political battles as futile. We have more than enough evidence to put together a robust coalition and throw these Democrats out. We need to focus on organization. Organization and public displays of support will sort this out.
Are you getting ready to get the pamphlets out again referring to Esprit de corps? 🤣
No “rumors,” please.
People need to show support for and comment on Ted’s discussion with Ian Rowe. The more organizations and support groups we put together, the more difficult it is for bureaucrats to take away our freedoms. This includes journalism, too.
I was a multidecade subscriber to the Chicago Tribune. Once Obama was, as the great John Kass put it, ‘plucked from a reed basket on the shore of the Chicago River’ and elevated to the Presidency, so completed the Trib’s lurch to the left, directly over the cliff of leftism, actually. The turn hard left began under President Clinton, with Trib apologist ‘journalists’ regurgitating Democrat talking points in an effort to control the narrative. ‘Journalists’ even wrote pieces reflecting their admiration at how well they were being spun by the Clinton Machine. DNC operatives and activists would routinely get hired… Read more »
Another excellent comment by you. Thanks.
I put in extra typos so unemployed editors have something to do today.
Right on point! Unreal the amount of one sided propaganda were being fed. Blows my mind! “The paper” had such great writers and they really lost their way along with so much media. Gone forever. The online alternatives are superior to anything in print with a handful of exceptions that still cater to intellectuals who are more left leaning. Their time is coming as well.
While the internet undoubtedly hurt traditional media as we knew it, the transition from reporting to preaching also has played a part in my view. I can interpret information, and being told how to think is a turn-off. They cut their own throat.
Being told how to think doesn’t work. Being told what to think about is far more dangerous.
“Coverage of Chicago government is thorough, tough and fair, though critical coverage of state government is almost nonexistent.”
Need to add this – critical coverage of Cook County government is almost nonexistent
Excellent point. And Preckwinkle, a radical, is entirely ignored.
This is a conservative opinion piece. It equates local news with ‘Mainstream” news outlets. Local reporters are the ones that get things right, and should not be put on the same level as national outlets. Supporting local news is the issue here. They are making some suggestions on how to support it. Conservatives want to feed us the line that does one thing: keeping taxes low for the ultra wealthy.
Wrong. This piece did not put local sources on the same level as statewide and national ones. “Local outlets, to the extent they are still around, are generally far more objective than statewide and national ones,” this article says, and further says that part of the problem is that even good sources get hurt by the bad rep of MSM. Also, the task force report clearly spilled over into statewide sources. And since when is keeping the government’s mitts off of the news a “conservative” thing? The left was traditionally the champion off press independence and free speech. Now, they… Read more »
Local news outlets are as complicit as the MSM in showing a dead thugs sweetest picture instead of the post he made on Facebook waving money guns and drugs around, being loath to use the term “ illegal immigrant”, sparingly saying the taboo words “ border crisis “( which they only recently recognized) and generally rah rahing all things blue. Unfortunately for them, their liberal target audience doesn’t buy newspapers which is why the likes of the Sun Times is shuffling around, hat in hand and begging on the corner. That’s why Pritzger wants to create a tax funded news… Read more »
Who are you kidding? Having “Hello, Indiana” as a user name doesn’t exactly support the defense of Illinois or rally those fighting against this. Big brother is you watching. LOL
My user name is really of no consequence to clear thinking people. My political stance is made abundantly clear with my posts. “A rose by any other name …” said Shakespeare. Try reading one of his plays sometime.
I don’t care about Shakespeare. I care about you showing up to play the game with the wrong colored t-shirt. Look, I get it. A few years ago we all had goofy names because the economy was good, nobody felt threatened, nobody was paying attention, and political activism was a different experience. Now, we’ve got some serious issues to address and amazing opportunities. Johnson has a 20% approval rating! It’s paramount that we stand strong in unison and work with others to build up our base.
Some of us fear the Woke as much (or more than) you fear the NRA. No careful conservative wants to make it easy for some NUT to show up on our porch. I think a thoughtful liberal would be equally careful. I happen to think the left has more nut-like arsonists and nihilists than the right but I have typically lived in urban areas governed by Dems and public employees and preachers. You probably stand up for Solidarity Forever. Different strokes for opposing partisans. After a couple beers we might agree that partisan advocates overstate our views but in “these… Read more »
The redcoats are here and their coats are as red as the flag of the Peoples Republic of China.
I have no clue what you’re leading to or how you managed to arrive at this interpretation of my posts. I want to fix this mess! We need strong leaders and a voice to counter the far left. I’m pissed that this chat is gamed to lose the fight and derails any sort of positive momentum. This is why I call out all of the Illinois expats (proud defeatists?) and SadState (ultra defeatist). Their continued and persistent presence here defies all sound logic. These folks and other similar characters show up ever day. Who in their right mind, other than… Read more »
Most of us were quite unaware of your authority as to what people should post under what username here. You sound as if a position in Joe’s failed “Ministry of Disinformation “would’ve suited you to a t.
Really? We actually need to walk through this? I’m not claiming any authority. I’m stating it’s idiotic for anyone in Illinois to take your positions seriously when your user name clearly implies “give up” and bad faith.
I still think there is a happy medium between “everything’s wonderful” and “we’re all doomed”. I understand completely why many conservatives and centrists want to get out of Illinois and if they can, I wish them well. BUT, there are still MANY conservative/centrist minded people who cannot move or choose not to for reasons that go beyond politics. To offer them NO advice other than “pack up and get out” is not helpful. There could very well be constructive things they can do at the local or community level that will pay off in the future. Should the residents of… Read more »
Still bent over the username, huh? Wow. And, hurtful username aside, I still care about the my friends and relatives being gamed endlessly by the “ Land of Lenin “ , have a right to express such concerns and realize that opposing views are the right of those that express them, unlike some people.
I’d also like to state for the record that I have nothing against Illinois “expats” commenting here. I really do like to know why you moved and where you moved to, and what your state’s government is doing better than Illinois. It is useful information for those who are planning a move or considering moving. That said, there’s no reason to keep beating those who have chosen to stay over the head with reasons why everything is hopeless and they must be stupid, naive, lazy, weak, corrupt or morally compromised.
All hail the pamphlets! All hail the motivational brochures! Lord Hardy has decreed it’s “off with their heads” for failing to listen to his daily motivational speeches. My speech is much easier. Stop throwing money away and move. There is no fixing this anymore. Going to be rapidly declining. Mayor Xanax is going to have a complete and total break down eventually. The self inflicted wounds continue to accumulate.
It sounded as if you were dissing Hello Indiana for his user name and “stand together” sounded like union talk. If you disavow those affiliations I have some substantive comments. Standing together with non-residents is not politically effective in Illinois. It also signals (to me) that you hold a single issue posture and Illinois has multiple issues to solve. Sorry if I missed what your points. Apart from that, I agree that Illinois has some [Agean] stables that need mucking out.
Take your 1940s brochures and pamphlets and go back to the street corner. People are leaving, you must have missed the memo. There are no alternatives in Illinois. The voters reelected Kim Foxx and Jelly Belly, the voters have inflicted this pain on themselves. I decided long ago I was not going to continue paying for nothing in return. Now public safety is gone. Stand strong in another state where your values and vote counts.
Sorry Tom, my ‘local’ print and TV news in Central IL parroted the Democrat approved MSM narratives and DNC talking points for the last 35 years.
I got tired of only reading the comics. Even many of those are left-wing now, so I’d never read a newspaper or follow it online. Would rather donate the money to charity.
So if local news reporters are so effective at doing their jobs, why do I see Chicago news in the Daily Mail (UK) and the New York Post at a high frequency ? Local news reporting protects the kleptocracy. Local news is absolutely worthless and completely woke, communist, propaganda crap. It’s almost criminal. So much real news is ignored and not reported. Your living in a dream world if you can’t see it.
Those who can should file Chapter 11 and pay lawyers until they fail.
Otherwise look for a wealthy conservative buyer who can start over with journalists and reporters who can submit un-Woke writing samples.
Thanks, Wirepoints, for reading this report, so I don’t have to.
It seems to me that news coverage is better than ever, but in a different form than in the previous century. Most good publications are online-only, and some are blogs or substacks, but the information is there. People may be too busy, or too distracted, or insufficiently literate, to read it.
If the State regime really wanted to improve news coverage, they would improve FOIA laws to make coverage easier.
What about a fair discussion by the media about all the incentives the governor can hand out to whomever he pleases? Here is an article on Chinese companies which one of them most likely is Gotion but not mentioned by name.
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/lawmakers-want-us-probe-four-173835765.html
The “ options “ smack of a government controlled media, bankrolled by the taxpayers, of course. The Gang of Four ( Durbin, Ducksworth, Casten and Raoul) are always ready, willing and able to promote the CCCP agenda at every opportunity. Pass the rice, please.
The Leftist Democrats and their minions in the MSM can work on bringing back buggy whips and carriages also, perhaps to be made by the illegal migrants they have enticed in the this ‘sanctuary’ state.
The people have spoken: They don’t like or trust the MSM with it’s Pravda-like support for extremism of the Leftist Democrats.