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Newsmax anchor and veteran journalist Greta Van Susteren expressed a bit of frustration Wednesday on the state of modern media.

What is wrong w/the media? I see more articles about Don Lemon and Amy Robach/TJ Holmes than fentanyl! Is it narcissism? That we in the media only want to read/hear about ourselves so that is what we oversaturate the reader/viewer with?

As a member of right wing media, her question got me thinking. I think the answer is layered, but it has to start with progressive media.

Van Susteren might well be on to something with her narcissism suggestion. The progressive statist media has been navel gazing for years. Their self-absorbed reporting came to a head during the Trump administration as reporter after reporter threw temper tantrum after temper tantrum about Trump’s “surprise” victory, his supporters, the way he drinks water…literally everything and anything that had to do with Trump. All of their reporting launched from the narcissistic assumption that every smart person in America thinks like they do, and Trump’s victory was some kind of fluke aided by foreign interference.

The whiny babies at The New York Times (NYT) declared they would not cover Trump’s remarks live. They wanted to add their own “context” to his words before disseminating them to the world, because only they can properly contextualize ideas and political news. The dummies in flyover country might actually come to a different conclusion than the coastal bubble-dwellers if our betters at NYT don’t spell it out for everyone.

The childish journalists from the D.C. cocktail party circuit began refusing to cover national and global stories unless they cast a negative light on Trump and Republicans. Their partners in Big Tech censored conservative reporting and talking heads, lest those flyover dummies come in contact with too much “misinformation” – meaning any information that didn’t align with their own personal views. The entirety of journalism on the left became about winning elections, not reporting the news. The elite journalist class fully succumbed to being activists for their own ideas in the narcissistic assumption that their ideas are the only ones that matter.

Van Susteren may also be right about the notion of media simply being enthralled with themselves. After taking on the mantle of blatant activism in the Trump era, left-wing media began to see themselves as sort of superheroes, here to rescue Americans from their own idiot decisions. They truly see their mission as noble these days. Ask any journalism student at an elite university why they chose that profession and almost to a person the response you will receive is, “I want to make a difference.” Good journalism certainly can make a difference, but so can bad journalism. True journalism is the pursuit of information and transparency, two things the left has no interest in anymore if those things don’t suit their own personal agendas.

So yes, they do see themselves as Very Important People™ and they have decided to be a part of the story now…every story.

Perhaps another leg of the problem that Van Susteren didn’t have enough characters to flesh out is the rise of social media, and how it has had the effect of merging entertainment culture with news reporting. Most publications these days include coverage of cultural events and issues. After the election of a reality show President, it seems only natural that entertainment and politics would meld into one big ball of bull. The Harvey Weinstein scandal is a pertinent example of how entertainment culture and serious news collide. The ensuing downfall of media figures like Matt Lauer and Chris Cuomo completed the inevitable shift in media coverage.

They cover themselves because they have become the story, sometimes of their own accord, and sometimes because that’s just the way it is now.

As for us on the right, our jobs have largely been reactionary, although that has certainly begun to change in recent years. We react to the lies and manipulations of the left-wing media. We tell the stories they don’t tell, and we point out the constant hypocrisy of the journalist class. It is certainly relevant if left-wing media figures are accusing right-wing personalities of indiscretions, discrimination, bias, etc. when they are engaging in it themselves in front of and behind the cameras and on their pages every day.

There is also the fact that because right-wing outlets like our own don’t have access to the distribution channels of progressive media, and regularly encounter censorship, we have to widen our scope of coverage. At RedState, for instance, you’ll see important news stories alongside cultural and entertainment stories, as well as pieces about our media foes and their hypocrisy. In the end, it all falls under one category anyway – politics.

Our survival has come to depend on being able to cover as much as possible, from popular stories to obscure ones…and I can’t lie, sometimes it’s just plain old fun to take the piss out of our left-wing counterparts.

“Survival” is not too strong of a word to use. We have been fighting for our virtual lives more fiercely than ever over the last three years. Censorship and Big Tech/government collusion has forced us to find alternative ways to stay alive, pay the bills, and bring Americans the type of content the left would rather no one ever gets to see. It’s been a rough time, and our goal is always to give the audience as much value for their clicks as possible.

To that end, we have set up a subscription program aimed at increasing the value of what readers receive from us without sacrificing any of our important free content. Our VIP program is a workaround to the Big Tech censorship that robs us of ad dollars and social media reach when we refuse to abide by their rules of engagement. When we don’t depend on their dollars, we don’t have to depend on their benevolence either.

We invite our readers to continue enjoying our front page content – we will always fight to keep that free and flowing – and we also invite you, dear readers, to join the rebellion and sign up for our VIP program as well. What we get from it is the opportunity to keep ignoring the pressures from progressive players and simply provide the stories we know Americans need to see and share.

What you’ll get from it is a deeper dive into the issues of the day, special perks like podcasts and live chats, and access to some of your favorite Townhall Media personalities from across our family of six websites.

I’m glad Greta Van Susteren posed the question. It’s an opportunity to think about where media is going wrong, and how we can make it right.

So here’s a final pitch to you. Join the revolution. Help make us be the people who set the news cycle, instead of leaving it to the sycophants on the left.

Each RedState VIP and VIP Gold membership lessens our reliance on Big Tech and allows us to continue this critical work. We know that the Biden economy is affecting everyone’s bottom line, so with the promo code SAVEAMERICA you’ll get 40% off your VIP membership.

By becoming a RedState VIP member, you’ll not only directly support us in changing minds and winning those ideological battles, but you’ll also get exclusive columns and videos from some of our top writers, including me, and more.

P.S. – While VIP members have access to a wealth of exclusive content, VIP Gold subscribers get even more. With VIP Gold, not only is your direct support doubled, but VIP Gold members have Gold access across the entire Townhall Media family (Townhall, RedState, PJ Media, and more) – a nearly $300 value.

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