The Fig Economy: Yeah, like I wish it would happen too, to some extent, but it doesn’t largely because republicans and democrats are different.

Hey, that's my theory! 😅 (Except I usually say "villains" and am keen to point out that this includes Republicans themselves, they 100% act like they know they're the villains and are proud of it)

A few years ago, Jon Lovett floated a theory that media treats Democrats like protagonists - to be challenged, accounted, and forced to be behave in growth-oriented ways - while the GOP are treated like antagonists - immutable, expected to disrupt, thematic obstacles. Thinking about that a lot.

Seems like a slightly different shade of Murc’s Law, no? One of those things which, once given a name, you see everywhere.

It is related, yeah But I do think it's important to say specifically that Republicans get judged against a "villains" baseline

Yeah, I was just thinking about this with regard to the NYT calling for Biden to withdraw. They see themselves as serving, and only able to influence, the good guys, so it’s not even worth trying to appeal to the bad guys, and they’re wrong about both.

This is why I think the Democratic Party needs to subsidize a media ecosystem of its own

Much harder than you think to make this happen just by willing it Fox, like Trump, is mostly a demand side phenomenon

Yeah, like I wish it would happen too, to some extent, but it doesn’t largely because republicans and democrats are different.

Partisan newspapers were very common in early American history, and the media is currently bleeding itself dry. I think we should try a different model than depending on pundits that clearly dislike Biden personally - what’s the worst that can happen?

I don’t disagree, I just mean that this isn’t a thing that hasn’t happened for lack of trying. It’s fallen on its face every time it’s been tried, and every time a nominally Dem-aligned outlet succeeds, it inevitably starts to see Dem-cheerleading as uncouth and instead turns to bashing them.

There’s nothing wrong with journalism that isn’t objective! Mother Jones and the Wall Street Journal both have clear editorial positions and both have great reporting! The Daily News and NY Post aren’t dead, but you have a commuter city. That said, the progressive talk radio attempt went nowhere.