I have no evidence for this whatsoever, but a hypothesis is slowly congealing in my head that one of the big reasons US media is in such a state is that we now have a generation of op/ed writers who've never actually had any other job and don't know shit about the rest of the world.
Also the "policy analysts" at think tanks who pretend they are doing meaningful, productive work that's valuable on its own terms (rather than merely laundering industry talking points into respectability)
I remember thinking that a "think tank" had to be some sort of cool, science-y lab space when I was a teen. Nope, just a PR agency for lobbyists. Buncha assholes in an office somewhere, that's it.
