My previous post discussed the failures of the press relating to the upcoming election. But I don’t want to leave the impression that I believe the press deserves the most blame. They don’t. To me, a lot of great reporting occurred, but I believe they failed in the larger framing of Harris vs.Trump and Democrats and Republicans–a failure that may have superseded the great reporting in terms of overall impact.

Having said that, more of the blame should go to two other groups–in this order

1. Conservative media–specifically Rupert Murdoch, who controls Fox News, New York Post, and the Wall Street Journal (the editorial section was the problem)
2. Prominent Republicans and Conservatives–who knew Trump was unfit and posed a threat to the country

Combined, their failure to a) stick to their conservative principles and b) tell the truth is the biggest reason are at the precipice of electing an authoritarian like Trump. Why do I think this? If these two groups stuck to their principles and told the truth, the information about Trump going to the American public would mirror the information coming from non-conservative news outlets and from Democrats and Liberals. (I actually think that the information could be even more negative towards Trump.)

While this may have little effect on hardcore Trump supporters, I think it would have a significant impact on casual news consumers, particularly those who lack partisan fervor. For this group–in my view one of the biggest groups among voters–consensus between the NYT and Fox or Democrats and Republicans equals the truth. That’s an oversimplification, but, by and large, I believe this group would apply this short-cut for assessing information.

Now, consider when Democrats and the non-conservative press make reports and publish editorials that suggest Trump is an authoritarian, but the Fox News, et al., and most Republicans dismiss those claims (or remain silent). In this situation, I believe the casual news consumer will either be confused or even dismiss this depiction. It’s a reasonable and maybe most rational reaction. Here’s the thought process: If Trump were truly an authoritarian–and Republicans and conservative pundits also believed this (or even believed this was a possibility) of course they would say so. Only a hardcore partisan would think that the Republicans and conservative media would not do this.

My sense is that a considerable amount of voters voting for Trump do not believe he is an authoritarian. And this is largely the case because Republicans who know better and Rupert Murdoch (who I also believe knows better) didn’t stick to their principles and tell the truth. It’s these individuals history will condemn.