U.S’ great authoritarian alignment

Apropos #Gannett decision it will stop publishing diversity information, citing Trump’s executive order… https://www.niemanlab.org/2025/04/gannett-will-stop-publishing-diversity-information-citing-trumps-executive-order

Propaganda and censorship were central tools used by the Nazi regime to shape public opinion and suppress dissenting voices.

#Gleichschaltung refers to a systematic process of coordination or alignment where a central authority exerts control over communication channels to create uniformity of messaging. The term originated in 1930s #Germany but applies analytically to various modern systems where multiple independent information channels become increasingly synchronized to produce homogeneous messaging.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Most German newspapers did not adopt #Nazi ideology voluntarily. Instead, the Nazis enforced control through censorship and propaganda. When #Hitler came to power in 1933, the Nazis controlled less than three percent of Germany’s newspapers, but they quickly established control over the press by eliminating opposition newspapers, seizing printing equipment, and implementing laws like the #Schriftleitergesetz (Editor’s Law) to ensure journalists aligned with Nazi ideology.

In the case of the U.S. it’s curious a quickly established media is capitulating to Trump’s whims. Executive orders are directives issued by the President that manage operations of the federal government and federal agencies. In Gannett's case, while they cited Trump's executive order as influencing their decision, private companies are likely making these changes voluntarily in response to the political climate or anticipated regulatory changes rather than being legally compelled to do so by the executive order itself.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Writing the News https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/writing-the-news

Nazi Germany’s Schriftleitergesetz: The End of Freedom of the Press https://arolsen-archives.org/en/news/nazi-germanys-schriftleitergesetz-the-end-of-freedom-of-the-press

@histodons #histodons

* Edit: typos