The Santos/fraud situation is bad news for journalism on two grounds, but the Washington Post noticed only one of them.
The Post's coverage highlights Big Journalism's utter failure to do its job in a timely way even when a smaller news org had blown the whistle on some of Santos' lies weeks before the election.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/12/29/north-shore-leader-santos-scoop/
1/x
(Edited to remove errant apostrophe...)
That was bad enough. But there's another journalistic aspect to this situation that may be even worse.
The small news org that did cover the Santos deceit didn't have enough clout in its own community to make a difference.
There was a time in local journalism when coverage of (and scathing anti-Santos editorial about) the candidate's lies would have been enough to ensure his defeat.
2/x
As local news orgs shrink in reach and authority, their ability to help set a public agenda is shrinking, too.
The North Shore Leader did timely and important work on Santos and his lies. (Example: https://www.theleaderonline.com/single-post/santos-filings-now-claim-net-worth-of-11-million) It deserves major kudos for that.
But we should all be worried that local news has eroded to such a degree that even this kind of work can't make the difference it should.
3/x
By Maureen Daly Controversial US congressional candidate George Santos has finally filed his Personal Financial Disclosure Report on September 6th - 20 months late - and he is claiming an inexplicable rise in his alleged net worth to $11 million.. Two years ago, in 2020, Santos' personal financial disclosures claimed that he had no assets over $5,000 - no bank accounts, no stock accounts, no real property. A net worth barely above "zero". And his income was only just over $50,000 for the pr
The rich and powerful people and institutions that journalism is supposed to hold to account are contemptuous of the craft, and of what remains of local news.
They know that even if a watchdog is around, the mutt can't bark loudly enough to be heard.
We have to figure out ways to bring malfeasance to the wider public, to help people know why they should care. Because if we don't, the rich and powerful will rob the rest of us blind -- and corrupt everything.
4/4
@dangillmor Why can’t we, as in the public, support local media in a way similar to ProPublica, but focused on local news? Is it possible?
Look at that public broadcasting reporter in WV fired for exposing problems with public institutions. That was public media, and she still appears to have been thrown under the bus.
If the current model isn’t working, is it possible to do it differently? And if people did try to do it differently, assuming you could raise support $, what would promote intelligent journalism and solid reporting, and the infrastructure around that reporting? (Legal, fact checking, editing.)
Dan Gillmor
Summer Breeze
Grassroots Joe