In the recent debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris (and her debate partners, ABC’s David Muir and Linsey Davis), viewers were promised an evening of political discourse to allow the two candidates to clarify their policy positions.
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Instead, what America received was one of the most absurd displays of media bias in the nation’s history.
Presidential debates are intended to be a neutral ground for candidates to explain to the American public why their policies are best and why their opponent’s policies are not so great. Unfortunately, Muir and Davis showed themselves as anything but neutral arbiters of the proceedings.
This was evident in the selective fact-checking, where Trump’s statements were scrutinized with a fine-tooth comb while Harris was allowed to lie her head off without so much as a cursory challenge.
Indeed, Harris gleefully repeated the “fine people” hoax, falsely claiming that Trump complimented neo-Nazis who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2107. Despite that claim being debunked on many occasions, neither Muir nor Davis saw fit to correct the vice president.
In another instance, Davis was even willing to lie about abortion to help Harris while the candidates were debating abortion policy.
However, there is a silver lining here. When establishment media figures try to influence or deceive the public, alternative digital media steps in to debunk the falsehoods coming from those who pretend to be journalists but function more as purveyors of propaganda.
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In the days following the debate, several digital outlets and online influencers took to platforms like X, YouTube, and various news sites and blogs to dissect Harris’ statements, pointing out her many inaccuracies and outright lies that Muir and Davis refused to address.
These platforms have democratized media and journalism and have provided a new frontier for fact-checking.
Why does this matter?
Without digital alternative media, folks like Muir and Davis, along with their fellow propagandists, would be able to lie to the American people with reckless abandon without there being a counterpoint to refute their false narratives.
Traditional media outlets have gatekeepers who ensure that the people who rise to positions of prominence are intent on promoting left-wing narratives to help Democrats. The digital realm allows for a plethora of voices, bringing to light stories or angles that major outlets ignore or downplay.
The digital world operates in real-time, which means disinformation coming from legacy media outlets can be immediately challenged and repudiated. In this way, alternative media platforms have disrupted the monopoly on information previously enjoyed by the big boys.
The bias that Muir and Davis displayed during the debate serves as a poignant reminder of why alternative media platforms are critical in today’s media landscape. They provide more avenues through which people can get the truth by listening to a variety of viewpoints rather than being limited to the ones carefully curated by the once-vaunted Fourth Estate.
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