I’d like to think that being human and calling liars what they are won’t go back to being the exclusive work of those of us in the alternative press.
Dear Reader,
To paraphrase someone who has to deal with my relentless cynicism on a daily basis: The last thing that Dig readers need is for me to lambaste people for their excitement over the new POTUS and vice president. After all, Trump was an extraordinary shit, and no matter how I feel about Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, it’s undeniable that the United States is already doing better, especially in how it treats immigrants and other groups that have had jackboots on their necks for the past four years.
But while my friend is probably correct that I should avoid torching readers who don’t want to be told that moderate corporate Dems like Joe are largely responsible for getting us Trump, fortunately I don’t even feel the need to vent. Because while there has certainly been lots of cheerleading, it has been hopeful to see a significant amount of skepticism and political prudence—from progressives, sure, though not only from the radical left.
Frankly, I was even surprised that a rally headlined “No Honeymoon for Biden” drew hundreds of people, and not just outraged centrists online pointing out how much better this guy is than the last jackass. The same goes for the coverage; again, there’s surely been a lot of nauseating praise, but thankfully, to my surprise, sore loser conservatives haven’t been alone in highlighting the flaws of Democrats, from their relationships with special interests to a fixation on fertilizing the surveillance state. I’m not sure if it’s because a lot of mainstream dopes finally understand the consequences of turning a blind eye to scourges like bipartisan bluewashing and badgelicking, or if they’re simply consciously trying to make a show of impugning this administration like they did the last one, but whatever’s in the water, it seems we may not have a total recall of the free pass that Barack Obama and this Biden guy got on issues ranging from the environment to immigration.
Of course, there are also the many reminders of our perpetual political quagmire that the Dig has reported—online, as well as in a lot of these pages herein. For starters, be sure to read this week’s column by Jason Pramas about how to best take on the violent right.
As for other outlets, I’d like to think that many have seen the light, that the media has truly changed a bit for the better over the past four years, and that being human and calling liars what they are won’t go back to being the exclusive work of those of us in the alternative press. But considering that several bigs including the New York Times have shown just how spineless they are this past week by axing journalists who dared to share opinions about Trump on Twitter, it’s also possible that nothing has changed whatsoever.
Guess you’re stuck with the Dig.
Lucky you. Lucky us.
CHRIS FARAONE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
A Queens, NY native who came to New England in 2004 to earn his MA in journalism at Boston University, Chris Faraone is the editor and co-publisher of DigBoston and a co-founder of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism. He has published several books including 99 Nights with the 99 Percent, and has written liner notes for hip-hop gods including Cypress Hill, Pete Rock, Nas, and various members of the Wu-Tang Clan.
