Dakota Beacon

Mainstream media, left wing media, corporate media, big media – these are different names for the same elitist press that regards itself as the fourth branch of government. CBS, NBC, ABC, CNBC, NPR, PBS, New York Times, LA Times, Chicago Times, and others fit the bill.

Corporate media no longer practices journalism as once known. It clearly aligns with the liberal establishment regardless of politician, candidate, or cause. It no longer “holds truth to power” as the saying goes. It is an unchecked power in itself.

Today, the corporate media exists to defend the state. The mainstream media regards itself as part of the state, the unelected fourth branch of government. The media is no longer suspicious, curious, doubtful, or distrustful of government. They see themselves as part of it.

Most major “journalists” in the mainstream media have a “disposition” problem. They think of themselves as nonpartisan watchdogs when in fact they are just the opposite. They are leftist operatives posing as journalists.

What is to be done? Delve into history for a moment for a clue. German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) made famous his dialectic – thesis, antithesis, synthesis. (Dialectic materialism was notoriously used in part by Karl Marx in developing his theory of communism.) In essence a process or thought is proposed and starts as a thesis. This “thesis” changes as it grows, mutates, and wrestles with contradictions. Eventually, it morphs into the antithesis of itself. Continued reconciliation and correction of the antithesis produces something new -- a synthesis. This synthesis in turn becomes the basis for an entirely new thesis. And so, the dynamic goes on.

Returning to the present to confront the problem with big media, the future may spell relief. Ignore the corporate media. Reject the premise of their stories. Find alternative news sources. Ah! “Alternative” signifies competition, and competition is beautiful.

LibertyNation.com lists the top 20 conservative, libertarian, and populist news sites they recommend be read in 2019. (We still have a few days left this year.) Below are a few on their list.

LifeSiteNews.com: A great source for pro-life news.

WesternJornal.com: A range of conservative issues told with extensive depth.

BearingArms.com: Gun culture including firearms education, exposing attacks on second amendment rights, and ensuring stories of guns saving lives see daylight.

WSJ.com: The Wall Street Journal reports the best of establishment thinking on US and international news staying firmly rooted in capitalist, conservative thinking.

RealClearPolitics.com: A bipartisan site offering the best from left and right.

PJMedia.com: An entertaining site covering both culture and politics.

Townhall.com: Notable conservative writers and a must for news junkies.

TheFederalist.com: Intelligent writing from the conservative realm on religion, culture, and politics. Dissects left-leaning news stories.

JudicialWatch.org: Unparalleled investigation and reporting on government corruption.

MRC.org: The Media Research Center does the best job of exposing leftist media bias. Founded by L. Brent Bozell, nephew of William F. Buckley, Jr.

AmericanThinker.com is at the very top of the pile. It has been billed as the MENSA of conservative websites and touts substance over style.

One of the fastest up and coming broadcast/cable TV news outlets is the One America News Network, OANN. They are competing with FOX as FOX News repeatedly leans left to appease the establishment. OANN is becoming the go-to location for conservative news, commentary, and analysis. Here is an example of their work. They actually sent a reporter to the Ukraine to interview people in an attempt to ferret out the so-called Trump “quid pro quo” story. Not one major network, not one major newspaper, sent anyone to the Ukraine on a mission of investigative reporting. Even if they had they would not have published results.

Finally, the newest news aggregator challenging the increasingly squishy Drudge Report is the website Whatfinger.com. Its popularity has grown by leaps and bounds.

Reality check. The mainstream media has become its own antithesis. Either way, media is still media. A new alternative media is emerging as a synthesis of the old. As you can see, the demise of this whole mainstream media thing is all reasonably explained. Old Hegel wasn’t such a fuddy-duddy after all.

Dennis M. Patrick can be contacted at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).