Authored by Jonathan Turley via jonathanturley.org,
The recent election produced an outpouring of anger and angst on the left, from pledging to leave the country to not having sex with men for four years. For others, the response was to retreat deeper into the echo chamber of the left. Many liberals are leaving X for a Bluesky, which promises the censorship and monitoring that was reduced after Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter.
Despite having most of the media and social media as allies, the opposing views of X have become intolerable for many after the election. One such aggrieved user appears to be New York Times tech reporter Kevin Roose, who wrote a column heralding the site as a deliverance for liberals left confused and afraid by the popular vote.Roose writes
“After an hour or so of scrolling through Bluesky the other night, I felt something I haven’t felt on social media in a long time: free.
Free from Elon Musk and his tedious quest to turn X into a right-wing echo chamber where he and his friends are the permanent, inescapable main characters.”
Because Musk dismantled the censorship system, the New York Times reporter now considers it a “right-wing echo chamber.” So, what does that make Bluesky?
Over at X, there is no shortage of trolls from the left and the right. However, it is hardly an echo chamber. Many liberals are among the most influential and criticize the right and others, including Musk and X. It also has its share of far-left trolls. However, it is the fact that it also allows such voices from the right that seems to produce the gasping, hypoxic response of liberals.
Back in the day of Twitter, it was just like the Allman Brothers song:
“BluebirdsSinging a songNothing but bluebirdsAll day long”
Many have shared their own “I can breathe now” take on Bluesky and how it is great to be again among friends — and watched over by social media guardians. Just like the old days. Notably, Roose admits that the site is no X and is unlikely to replace it. Roose admitted when he first joined Bluesky, it was more annoying than liberating:
“It was also, frankly, kind of annoying. The most active posters on my feed were all left-wing Twitter discontents, united in their hatred of Mr. Musk yet unable to stop talking about him. My account went dormant, and I moved on to other platforms.”
To his credit, Roose appeared to miss the diversity of thought in less “moderated” spaces. Nevertheless, it is now a godsend for those seeking greater insulation from opposing views.
Ironically, one lesson from this election is the danger of both the press and pundits in becoming increasingly out of touch with most of the country. The shock expressed by many is due to a lack of exposure to opposing views — not the need for further ideological isolation.
That cathartic effort is evident in many subscribers who are now boycotting the Washington Post and MSNBC. MSNBC contributor and Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin appears to support such efforts. Rubin is an avowed Marxist. Groucho Marxist, that is. Marx famously said, “I don’t want to belong to any club that would accept me as one of its members.” Before supporting resignations at her newspaper (for not endorsing a presidential candidate) or the boycott of Morning Joe (for the hosts speaking to Donald Trump), Rubin was the self-identified Republican columnist of the Post before she called for the party to be burned down.
Liberals would prefer to leave the Post if it is going to introduce opposing views. For the Post owner and publisher, the newspaper is facing an utter disaster after alienating over half of the country by becoming an echo chamber. Publisher and CEO William Lewis put it bluntly by telling the staff, “Let’s not sugarcoat it…We are losing large amounts of money. Your audience has halved in recent years. People are not reading your stuff. Right? I can’t sugarcoat it anymore.”
The response from the Post staff was calls for Lewis to be fired. These reporters and columnists would prefer to lose their jobs than their bias.
Obviously, Roose and others have every right to shelter in place within hardened liberal silos. However, it will do little to bring back readers to the media or voters to the Democrats by creating safe spaces for liberals to avoid being triggered by opposing views.
Now, it is different:
“Never saw the sun shining so brightNever saw things going so rightNoticing the days hurrying byWhen you’re in love, my how they fly”
Different except that things are not “going so right” on Bluesky.
Tyler Durden
Tue, 11/26/2024 – 15:05
