Sinclair injects deceptive attacks on Biden's age into dozens of local broadcasts
Two outlets controlled by right-wing media tycoons are working in tandem to aggressively push specious claims about President Joe Biden’s fitness for office to millions of Americans.
On June 4, the Wall Street Journal published a 3,000-word article questioning Biden’s mental acuity. The Wall Street Journal is owned by News Corp, the media conglomerate founded by right-wing billionaire Rupert Murdoch. He stepped down as chairman of the company last year, assuming the role of chairman emeritus. At the time of his retirement, Murdoch promised to continue to be “engaged daily with news and ideas” at the company. (News Corp is now chaired by Rupert Murdoch’s son, Lachlan.)
Related Knowledge Center: Democracy and politics
News organizations are scrambling to find a coverage approach that adequately informs the American public about the country’s slide from democracy to authoritarian rule.
Related Knowledge Center: Information integrity
In an increasingly fractured media landscape, truth has been a casualty in the public discussion. Coverage has been warped by the business needs of struggling news organizations, and a significant segment of the public relies on bad-faith outlets that are little more than propagandists. While fact-checking has become routine, some organizations are exploring other ways to combat the trends. And misinformation spewed by AI-driven chatbots has become more of a feature than simply a bug.
Fact-checking and its detractors