Jim Hightower famously said there was “nothing in the middle of the road but yellow stripes and dead armadillos.” But in 2025, those armadillos have plenty of company: journalists and public officials practicing “both-sidesism” amid the crisis in democracy. briefing.center/news/witness...

A month after it was posted, I’m still thinking about smart the piece was in @wired.com by @makenakelly.bsky.social about fandom and politics. www.wired.com/story/expire...

In U.S. political coverage, the dominant theme — the story arc — is the broad abandonment of constitutional governance in favor of one-man rule. Too many news stories obscure this hard fact with traditional on-the-one-hand, on-the-other-hand journalism. briefing.center/news/burying...

When @awhitneybrown did his wonderful SNL monologue back in 1988 on lying, we still maintained a distinction between truth and falsehoods. Now journalists must navigate a world where truth and lies have equal standing. briefing.center/news/why-jou...

Markets are not obligated to protect democracy. Journalists shouldn’t pretend otherwise. briefing.center/news/when-de...

How do we navigate the treacherous, shifting sands of punctuation? I have thoughts. briefing.center/news/fraught...

The news media is under no obligation to accept the political calculations of public officials as their assignment editor. Climate change is still happening, and the cost — in human and economic terms — keeps going up. briefing.center/news/world-n...

50 years after the NY Daily News published the headline, “Ford to city: drop dead,” it’s worth considering what made it so memorable. briefing.center/news/drop-de...

Amazon chipped in for the demolition and construction project at the White House, while the Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, applauded. @sulliview.bsky.social and @geneweingarten.bsky.social , among others, were not impressed. briefing.center/news/trumps-...

Last weekend’s demonstrations were the lead story across the country … but not at the NY Times. OTOH, a shout out to Sarah Jeong at The Verge for her gallant effort to count frogs in Portland. briefing.center/news/too-man...

Business and ideology may be setting CBS News on a new course briefing.center/news/cbs-new...

Some nice recognition on the 10th anniversary of the invaluable @statnews.com www.poynter.org/business-wor...

Some thoughts on billionaires banding together in support of — or acquiescence to — the incoming administration. johndineen.medium.com/abc-news-cav...

Limited information and firm opinions go hand-in-hand after the election … johndineen.medium.com/the-election...

The many fact checks of the Harris-Trump debate put the weaknesses and value of the practice on full display. medium.com/@johndineen/...

At what point will political journalists focus on the actual stakes of this election? johndineen.medium.com/which-campai...

One of the Times’s takeaways from the Harris-Walz CNN interview: “Tim Walz is good at sitting and smiling.” Who is the audience for this … whatever it is? www.nytimes.com/2024/08/29/u...

When journalists I admire disagree, what to do? Some thoughts on VP Harris and the press … johndineen.medium.com/journalists-...

Some thoughts about Harris, Walz, and “weird” johndineen.medium.com/weird-b77f1a...