Journalism died and was replaced by propaganda.
Modern communication has consolidated control and reach of a few platforms drum beating the same toxic and hate filled messages. With reach that no one could have dreamed of in previous decades. Of course we have done it to ourselves. It makes use of our base instincts and bypasses the safeguards we had throughout the 20th century. There are no longer any isolated or distant pockets of people to act as immune cells. The toxicity of our tribal nature has seeped into and broken every aspect of our society, none are safe from its influence.
Example, MAGA hollowed out and replaced Republicans in record time. That never could have happened like this in prior generations. The Bushes could have put up a much larger fight without social media spreading the MAGA virus like wildifre. Burning away anyone who wanted to uphold Compassionate Conservatism. A misnomer for sure, but they were far kinder and gentler than what has replaced them.
As for innocence. I wonder if you are alluding to some fabled notion of honest, non partisan neutrality. Of working to keep the peace through justice. There may be a time and a place for such notions, but 2024 is not it. I spoke to calm the rage filled hatred espoused by the Left after Trump's inauguration. For maybe two years. At every turn I had underestimated the depths of his, and MAGA's depravity. Eventually by Nov 2019,
I reached my limit. The Left was correct to hate Trump and to hate his MAGA voters. For various reasons, not the least of all his "perfect" criminal phone call to blackmail Ukraine into making up fake dirt on Joe Biden. One by one, all Republicans rallied around the literal criminal acts.
They refused to impeach for publicly blackmailing another nation into election interference. Following that, and the election denial of 2020 leading to Jan 6th. The inevitability of where we go from here was apparent. Innocence is for those who do not earnestly believe that, in due time, we'll be bathing in the blood of our countrymen. America is beyond neutrality at this point. No election is going to change MAGA's insistence that there are no elections. We host something violently dangerous, a cancer that grows by the day, whose only purpose is to consume us. Innocence checked out a long time ago. We fight for keeps now.
2019, Twitter: