The Week UK - 14.03.2020

16 NEWS Best of the American columnists

THE WEEK 14 March 2020

The colossus

that bestrides

US journalism

Ben Smith

The New York Times

It has beenastrangedecadeforthe US media,says BenSmith. Backin 2014,Iwas theneditor-in-

chie fofBuzzFeedNews,oneofahandful of digitalstart-ups that werepreparing to sweep aside

the newspaperssuch asTheNew York Timesand other “dying legacy outlets”.Yet today I’m

workingfor thepaper, andsoare manyof my formerpeers from online titles such as Gawker,

Quartzand Politico.Inj ustafew years,TheNew York Timeshasgonefrom “wounded giant

to reigning colossus”. It soldoff “everythingbut itsfurni ture”tokeep payingfor journalism

and launchedadigita lsubscriptionmodel .The gamblepaid off.Thepaper now hasmoredigital

subscribers than TheWallStreetJournal,The Washington Post andthe 250local newspapersin

the Gannett group combined.It employs1,700 journalists–“ahugenumber in an industry where

employment nationally hasfallento somewhere between 20,000 and38,000”. Abeneficiaryof the

sam e“winner-takes-all”consolidation thatisreshaping many other industries,the paperisnow

looking to dominate thepodcastmarkettoo.This runaway success is great for TheNew York

Times, butwhetherthepaper ’s lo oming monopolyisgoodnewsfor journalismremainstobeseen.

Time to strip

the Pentagon

of its power

Charles Kenny

Politico

It’s timeto close thePentagon, says CharlesKenny.Theworld’slargest officebuilding,itwas

builtduringthe Second World Warand, inanticipationofUS forcesshrinkingoncepeacereturned,

was designedto beeasilyconvertedintoarecords storage centre.Yetevenasthe eraofgreat power

wars has passedinto history,the building (andthe bloatedmilitaryinfrastructureitoversees) remains

stubbornlyin place.ThemilitarybudgetsubmittedbyPresidentTrumplast monthis,in realterms,

the largestsince 1945 .There’snologic tothis.Developedcountriesnolonger invade eachother or

fight set-piece navalorair battles.Wealth and powertoday aredeter mined by technologyand ideas,

not control of territory .The US shouldbe concentrating on climate ch ange,terrorism,cybe rsecurity

andpandem ic threats –rather than burnishing its already overwhelmingmilitary supremacy. Were

it to cut thePentag on budgettomerely twicethe militaryspendingofits nearest rival(China),that

alone wouldfreeupmorethan $150bn.EachUScitizen currently paysanaverage of $1,983ayear

to the Defence Department–or $156,000 over alifetim e. “It’sasimplyincredibl esum for acountry

at zero risk of invasion andwithareasonable aversiontoviolentterri torial expansion.”

Can you beagangsterbeforeyou’reoldenough towalk?Youcanin California,says ConnieRice.

For 22years,the statehasbeen compilingadatabase ofalleged gangstersandgangaffiliates–

CalGang–inwhich allsortsofnameshave been entered, including thoseoftoddlers.Given how

subjectiveandvaguetheinclusion criteria havebeenforthedatabase,thestatemightjustaswell

haveentered “everyseventhnameinthephone book”.Thankfully,stepsare nowbeing takento

tightenthe criteriaandstoppoliceofficersenteringfalse data. But aswelcome asthiscrackdown

is,the“real problemisthatCalGangexists atall”.Inmy experienceasacivilrights attorney, the

database merely encourages racial profiling and servesas “amajorcatalystforourcatastrophiclevels

of imprisonment”.Studies suggestthat community-based work withprevention andintervention is

farmore effectivethan“thekind ofsearch-and-destroypolicing” encouraged byCalGang.Tighter

criteriaandauditswillhelp,but the“perpetualround-ups,stopsandphysicalshowdowns”that

resultfromthedatabase willcontinue toalienatecommunities.“Apolicythat doesn’treducegang

violencebutfeedsthe prisonpipelinedoesn’t need mending.Itneeds ending.”

California’s

kindergarten

criminals

Connie Rice

Los Angeles Times

Americahasbeenstaginga

“fascinatingpolitical-science

experiment”forthepastfewmonths,

said JimGeraghtyintheNational

Review.Thequestionbeingtested:

howfarcanan“uninspiring”

politicalcandidategetiftheyhavean

essentiallyunlimitedwarchest?Last

week,wegottheanswer:“Notvery

faratall!”FormerNewYorkCity

mayorMikeBloombergspentmore

thanhalfabilliondollarsonhis

three-monthcampaignforthe

Democraticpresidentialnomination,

hiringanarmyofstaffanddeluging

theairwaveswithadverts.Yetafterall

that,hefailedtowinasinglestateinlastweek’sSuperTuesday

contests,leadinghimtobowoutofthecontest.Hisonlyvictory

wasinthetinyterritoryofAmericanSamoa,wherewall-to-wall

adsandsevenfull-timestaffhelpedhimwin49.9%ofthevote,

or 17 5actualvotes.TheBloombergrunwas“themost

expensivefailureinAmericanpoliticalhistory”.

It seems“you can’tbuythepresidencyafterall”, saidCharlie

Warzelin TheNewYorkTimes.Noamountofmarketing

couldmake upforBloomberg’sdireperformancein the

televiseddebates.Still,his expensivemediablitzwasn’t exactly

afailure.Itelevatedanuncharismatic,

flawedcandidatewhopolled

nationallyatlessthan3%onthe

dayheannouncedhisbid,toareal

contenderpollingaround16%bythe

endofFebruary.Itboughthimname

recognition;enabledhimtobaitthe

president(inNevada,hetrolledhim

withbillboardsreading:“Donald

Trumpwentbrokerunningacasino”)

andmayhavehelpedbluntthe

insurgentcampaignofBernieSanders,

acandidatepushingawealthtax.For

Bloomberg,whoiswortharound

$50bn,that’s“moneywellspent”.

Besides,forallthemockeryheapedonhim,Bloombergisnow

settobemoreinfluentialthanever,saidJordanWeissmann

onSlate.Freedfromthe“hopelesscause”oftryingtomake

himselfpresident,hecanworktooustTrumpbythrowinghis

awesomefinancialfirepowerbehindJoeBiden.Bloomberghas

barelydentedhisfortune,andthis“ageingplutocrat”now

wants“tofixhiswoundedpridebytakingdownthepresident

ofthe United States”. Thisisnotthehealthiestsituationfora

democracy.But givenwhat a“ricketycampaigner”Biden,the

currentDemocraticfrontrunner, hasprovedtobe,Bloomberg’s

fortune couldmakeallthe difference.

Bloo mberg:$500mboughta13%bumpinthepolls

Bloomberg: “the most expensive failure” in US politics