Among despondent Democrats today, there is much chatter about alternative media. Some think Musk’s X fed so much disinformation into the electorate that all of these voters chose Trump. They claim that the correct information would have saved Harris, as if a campaign devoid of a message or genuine rationale for running just needed media coverage that was a bit more sycophantic and widespread. It is true that the collapse of regional newspapers has fed conspiracy theories and, in some form, enabled a charlatan like Trump. It is also true that in the largest media market in America, New York City, Trump won the highest share of any Republican candidate since the 1980s. But if Democrats actually care about the alternative and the dissident, they had their chance and blew it. In 2020, Joe Rogan endorsed Bernie Sanders. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez threatened to un-endorse Sanders because he went on Rogan’s podcast. This was the hectoring, condescending, insular Democratic Party at its worst, and the red map of 2024 is a reminder of all that squandered.
