Originally I was going to call today’s post “Full Friday” because I was going to include A LOT of links to pieces from the Internet. Upon reflection, and since many of those were post-election analyses, I decided to change course.
I continue to be amazed at how poorly I can predict how a post will or will not drive traffic. The number of views on Wednesday was nothing special when I published The Aftermath and wrote about the election. I figured yesterday would not be a strong day, either, with Perspectives, but I was wrong, again.
Here is a piece from Newsweek that is more about the rapid demise of mainstream media than about the election. Here are some snippets from the article:
– Joe Biden is likely to leave office as the first president since Franklin Roosevelt to deny The New York Times an on-the-record interview. Kamala Harris is the first presidential candidate in modern history to snub Time magazine, to the chagrin of its billionaire publisher. Donald Trump hasn’t sat down with CNN in 18 months.
– In 2010, about 105 million U.S. households subscribed to a cable television package. This year, that number was down to 68 million, according to Statista, for a 35 percent decrease in 14 years. Just last week it was reported that cable behemoth Comcast was considering spinning out its cable networks, including the likes of MSNBC and Bravo, which were once the most lucrative segment of its TV portfolio.
“Cord cutting is not abating,” Brad Adgate, a veteran media consultant, told Newsweek. “Once you drop cable TV, you’ve done it for a reason. The reach just isn’t there anymore.”
– The number of journalists at U.S. newspapers dropped 39 percent between 1989 and 2012, according to a report from the Brookings Institution. Those who have remained in the decade since are writing for a smaller and smaller audience. A 2018 study by the American Psychological Association found that just 2 percent of U.S. 10th graders were reading a newspaper almost every day, down from a third in the 1990s.
– Year after year, Gallup’s annual survey of public trust in political and civic institutions came to the same conclusion: the legislative branch, that is the two houses of Congress, set the standard for mistrust, bar none. Nobody in America inspired less confidence than a generic Washington lawmaker.
This year, though, Congress was eclipsed. The mainstream media is now the least trusted institution in the country. When asked by the pollster how much trust and confidence they had in the media, nearly 70 percent of respondents said either “not very much” or “none at all.” In the “none at all” category, the press ranked a staggering 17 points lower than Congress.
That last point is quite telling, in my opinion. Also in my opinion, news entities should report the news and not “message.” Alas, it is the news business and these outlets think they have to pander to their constituents to stay in business. On second thought, that sounds like politicians. No wonder the mainstream media is so distrusted.
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One dangerous myth that persists in America is the notion that the wealthy merely inherited their wealth. The evidence strongly suggests otherwise, however.
The late Thomas J. Stanley, author of the best-selling books The Millionaire Next Door and The Millionaire Mind, found that more than half of millionaires received no inheritance at all and that only 20 percent inherited a substantial portion of their wealth. Every year when they publish their list of the 400 richest people, Forbes reports on how many are self-made. Here is what they wrote in 2022, “The Forbes 400 members remain largely self-made, with 275, or 69%, having created their fortune rather than inheriting it.” Note the word “remain.”
I hear Louis Armstrong in my head again and he’s not singing “Hello, Dolly.” I guess I have to write his words one more time, “There are some people that if they don’t know, you can’t tell them.”
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This CNBC article is titled, “Bentley Motors further delays all-EV plan amid weak demand as it embraces plug-in hybrids.” Are there any automakers left still foolish enough to talk about converting to an all battery-electric fleet? Oh, CNBC is hardly a right-leaning news source.
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My wonderful wife sent me the link to this piece about Oldsmobile’s “forgotten” Rocket 455 engine, which was introduced in the 1968 model year. Here is one car that had a 455 cubic-inch engine as standard equipment beginning that year.
This is, of course, the revolutionary Oldsmobile Toronado, the car that led the movement to front-wheel drive, which ended up being the dominant platform in automobiles from the early 1990s through the late 2010s. Yes, I still prefer the looks of its GM cousin, the Cadillac Eldorado, but the Toronado is interesting as well.
Speaking of my wonderful wife, she has “changed” her stance about the Supra, which means a non-zero probability exists I/we will buy this car.
As of yesterday afternoon, this 2021 Toyota Supra was still available at a local dealer although I have no idea for how long. The car has already been listed on Autotrader for almost two months. Dealers can’t keep vehicles in inventory indefinitely.
Even though I have already had two test drives with a Supra, if a car is local then it’s just prudent to test drive it before any potential purchase. Oh darn, I have to drive a Supra. 😉
#NotQuiteFullFriday
Here are some “Pelated Rosts” as WordPress has still not fixed anything about this feature or found the missing data for 2,000 posts! Those two “events” are almost certainly related, or pelated.
Board (Bored?) Meeting
Gray Monday
Cars A To Z: O
PS, sadly the scourge of anti-Semitism never ends.