# What the fuck is going on at the New York Times?! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 4, 2020, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038 "2020-06-04T12:21:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/161 "2020-06-06T21:03:38Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Are you really saying that NYT should reject an offer from David Duke to express his platform and only print it if they attending his public speech? You didn’t answer my question (why not?), but I’ll answer yours: no, I’m saying that they can and should report on really awful things that prominent people say, but they shouldn’t accept garbage from prominent people to publish. If you can’t see this difference, then our understanding of how the world works is so far apart, at least on this issue, that there’s no possibility of understanding here. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/162 "2020-06-06T21:04:02Z")
It seems to me that most of us agree that Duke and Cotton deserve to have their ideologies exposed for all to see. Your objection is, if I understand it, is in what section of the paper that ideology is expressed. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/163 "2020-06-06T21:05:19Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > It seems to me that most of us agree that Duke and Cotton deserve to have their ideologies exposed for all to see. Your objection is, if I understand it, is in what section of the paper that ideology is expressed. My objection is under what banner that ideology is expressed. “We’re publishing this garbage writing” is very different from “we’re reporting on this garbage this guy said”. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/164 "2020-06-06T21:15:11Z")
> [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > Yeah. You do realize I’ve been agreeing with your point here, right? It’s kind of what I’ve been typing through this whole thread? Yes, and I agreed with you. Weird world isn’t it? > [@](#): > > That’s the thing about jokes, **k9** : They stop being funny after the second or third time you tell them. Not a joke. Before I answer any of your loaded questions, you need to answer mine first. The first two paragraphs of your post were well thought out analysis. I responded to that with agreement and encouragement. The rest was a bunch of partisan drivel. I dismissed that flippantly. > [@](#): > > Here’s a quick summertime hint from me to you: If you chunk up what I type into five or six word sentences, and just go through it little by little, it’s just like reading a Trump tweet . . . which seems to be more your speed anyway. I’m sorry about your apparent attention deficit issues, but some things cannot be summarized in five or six-word sentences with one-syllable words. You’ve shown that you can take such discussions seriously, without bad faith implications. Why not just do that with your whole post next time? > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > You didn’t answer my question (why not?), but I’ll answer yours: no, I’m saying that they can and should report on really awful things that prominent people say, but they shouldn’t accept garbage from prominent people to publish. If you can’t see this difference, then our understanding of how the world works is so far apart, at least on this issue, that there’s no possibility of understanding here. I don’t know that I can agree with your conclusion here. If this had been an article meant only for republican consumption, if it had been published on Brietbart or Fox, should the NYT’s have not reported on it? Cotton handed the NYT a look inside the head of a racist authoritarian. I for one, found the article to do more good by exposing these thought processes than the damage done by the possibility that someone will be swayed to have these opinions because the NYT validated them by publishing them. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/165 "2020-06-06T22:04:32Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > I don’t know that I can agree with your conclusion here. If this had been an article meant only for republican consumption, if it had been published on Brietbart or Fox, should the NYT’s have not reported on it? Of course they should – I thought my language on that was clear. I think they should report on the awful things prominent people say. I don’t think they should publish garbage, no matter who writes it. But reporting on the garbage someone says is different than publishing garbage written by that person. ---
**Author:** ![Linty\_Fresh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Linty\_Fresh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linty_Fresh)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/166 "2020-06-06T22:15:20Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Not a joke. Before I answer any of your loaded questions, you need to answer mine first. Well, not a _great_ joke. And what question? I thought I answered them all. If you have a question, just ask the question. “Cute” doesn’t become you. > [@](#): > > The rest was a bunch of partisan drivel. I dismissed that flippantly. You dismissed my partisan drivel? Flippantly? I feel for you, **k9**. Imagine being as liberal as you are with an inner monologue narrated by George Will. > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Are you really saying that the NYT doing a story on something awful David Duke said is the same as the NYT inviting David Duke to write, and then accepting and publishing that awful thing? If so, that sounds nuts to me. The thing is, though, that these two situations aren’t the same thing. Senator Cotton, whatever you might think of him, is _not_ fringe. David Duke most certainly is. Cotton is mainstream, and so are the opinions he is putting forth here. They might be wrong, but these are certainly arguments that can be debated in good faith–unlike those of David Duke. Again, it came down to a legitimate editorial decision, and if those editors are now backpedaling under pressure from their subscribers, their original decision still stands. And again, I really do support their original decision. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/167 "2020-06-06T22:18:07Z")
> [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > The thing is, though, that these two situations aren’t the same thing. Senator Cotton, whatever you might think of him, is _not_ fringe. David Duke most certainly is. Cotton is mainstream, and so are the opinions he is putting forth here. They might be wrong, but these are certainly arguments that can be debated in good faith–unlike those of David Duke. > > Again, it came down to a legitimate editorial decision, and if those editors are now backpedaling under pressure from their subscribers, their original decision still stands. And again, I really do support their original decision. Okay, that’s a real difference. I think it’s okay they reached out to Cotton – but what he wrote was garbage on the facts, and the NYT should have higher standards. They shouldn’t accept writing that’s garbage on the facts, no matter who writes it. ---
**Author:** ![Linty\_Fresh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Linty\_Fresh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linty_Fresh)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/168 "2020-06-06T22:32:11Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Okay, that’s a real difference. I think it’s okay they reached out to Cotton – but what he wrote was garbage on the facts, and the NYT should have higher standards. They shouldn’t accept writing that’s garbage on the facts, no matter who writes it. You’ve made some excellent points. I certainly don’t agree with what Cotton has written. Sigh . . . look at it this way: This is _exactly_ the kind of thing we’re going to be facing and hearing from now until November. If we take what Senator Cotton has written along with everything else in the Republican playbook and come up with some sort of battle plan, we might have a real shot at beating Trump this time. It’s going to be a very hard fight, but Cotton might have done us the favor of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Unreconstructed\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/76d3ee/32.png) [@Unreconstructed\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unreconstructed_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/169 "2020-06-06T22:36:48Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > So who else should get that platform? Should Alex Jones get that platform? Steve King? Roy Moore? What you persistently fail to appreciate is that _58% of registered voters agree with Tom Cotton’s opinion!_ There’s no danger of his opinion being “normalized” or whatever. It’s _already normal_. If anything, _you’re_ in the minority. If any of Alex Jones’s batshit opinions were shared by 58% of the country, then _fuck yes_ I’d want the _Times_ to give him an Op-Ed. Why? Because I’d want to see the arguments _for_ that opinion presented in their _strongest possible terms_ by their most ardent defender. Why? Because that’s the best way to understand an opinion well enough to argue against it. I don’t want Tom Cotton’s opinion to be brushed under the carpet like it doesn’t exist. For one thing, that gives the impression it’s a fringe opinion that’s only held by a handful of nutcases. That impression is _false_. Tom Cotton’s opinion is a _popular_ opinion held by _tens of millions of people_, and _everyone in America_ deserves to know that. Now they do. I also don’t want some New York Times journalist to report _on_ Tom Cotton’s opinion. I don’t want them building articles round his tweets or snippets of his speeches or whatever. I want him to express it himself, in his own words, using whatever evidence he finds most persuasive. Why? Two reasons. Firstly, I don’t trust the Times not to fuck it up. Secondly, because it leaves Cotton and his supporters with no wriggle room. Because the Times let Cotton express his opinion in his own words, when I argue against it, no-one can accuse me of strawmanning him, or twisting his words, or any other form of misrepresentation. That’s valuable. That’s something I couldn’t get if the Times just ran some article _about_ Cotton’s opinion. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/170 "2020-06-06T22:44:34Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Of course they should – I thought my language on that was clear. I think they should report on the awful things prominent people say. I don’t think they should publish garbage, no matter who writes it. But reporting on the garbage someone says is different than publishing garbage written by that person. I see this as a reasonable disagreement in opinion. I don’t love that they published his piece, but I do consider it newsworthy, and I do not think that they left it unchallenged. I did get around to reading the rebuttal editorial (my last free article for the month), and I found it quite enlightening and entertaining. It is not an article that could have been written without the context of Cotton’s piece. The rebuttal alone was worth publishing Cotton’s manifesto, IMHO. > [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > Well, not a _great_ joke. And what question? I thought I answered them all. If you have a question, just ask the question. “Cute” doesn’t become you. You asked “stay in the echo chamber. Beats thinking, right?” a loaded question. Those paragraphs were you just asserting things to be true and making aspersions as to the motivations and inteltectual capabilities of your interlocutors. To which, I ask, why do you hate **manson1972** ’s liver? As it is as fair an evaluation of your positions, and as fair a question as those you pose. > [@](#): > > You dismissed my partisan drivel? Flippantly? All Liver’s Matter! > [@](#): > > I feel for you, **k9**. Imagine being as liberal as you are with an inner monologue narrated by George Will. And I can imagine being as conservative as you, pretending to be a liberal and just making sure that you are policing our language enough that we will not offend someone and make them vote for Trump. > [@](#): > > The thing is, though, that these two situations aren’t the same thing. Senator Cotton, whatever you might think of him, is _not_ fringe. David Duke most certainly is. Cotton is mainstream, and so are the opinions he is putting forth here. They might be wrong, but these are certainly arguments that can be debated in good faith–unlike those of David Duke. They are, as some have said, opinions that are shared with a number of Americans. Most of those Americans have not really thought through their opinions, and exposing the though process that is behind them may help some Americans re-evaluate their positions. No one will be converted to Cotton’s side by the piece. Some few people may be converted to ours. > [@](#): > > Again, it came down to a legitimate editorial decision, and if those editors are now backpedaling under pressure from their subscribers, their original decision still stands. And again, I really do support their original decision. I agree. I don’t think that it was the editorial board that second guessed the inclusion of Cotton’s piece, but the PR branch of the NYT. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/171 "2020-06-06T22:57:05Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > My objection is under what banner that ideology is expressed. “We’re publishing this garbage writing” is very different from “we’re reporting on this garbage this guy said”. A distinction without a difference, IMO, unless and until NYT endorses their opinion. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2020, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/172 "2020-06-06T23:00:20Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > No, they wouldn’t. Reporting on and publishing are two different things. > > Are you really saying that the NYT doing a story on something awful David Duke said is the same as the NYT inviting David Duke to write, and then accepting and publishing that awful thing? If so, that sounds nuts to me. Answering the question I believe you wanted me to answer earlier: I believe that if David Duke had anything worthwhile (new?) to say or was saying it as a candidate running for public office, then I would not object to the NYT printing his Op-Ed. ---
**Author:** ![JohnM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/848f3c/32.png) [@JohnM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnM)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/173 "2020-06-07T01:20:04Z")
> [@Unreconstructed\_Man](#): > > What you persistently fail to appreciate is that _58% of registered voters agree with Tom Cotton’s opinion!_ There’s no danger of his opinion being “normalized” or whatever. It’s _already normal_. If anything, _you’re_ in the minority. Given there was non-stop coverage of any act of looting or violence even vaguely associated with the protests, the numbers were understandable. As things have calmed down, the same pollster, Morning Consult, repolled the question on Friday, and the [numbers](https://morningconsult.com/2020/06/05/police-protests-national-guard-military-poll/) are now 42% in favor, 48% opposed. Doesn’t look like Sen. Cotton’s view is the majority opinion any longer. And no, in my opinion we don’t need op-eds from wannabe fascists even if they are U.S. Senators. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/174 "2020-06-07T01:53:39Z")
> [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > Where are you and **Trihs** getting the idea that inclusion of a viewpoint in a newspaper or any other medium ipso facto means endorsement or legitimization? Because that’s how it has always worked, and that’s the entire point of doing so. And it’s worked very effectively to drag the nation rightwards. The problem with the argument that “They can publish what the right wing extremists say and then the rightists will be discredited when everyone takes it apart” is the second half\* doesn’t happen.\* ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/175 "2020-06-07T03:59:11Z")
So it’s no longer a majority opinion. If 42% (or 22%) of the public believes a given opinion about a major issue, there ought to be at least one NYT op-ed expressing that opinion IMO. No matter how benighted that opinion may be. > [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > I mean, that’s why the New York Times has an editorial board to begin with, right? That editorial board is more than likely staffed with literate, college-educated reading enthusiasts who can use editorial standards, newspaper guidelines, and, presumably, their brains to tell the difference between a republican senator putting forth a controversial but widespread and compelling argument and some halfwit conspiracy theorist who gets his jollies making fun of school shooting victims. > > Maybe if you took more time to listen to arguments you don’t agree with, _you_ could learn the difference, too. Sick burn! > [@adaher](#): > > THe NY Times has always published controversial op-eds. If you don’t like it when they publish one that is offensive to you, then maybe they aren’t the paper for you. Really, no paper in the mainstream press would be. > > What concerns me more is that we’ve got a new generation of “journalists” who want to turn their employers into left-wing propaganda outlets. And this is happening to traditionally liberal outlets, not conservative ones. It’s not just the NY Times. On the same day the Times controversy occurred, there were problems at the Philly Inquirer, the Intercept, and at Vox. A lot of far left journalists trying to get a lot of moderate left journalists and editors fired. Yes, this is exactly what’s happening. They believe the NYT and other mainstream outlets should operate like _The Nation_ or _Slate_: featuring only progressive op-eds. That’s not the way traditional mainstream newspapers have operated, even if they obviously tilt left; and I would consider it a real shame if that changed. ETA: What happened at _Vox_? ---
**Author:** ![Linty\_Fresh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Linty\_Fresh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linty_Fresh)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/176 "2020-06-07T10:39:56Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Because that’s how it has always worked, and that’s the entire point of doing so. And it’s worked very effectively to drag the nation rightwards. Right, because when I think of fascist right-wing dictatorships, I think of the free exchange and discussion of ideas. We all know how the Nazis and Mussolini’s _fascisti_ suppressed dissent by . . . free debate, I guess. > [@](#): > > The problem with the argument that “They can publish what the right wing extremists say and then the rightists will be discredited when everyone takes it apart” is the second half\* doesn’t happen.\* Jesus, **Trihs** , it happens all the time! It’s happened throughout history. Let’s just take the US as an example. I mean, how far back do you want to go? Are you telling me Thomas Paine’s writing didn’t have an influence on the Revolution? What about the writings of abolitionists? The other day, I heard a black writer referred to as a “Tom,” so I guess Harriet Beecher Stowe’s writing made a difference, didn’t she? People _don’t_ agree or disagree with what they read and form intellectual and political opinions? Really? Susan B. Anthony’s writings didn’t make a difference? Do you know nothing about the intellectual revolution of the 1920s? Whittaker Chambers? Shit, let’s just skip the writings of the civil rights movement and talk about today. I don’t know how much you read, **Trihs** , but you should check out modern African-American literature. These works are on the cusp, the very forefront, of modern intellectual debate, and people are discussing them, dissecting them, and forming viewpoints of them _as we speak!_ Well . . . maybe not “as we speak.” It’s kind of early in the morning, but still . . . You have been posting this shit since you signed on 15 years ago. You “know” that right-wingers are never discredited by having their voices heard in the same way that you “know” that most religious people want to kill you for being an atheist. You “know” that posting a conservative viewpoint in a major news outlet will lead to right-wing extremism in the same way that an 80-year-old grandmother “knows” that the teenager who smokes a joint in his bedroom is totally going to snap and rage-murder his whole family with a chainsaw. The things you know just aren’t true. As in, they’re _demonstrably_ not true. You need to change the record in your head. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/177 "2020-06-07T11:18:25Z")
> [@Linty\_Fresh](#): > > Right, because when I think of fascist right-wing dictatorships, I think of the free exchange and discussion of ideas. We all know how the Nazis and Mussolini’s _fascisti_ suppressed dissent by . . . free debate, I guess. What’s that line of Sartre’s? _“If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past.”_ ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/178 "2020-06-07T12:30:17Z")
Is it the position of fellow progressives participating in or following this conversation that it is not enough to oppose “garbage” ideology with robust debate using well reasoned liberal/progressive arguments, but that news outlets that ostensibly promote liberal values of free press, must act to suppress views/opinions that don’t align with progressive values? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/179 "2020-06-07T12:49:09Z")
This liberal doesn’t think so. The Times was right to print that garbage of a piece, and shouldn’t have apologized for doing so. Unlike, say, a monthly magazine, they can print a rebuttal piece the _next day_ — in the online version, just _minutes_ later! For another example, see today’s Bret Stephens op-Ed, which starts out fine but then posits that Hillary would have screwed up the coronavirus response just as badly. In sum, the “newspaper of record” should include documentation of wrongheaded opinions that reflect a segment of US society that must be dealt with, whether we like it or not. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2020, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038/180 "2020-06-07T13:38:23Z")
I’m wondering, what is the source/cause of this newly emerging progressive protectionism, particularly from what appear to be relatively younger (Gen X & Y) progressives. Note: this is not meant as gratuitous slam against Gen-X/Y populations. Anecdotally, that is not reflected in the views of my own kids and their friends. So, if my generational generalization is too broad, I’m happy to retract it and focus on the observed phenomenon itself. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-fuck-is-going-on-at-the-new-york-times/855038.md?page=10)