For many years, when driving to and from vacation spots in the Sierra, I would stop for lunch in the tiny, picturesque town of Oakdale. It sits at the intersection of various routes criss-crossing California’s Central Valley, has a population of 20,000, and some of the best fruit stands in that part of the state.
It also is a news desert. as The New York Times reports, and very few residents of Oakdale rely on traditional news sources any longer:
“Now, in place of longtime TV pundits and radio hosts, residents turn to a new sphere of podcasters and online influencers to get their political news. Facebook groups for local events run by residents have replaced the role of local newspapers, elevating the county’s “keyboard warriors” to roles akin to editors in chief.”
And:
“Of the 80 Oakdale residents The New York Times spoke to for this article, not a single one subscribed to a regional news site, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal or The Washington Post.”
The report continues:
“Oakdale is not alone: Between news deserts expanding in rural areas and a growing distrust of national outlets, the town’s shift toward new sources of information is becoming commonplace in small communities across the country. That trend is almost certain to accelerate, with the Trump administration moving to claw back funding for NPR and PBS, which would slash local broadcasting stations’ budgets, and prioritizing hyperpartisan “new media” in the White House press briefings.”
***
Thinking back over the years I passed through Oakdale, I remember romanticizing the place and what it might be like to live there when I retired. What I would never have guessed is that this idyllic-seeming place could be the site of a local armed militia dressed in camouflage and crouching on rooftops with rifles awaiting a rumored invasion of Black Lives Matter protestors.
They never came, of course, because it was just a rumor spread by a local bar owner. But such is the power of conspiracy thinking in a news desert. Read the chilling Times report here.
(Thanks to a friend for this one.)
HEADLINES:
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It Was Just a Rumor on Facebook. Then a Militia Showed Up. (NYT)
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Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s wrongful deportation case is more about individual rights than the Trump administration’s foreign policy (The Conversation)
Car Prices Expected to Rise as Tariffs on Parts Kick In (NYT)
Judge strikes down Trump order punishing law firm Perkins Coie (WP)
Scientists reel as turmoil roils National Science Foundation (NPR)
In setback for Trump, Voice of America employees get return-to-work messages (CNN)
Republicans Wrestle With Trump’s Demands for Tax Cuts(NYT)
Trump administration plans major downsizing at U.S. spy agencies (WP)
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Kashmiris prepare for war (Reuters)
Fears of global instability drive Singapore voters into ruling party's arms (BBC)
Warren Buffett announces retirement from leading Berkshire Hathaway (Guardian)
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Could DNA testing shed new light on 93-year mystery of Lindbergh baby case? (Guardian)
Can Journalism (the horse) give a boost to journalism (the industry)? (WP)
Google Plans to Roll Out Its A.I. Chatbot to Children Under 13 (NYT)
Trump Threatens To Defund Beauty Schools That Don’t Comply With MAGA Standards (The Onion)
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