Political Propaganda Doctrines Spread Across Ideological Spectrum

In a significant shift within the media landscape, CBS News is currently undergoing a transformation from what many characterize as a liberal-leaning news organization toward a more centrist or center-right approach. This realignment has been placed under the stewardship of Bari Weiss, a former New York Times opinion writer who departed the newspaper after publicly criticizing its editorial environment.

The situation at CBS News mirrors broader tensions in American media regarding political perspective, balance, and historical accuracy – issues that have increasingly defined the industry in recent years.

My own experience with the New York Times in 2016 provides insight into the editorial practices that likely influenced Weiss’s departure. That year, I submitted a letter challenging prevailing narratives about presidential treatment of the press. While Donald Trump was being criticized for his anti-media rhetoric, I pointed out that previous presidents had taken even more severe actions against press freedom.

The letter created unexpected controversy within the Times’ editorial department. While fact-checkers verified most of my historical claims, they specifically requested additional documentation regarding Abraham Lincoln – a president whose legacy is particularly revered in liberal circles. I had stated that Lincoln had opened mail from certain Northern editors during the Civil War and imprisoned those whose correspondence he found objectionable.

After providing solid academic references supporting these assertions, an editor reluctantly acknowledged, “The things you learn about your favorite president.” The letter was subsequently published, though what I withheld from it would have been even more challenging to conventional narratives: Lincoln’s emancipation of slaves was partly motivated by military recruitment needs and plans for deportation.

This episode illustrates a fundamental problem affecting American media and political discourse – what might be called “wokism” on both sides of the ideological spectrum. Both progressive and conservative camps often promote narrow, historically inaccurate perspectives that serve partisan interests rather than truth.

Conservative movements, particularly MAGA adherents, frequently disregard constitutional principles by advocating for expanded presidential powers at Congress’s expense, mistakenly equating populist executive authority with “true democracy.” Similarly, some evangelical conservatives prioritize religious doctrine over secular governance, advocating for policies that would blur the separation of church and state.

Today’s conservative movement also champions minimal corporate regulation and regressive taxation policies that stand at odds with much of American economic history. They typically dismiss progressive policies as inevitably leading to socialism, ignoring historical examples where public initiatives like free education have successfully coexisted with free-enterprise systems.

The media’s struggle with historical accuracy and ideological balance extends beyond the New York Times. Since publishing my letter in 2016, the newspaper has not accepted any further submissions from me, suggesting a continued reluctance to engage with perspectives that challenge established narratives.

As CBS News navigates its own transformation under Weiss’s guidance, the broader questions remain: Can major news organizations overcome ideological constraints to provide historically accurate, balanced reporting? Can they resist the pressure to conform to either liberal or conservative “woke” orthodoxies?

The current media environment, characterized by intensifying polarization and decreasing trust, makes these questions increasingly urgent. The success or failure of CBS News’s repositioning may provide valuable insights into whether mainstream media can still function as forums for genuine public discourse rather than echo chambers for partisan viewpoints.

What’s clear is that both sides of America’s political divide often operate with incomplete or selective understandings of democracy and constitutional history – a troubling foundation for informed civic engagement in an already fractured political landscape.