<
https://www.garbageday.email/p/people-in-the-midwest-know-what-a-livestream-is>
"Dr. Abdul El-Sayed officially beat Rep. Haley Stevens in Michigan’s Senate
primary last night. It ended up being the most expensive primary in American
history, with super PACs dumping more than $60 million into the race to support
Stevens.
As I wrote last week, the 2026 Democratic Civil War is a rats nest of different
schisms happening simultaneously. It’s young versus old, labor versus capital,
progressivism versus the status quo, populism versus elitism. Perhaps more than
anything, though, it’s a conflict between the Democrats that are willing to
accept money from pro-Israel organizations and those who aren’t.
But there is a media story nestled in there, as well. As Rob Flaherty, the
deputy campaign manager for Vice President Kamala Harris and also former
digital strategist for President Joe Biden, told us on a recent episode of
Panic World, the Democratic establishment views the internet as secondary to
the world of TV and print. And 2026 seems like the year that idea finally gets
flipped on its head.
On one side of this debate you have what right-wingers have somewhat correctly
identified as the corporate media establishment. It’s creaking with age and
largely consists of cable news hosts talking at empty waiting rooms and airport
lounges, but it does have some clout still. I would also include
The New York
Times, the much-hobbled
Washington Post, and digital outlets like
Politico
and
Axios here, as well, along with all the former Obama and Biden staffers
with podcasts, Substacks, and X accounts. This amorphous blob, propped up by
big brand deals and liberal-ish donor money, is still holding out for a
slingshot back to the “normalcy” of managerial democracy once the Trump era
finally ends.
On the other side of the Democratic Civil War, you have a vastly different
media environment. One that sees this year’s midterms and the 2028 election as
a chance for a true economic reset. It’s led by leftist streamers like Hasan
Piker, YouTube essayists, dark woke podcasters, journalists like Ryan Grim and
Drop Site News, Bluesky users, shortform video content from Democratic
Socialists of America members, and random shitposters. I should say here that a
lot of these people do not get along. Both the Republicans and establishment
Democrats love to point this fact out. To which I can only say, welcome to
leftist politics, baby!"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
