The New York Times Forgot it Peddled a ‘Red Wave’ that Never Came

by | Nov 11, 2022 | News

Ahead of the midterm elections, exhaustive mainstream coverage from outlets including the New York Times cited polls and predictions claiming a “red wave” would beat out Democrats for control of key states and seats. Instead, Democrats came away with several wins, while the House and Senate remain contested.

In the wake of this red “trickle,” the Times has trampled past recognition of its inaccurate predictions, instead deflecting blame and doubling down on irresponsible election coverage.

The outlet has been content to obscure its role in hyping up GOP performance, in one piece merely stating, “All indications were that [Republicans] would end up at best with one of the weakest performances in decades by the out-of-power party against a first-term president’s party.” As Glenn Fleishman pointed out on Twitter, the paper failed to reflect on the origin of said “indications.”

Another news update observed “No Signs of ‘Red Wave’ That Republicans Expected.” Again the Times omitted its involvement in this expectation, such that Markos Moulitsas likened its inability to accept responsibility to that of a toddler.

Guest essayist Thomas B. Edsall spoke to Republicans’ advertising campaign focusing on crime and social disorder under the obstinate headline, “For Republicans, Crime Pays, No Matter What Else Happens.” His piece assured readers that, while crime failed to stoke GOP wins this election, “The issue isn’t going away anytime soon and may well play a major role in 2024.”

Edsall claimed the GOP’s strategy tying Democrats to “defund the police” messages undercut key Democrats, “including many who nonetheless hung on to their seats.” Kevin Gosztola said this amounts to election denialism, and that the issue of crime is relevant “only cause shitty pundits like Edsall won’t stop peddling lies.”

The New York Times, alongside other corporate outlets, heralded Democrats’ demise weeks before the midterms. Its October 19 headline “Democrats’ Feared Red October Has Arrived” aimed to explain why Democrats would lose badly three weeks hence. It cited too much focus on reproductive rights as the reason, while a later piece used Super PAC spending data to conclude that Democrats have nearly given up on Republican territory.

Ultimately, as Popular Information’s Judd Legum wrote, “Prediction-based coverage comes at a high cost because it crowds out the coverage that voters actually need. To make an informed decision, voters need to know the practical impact of voting for each candidate.” The New York Times’ failure to recognize its mistakes betrays a troubling trend for election coverage as a support for democracy.

 

More from The Edge

War Rape and the Question of Hamas

Israeli Zionist women have been speaking out these last few days to bring attention to the horrific rape of Jewish women, and the lack of outcry of feminists, for them, to this plight. They demand an indictment of Hamas and its sexual treachery towards women on...

The 10 Freeway Has Been Reopened but L.A.’s Transit Problem Remains

During the early hours of November 11, a fire erupted in a storage yard underneath the I-10 freeway near downtown Los Angeles, structurally compromising a large section of the road and resulting in, what was at the time, claimed to be an indefinite closure of the...

From My Body to Yours, and Gaza to the World

A Meditation on Death, Killing, and Possibility I knew my body was healing from the surgery when I found myself ready to engage with the world and posted on Facebook: I am always anti-zionist. And never an antisemite. And always an anti-racist feminist against...

On the Tragic Inevitability of Stacking Corpses

War. Genocide. Pandemics. Heat. Famine. Racism. Misogyny. Hunger. Violence. There are so many ways for mortal beings to die, especially the most vulnerable, and too often these deaths are state sponsored, sped by capitalism, and/or preventable. We — humans and...

“Barbie”: An Anti-Racist Socialist Feminist Meditation

I started writing this the day “Barbie” was opening in the theatres. I had not seen it yet, because I am writing less about the film and more about the cultural and political moment we inhabit as it opens. I went as soon as I finished an early draft, exactly one week...

Supreme Court Ruling in Stalking Case Hurts Victims

Stalking is a social and public health emergency. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court’s ruling in Counterman v. Colorado makes things easier for abusers and harder for victims. A form of gender-based violence, stalking affects more than 13 million people annually in the...