Billionaires & Bureaucracy

Why Progressives are Backing Tom Steyer with Jeff Cohen

By Nolan Higdon and Jeff Cohen, Gaslight Gazette

In this episode of The Disinfo Detox, we tackle the increasingly blurry lines between corporate wealth, grassroots activism, and media gatekeeping. We are joined by legendary media critic, author, and FAIR (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting) founder Jeff Cohen to break down a political paradox raising eyebrows across the progressive movement: how a prominent, Bernie Sanders-aligned grassroots organization came to endorse billionaire former hedge-fund manager Tom Steyer in the California gubernatorial race.

We dissect the strategic calculations and systemic pressures that lead left-wing organizations to align with ultra-wealthy self-funders, examining what this means for the future of independent political organizing. Additionally, Cohen reflects on his pioneering work founding FAIR, tracing how the landscape of media distortion, corporate censorship, and institutional “fake news” has evolved from the late 1980s into our current chaotic digital landscape.

Inside This Episode: The Grassroots Paradox: Unpacking how and why a Sanders-aligned lobbying group chose to back billionaire Tom Steyer for California Governor.

The Legacy of FAIR: Jeff Cohen reminds us of the founding mission of Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting and how corporate media guardrails have shifted.

Then vs. Now: Analyzing how the core threats of media manipulation and information gatekeeping have transformed in the era of algorithms and hyper-partisanship.

Money in the Machine: A critical look at whether wealth can ever truly be separated from policy, even when a candidate runs on a progressive platform.

#JeffCohen #TomSteyer #RootsAction #MediaLiteracy #TheDisinfoDetox #CAGov #MediaCriticism #FAIR #PoliticalStrategy #PropagandaDeconstruction

Tom Steyer on Big Corporations’ Spending This video features California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer addressing the corporate spending arrayed against his campaign, providing firsthand context on the political dynamics and platform strategies discussed by Jeff Cohen in the episode.