Hypocrites are those who apply to others the standards that they refuse to accept for themselves. – Noam Chomsky
I’ve been planning on taking on Illinois conservative operative Dan Proft’s fake newspapers for some time, but I’m glad I put it off because there’ve been a far more fascinating revelation in regard to those Republican propaganda rags.
And just to make your life just a little more interesting, I’ll also be congratulating the Kane County Chronicle for a job well done. Though when I consider the prospect of readers fainting at that mere thought, I probably should’ve warned you to sit down before reading the previous sentence
But first things first.
You’ve likely seen one of those artificial papers sitting in your mailbox and/or on your social media timeline. They have serious names like The Kane County Reporter, McHenry Times, and DuPage Policy Journal, but that’s the only genuine thing about them. Some stories seem to be based in fact, but the majority contain the kind of disinformation you’d expect from Vladimir Putin on the war in Ukraine.
One “headline” blared “No more boys and girls? Pritzker family leads push to replace ‘myth’ of Biology.” I’m no fan of Governor Pointless, but that’s so unbelievable that it isn’t even good propaganda, which requires a kernel of truth for it to be effective.
Then there were the articles on a two teachers who insisted they would teach CRT regardless of any district directive. Yes! Because the first thing a rebellious progressive educator would do is run right to a fake newspaper to make the kind of declaration that would cost them their job.
They’ve also vastly misrepresented the Safe-T Act and bail reform, which is kind of absurd when you realize that initiative is so bad it doesn’t require any embellishment.
How do we know these newspapers aren’t real? That’s easy. Most of their “articles” lack a reporter’s byline, and no matter how hard you search, you won’t be able to find a publisher, managing editor, or anyone even remotely associated with the editing process listed anywhere.
In fact, the only organizational citation you’ll find is “product of Local Government Information Services” which, after referencing records filed with the Secretary of State, goes right back to Dan Proft and his usual suspects. Proft has always ranked somewhere between slime and pond scum, and these fictional tabloids only serve to cement that legacy.
But instead of disowning them, Illinois Republicans like State Senator Craig Wilcox praised these “papers” as a “natural development to counteract a ‘slight bias’ in the media. Oh! I see! So, the only way you counter a “slight” liberal slant is by printing outright conservative lies – anonymously.
A bit of advice. I’d hide the good silverware whenever Senator Wilcox is around.
Chronicle reporter, James T. Norman did an excellent job of exposing these propaganda publications for what they are, but then he took it a step further by exposing that LGIS’ bulk mailing permit is registered to Paddock Publications – the parent company of the Daily Herald!
That simple sentence set off the spider sense of every northern Illinois reporter, who quickly determined that Paddock wasn’t just mailing this garbage, they were printing it, too! To say the excrement subsequently the air propelling device would be the mildest of understatements.
Veteran Chicago Tribune reporter Rick Pearson tweeted:
So, Paddock Publications, publisher of the Daily Herald, is using its mailing operation to send out Dan Proft’s fake newspaper political mailings. It strains belief when trusted media is more important than ever, Paddock’s pursuit for cash outweighs its journalistic responsibility.
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Capitol Fax’s Rich Miller added, “I sure would like to know their rationale because, man, this is not a good look. At all. Shameful, even.” Even Crain’s Chicago Business took the Daily Herald to task for “blurring the lines” between real and fake journalism.
And in a deliciously disingenuous move, neither Paddock nor the DH would respond to the slew of press inquiries this story generated. What does it say when the press won’t talk to the press? DH management did manage to issue the following statement:
It was a business decision to take on the job. The perception among some has become that the Daily Herald is the publisher of these publications. We are not. The company does not endorse the content of any of the print jobs it does for vendors, including many newspapers. It neither embraces nor condemns them. It merely prints them.
Oh, I see! So, if the Proud Boys ask them to print and distribute their newsletter excoriating minorities, transgender children, and promoting white nationalism, they’d be off the hook for any of the ensuing social damage because “it’s only business.”
Even their reporters and editorial board know the difference between right and wrong
The DH and Paddock managed to find journalistic religion and cancel the LGIS contract, but that was only after Governor Pritzker threatened to pull out of a candidate forum hosted by the Herald, citing their connection to Proft’s papers as the reason.
But then they had the nerve to blame their “critics” who “cannot or refuse to differentiate between a commercial printing operation, for which Paddock Publications has many customers, and the Daily Herald’s editorial mission to be unbiased and fair.”
Oh! I see! We don’t see it their way because we’re not nearly smart enough. So, now we need a new word that more accurately describes the kind of chutzpah that would allow a newspaper to callously abandon the standard they so eagerly thrust upon the rest of us.
That means the Daily Herald and Paddock are even slimier than Proft because they sold their soul to that devil to make that small profit. They can go ahead and issue all manner of glorious self-righteous proclamations, but none of them will change the fact that the DH just lost their last remaining shred of credibility.
To the readers who’ve asked me why I’ve been so hard on the Herald I would respond that, in light of this story, I haven’t been hard enough. We can all be hypocrites at times, but there’s got to a be a special circle of hell reserved for sanctimonious publishers and editors who so clearly believe that the editorial standards they apply to errant politicians don’t begin to apply to them.
If you haven’t already, it’s time to cancel your subscription to any Paddock publication.
Authors Note:
My fondest wish in regard to Mr. Norman’s stellar reporting here is that it’s harbinger of better things to come from the Kane County Chronicle. Perhaps he could eveb provide Brenda Schory with journalism lessons.
And with the Chronicle and DH sharing content these days, it will be interesting to see how Shaw Media’s expose will affect that relationship. Needless to say, it should make for a rather awkward interoffice Christmas party.
