Talking Points Memo

By now you've probably heard and read about the Washington Post's non-endorsement of Kamala Harris at the behest of billionaire owner Jeff Bezos. You've maybe seen Jeff Bezos' unconvincing and poorly written defense of his decision. You've probably even seen a number of publications saying something along the lines of "you should support us instead of the Washington Post!"

You won't find that here. It's an unfortunate reality that the Washington Post is owned by a billionaire. It's a further unfortunate reality that said billionaire has his hand in any number of industries whose bottom line could be hampered by an unfavorable government administration. But the journalists who work at the Washington Post do good work. People can voice their displeasure with their pocketbook, but make no mistake — less Washington Post journalism will hurt the larger journalism ecosystem. The problem quite plainly is Bezos and other billionaires' (a similar situation exists at the LA Times but has gotten less attention) ownership in the first place.

For years and years and years, we at TPM have said we are independent and we are funded by readers. Over time, the rest of the journalism industry seems to have caught up with the fact that this sort of language works as marketing. Words became mere symbols. Everyone found a way to claim they were "independent." Everyone has a membership or subscription program. But doing these things for marketing purposes is not the same as, well, doing them. Independence isn't a slogan at TPM; it's a core value. Serving readers is not a slogan at TPM; it's a core value.
 

TPM is independent because we know that a journalism organization cannot be dependent on the (often temporary) philanthropy of a single or handful of rich people. We're funded by readers because that aligns our work with the interests of our readers. We want to do good journalism and attract readers who believe in and appreciate good journalism to the point they will support it financially. It's our job to make the case each and every day, with every story we publish, that the world is a better place because we exist.