Reporter Schadenfreude
Top Story: Fake Fall
Have you ever read a story about a fallen public figure and wondered: “Wait, what? That guy seems like he’s doing just fine."?
These are "fake fall” pieces. They feature an overly rich, overly powerful, overly influential character who has apparently fallen from grace….when in fact that’s not really what has happened
Consider a story about:
Megadonor Charles Koch feeling down and out. Meanwhile, his anti-union non-profits continue to inflict grave economic pain on vulnerable Americans.
Elon Musk, who "maybe isn’t all powerful, after all,” despite his billions.
Ultraconservative talking head Charlie Kirk, whose Turning Point USA had $81 million in revenue in 2023, no longer a Republican love child. (His donor base would probably disagree.)
Trump in 2016, whose polling numbers were allegedly in free fall. Yet, he still managed to get elected. Not once. But twice.
If you’ve written one of these stories — only to discover you were being overly optimistic, or misguided, or simply naive — consider why you were moved to choose that framing.
You really wanted to believe a bad guy was getting his comeuppance. (We’ve all been there!)
Your editor said: “We’re in the news business. What’s new here?” (There, too!)
The subject’s PR arm sold you on a sad-sack decline story. (We all do that, once!)
Tips for avoiding “fake fall” stories:
Instead, of gravitating towards a simple story that suggests a decline in an unnervingly powerful actor; do your audience a favor: Tell the more complex story.
Write about:
What steps, laws, family wealth, and other people have facilitated their power grab
How the people in their lives feel about their unusual — often unethical— ascent
Who in their field/the country/the world has suffered from their unchecked power
What lack of protections have made their power grab possible
“Fake fall” stories hurt your news outlet’s credibility; and they mislead audiences about how power and money really work in America. You should avoid them.
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Our Staff
Executive Editor Kyle Spencer
Guest Editor: Chloe Taft
Our Board of Advisors
Alex Aronson, executive director of Court Accountability
David Armiak, research director for the Center for Media and Democracy
Connor Gibson, founder of Grassrootbeer Investigations
Maurice Cunningham, retired associate professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts at Boston and author of Dark Money and The Politics of School Privatization.
Isaac Kamola, associate professor of political science at Trinity College, founder of Faculty First Responders and co-author of Free Speech and Koch Money, Manufacturing a Campus Culture War
Nancy MacLean, William H. Chafe distinguished professor of history and public policy at Duke University and author of Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America
Ralph Wilson, founder of the Corporate Genome Project and co-author of Free Speech and Koch Money, Manufacturing a Campus Culture War
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