The Fourth...or Fifth...or Sixth Estate must save us

 They say the “Fourth Estate” or “Fourth Power” is the news and other media. It is different from the religion, politics and common people, but holds a power all its own. Think about the saying “The pen is mightier than the sword.” If used correctly, the media can stave off armies.

"The pen is mighter than the sword"
 at the Library of Congress

Unfortunately, the heritage media has lately been a more divisive force in American society. It has become an extended arm of political parties and of the powerful elite. Rather than being a communication tool that boosters trust, some media sources have been chiseling away at foundations of our society.

It’s interesting how this distrust falls a few decades after the fall of the fairness doctrine, which required equal air time to opposing points of view. It falls a few decades after the prevalence of cable tv (and then satellite and streaming services…) with the splintering of programming options. And it falls even more intensely into this era of social media.

I wonder what “estate” social media would be in. Is it part of the Fourth Estate— a kind of media? Is it a tool of the common people? A tool of political messaging? A tool of religious proselytizing? My guess is it’s a bit of all of that and more. Some sociologists are beginning to call bloggers and influencers the “fifth estate.”

Whatever you call it, social media has enabled the new grassroots media (not heritage media) to spring up. These less-funded channels of communication are less indebted to large corporations, allowing more freedom of expression. Social media, however, also uses algorithms which can amplify or mute the messages of any correspondent or channel.

The heritage media has varying degrees of success in getting out messages which counter the status quo or fight oppressive leaders. I still shudder about how much was left out of the front pages of The NY Times during the Holocaust! I still want to scream at some overstatements and understatements that came out about recent allegations of antisemitism. When the Washington Post wrote that American Jews are “confused” about antisemitism, I just shook my head. No, we are not confused about antisemitism. We are outraged by it, and by all the violence in the world. We are also heartbroken about what governments and terrorists do to innocent people. We are saddened and horrified about all the hatred and don’t know how to stop it. “Confused” isn’t the word.

Confused also isn’t the word for the predicament Trump and his croneys have created for the media, universities, and law firms. Different targets of politically charged lawsuits and exclusions have chosen to respond diffeeently. But that’s not a sign of collective confusion. It’s a sign of there being no easy answer.

Our country is founded on the freedom of the press, the freedom of religion, the belief in equality and opportunity which education fosters. This administration is threatened by what the people might do with such powers. The president bribes, punishes, makes deals, brags, and the retaliates against with the same sequence. The Associated Press, Ivy Leagues and Big Ten law firms were among the earliest victims of his vindictiveness this term.

We have checks and balances which are supposed to curtail a president’s power. As the rallies planned for June 14th state: No Kings! However, we are dealing with a man who spoke about people never needing to vote again if they voted him back into office. We are dealing with an administration which repeatedly ignores judges’ orders. We are dealing with an administration which has bragged about buying the vote…

So, going all the way back to the 1770s, we have the idea of three estates in Europe: clergy, nobility, and commoners. Almost as old, we have the notion of thee branches of the US government: the legislative, judicial and executive ones.

Trump wants to be king and pope all at once, and to just have a small group of rulers over a large, disenfranchised common class.

He wants the executive branch to gain power at the expense of the guardrails of legislation and the judiciary.

He wants to be the Only Estate, if you will. And in order to do so, he has been attacking the Fourth Estate.

I believe that it was the Arts which got us through 2020 and COVID. The number of online gatherings of Broadway performers was awe-inspiring. Each event chose songs which showed us how America is great. Spoiler alert: it didn’t involve wearing red hats with a MAGA logo.

TV shows took on themes about inclusion to combat the racism we saw on the streets and in political rants. Remember This is Us? Remember the West Wing reunion?

And then there were the Twitter feeds (before Musk controlled it.) Remember the Mandy Patinkin home videos? Itzhak Perlman comforted me while Mandy P and his wife inspired me and made me laugh. I needed both.

Yes, the Arts are taking a hit now. Look at the Kennedy Center’s new leader. Look at funding cuts, and see how they are hurting traditionally marginalized groups. All of this makes me want to scream.

However, it also gives me hope. The mainstream media are taking hits and so are the arts. But look what happened tonight: CNN live-streamed a Broadway show about McCarthyism and brought it up to the present, making the connection to what we are currently enduring. It was a risky and powerful move.

Listen to new music, read new books, see new shows. This group— perhaps our Sixth Estate— is taking a stand.

How will you lend your voice to the revolution?