Did you know that, according to a "news" outlet called Axios, there is a new "crisis"? Forget about ecological collapse, rising domestic and global fascism, wage theft, extreme hunger and inequality, crumbling health care, etc.
axios.com/shoplifting-re…
One problem? The core of the article is based on a series of false claims to benefit the retail industry and cops. It's just utter propaganda in service of corporate and carceral interests. Shameful reporting by @jenniferkingson.
project-disco.org/innovation/021…
But it's not just about the fake shoplifting "crisis" in service of corporate retail interests. It's the evidence-free link to harsher human caging policies, bail reform, and police budgets that is so insidious. Asserting this link is like climate science denial.
I have explained at length how dangerous journalism like this is. Many people will be separated from their kids and die in jail cells because of it. Read this thread to understand the pattern.
When you actually look at the pattern (and that the Axios article's only sources are corporate industry executives), you see how closely the article resembles a corporate press release. This isn't "news," it's marketing. Deeply insidious manipulation.
And read this fantastic piece by @amandamull
theatlantic.com/health/archive…
Or this piece by @mmasnick
techdirt.com/articles/20211…
And this great article by @jackwdenton
curbed.com/2022/02/shopli…
