Democracy Dies In Darkness, Chapter 1
Axios cowardly caves to Ron DeSantis, showing its true colors
It was an accident that has endowed man with intelligence. He has made use of it: he invented stupidity.
Remy de Gourmont, Philosophic Nights in Paris,: Being Selections from Promenades Philosophiques
Those who are capable of tyranny are capable of perjury to sustain it.
Lysander Spooner
Autocrats HATE it when journalists portray them in a less-than-flattering light- especially when what’s being reported about them is true. Because autocrats don’t function nearly as well when forced to operate in sunshine, they depend on being able to evade detection or being covered by a compliant press corps.
Unfortunately, compliance isn’t always part of some journalistic briefs. That can get a reporter into trouble, very often with the autocrat they cover and, if said autocrat makes enough noise, with the employer of the reporter mentioned above. In the case of Axios reporter Ben Montgomery, he ran afoul of both and lost his job for it.
It’s important to note that Montgomery wasn’t fired by Axios for journalistic misconduct, but for an honest reaction to what actually was propaganda issued by DeSantis’ minions.
Axios reporter Ben Montgomery was fired over an email response he provided to the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) Press Office calling its press release “propaganda,” according to Alex Lanfranconi, the department’s communications director.
“This is propaganda, not a press release,” Montgomery wrote in an email response Monday, according to a screen shot Lanfranconi shared.
The press release was an “in case you missed it” on Gov. Ron DeSantis hosting a roundtable “exposing the diversity equity and inclusion scam in higher education.”
The press release, available in full on the FDOE website, describes diversity, equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives as “divisive concepts” in the press release. DeSantis is backing priority legislation this Legislative Session that would, among other changes, ban DEI funding for state colleges and universities.
“These concepts are in no way inclusive, and instead force exclusion and division within higher education, and do not in any way contribute to learning or knowledge,” the press release reads, going on to say that, “no funding from hardworking, tax-paying Floridians, including the parents of higher-education students, should be spent on these divisive initiatives.”
A quote from Education Commissioner Manny Diaz asserts DEI initiatives focus “on ideology over merit.”
Honestly, it’s difficult to argue with Montgomery’s point. The press release WAS pure propaganda, and it was written as if no one was bothering even to hide the fact that it wasn’t meant to be true.
As with so much of what vomits forth from Gov. DeSantis’ office these days, propaganda is the order of the day. And his view that Diverty, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives are a “scam” is offensive at best and dishonestly racist at worst.
So Axios canned him…for telling the truth? As of Friday (3.17) morning, Montgomery’s bio was still on Axios’ website, though there was no mention of his termination.
Montgomery confirmed his termination to Creative Loafing, lamenting that it “gives the trolls another scalp.
“I’m pissed,” Montgomery told CL. “I’m pissed that it makes the press look weak, and I’m pissed about the message this sends about the chilling effect this kind of intimidation from the governor’s office has on solid, truthful reporting.”
Montgomery also told CL he won’t go back to Axios, even if the backlash from the firing compels his old boss to renege.
The Washington Post went into more detail about Montgomery’s firing, but even without more information, it still looks like Axios was doing the bidding of DeSantis’ office.
Not a good look for a media outlet trying to maintain at least an outward appearance of neutrality, eh?
An Axios reporter in Tampa said he was fired this week after he responded to a Florida Department of Education email about an event featuring Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), calling the news release “propaganda.”
Ben Montgomery said he received a call on Monday evening from Jamie Stockwell, executive editor of Axios Local, who asked Montgomery to confirm he sent the email before saying the reporter’s “reputation in the Tampa Bay area” had been “irreparably tarnished.”
The news release sent Monday afternoon said DeSantis, a potential 2024 GOP presidential candidate, had hosted a roundtable “exposing the diversity equity and inclusion scam in higher education.” It also called for prohibiting state funds from being used to support DEI efforts.
“We will expose the scams they are trying to push onto students across the country,” DeSantis said in the statement.
Montgomery, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, replied to the email three minutes after getting it. “This is propaganda, not a press release,” he wrote to the Department of Education press office.
It’s interesting that Stockwell doesn’t explain how Montgomery’s “reputation in the Tampa Bay area” might have been “irreparably tarnished” by his response to the press release. It’s not as if Montgomery’s a two-bit hack reporter who was lucky to have a job.
He’s a well-regarded reporter in the Tampa Bay area, and his termination seems to speak more to an overreaction by Axios to a threat from DeSantis’ office than anything.
The threat seemed to be was that if Axios wanted to maintain access to Gov. DeSantis, they’d have to bend over, grab their ankles, and do what the Governor demanded of them.
The thing is, though, that Montgomery was spot-on in his assessment of the press release.
Montgomery said the news release had “no substance,” adding that he “read the whole thing and it was just a series of quotes about how bad DEI was.”
The press release is nothing but pure pablum, quotes about how bad/nasty/awful/terrible DEI is and how DeSantis will save Floriduh and America from it. Truthfully, it’s the sort of meaningless double-speak we’ve come to expect from Ron DeSantis- all smoke, no fire.
Did Axios expect Montgomery to pass that along to their readers as if it was an actual story and not just x number of words of Right-wing propaganda? Did his employers not expect him to editorialize as he did? Or was Axios management worried that DeSantis and his aides would cut off access if they didn’t terminate Montgomery?
Whatever the case, it was a cowardly response to a reporter who, by all indications, had done some excellent work for Axios during the time he’d worked for them. Of course, Axios can hide behind the “it’s a personnel matter” argument, and they wouldn’t be wrong in doing so, but that decision seems pretty cowardly under the circumstances. No, Axios doesn’t owe anyone save for Ben Montgomery an explanation but absent a solid reason, people will (and should) probably assume the worst.
Axios capitulated to Gov. Ron DeSantis to maintain access to him. Prove me wrong.
Pretty damned cowardly on their part, and rather petty on DeSantis’ part as well. But then petty is one of the things we’ve come to expect from Ron DeSantis, eh?
Yes it is.
And we should’ve been able to expect better from Axios. Because when media outlets begins caving to tyrants, how long will it be before those tyrants are the ones dictating how they’re covered?
Probably not long…and that’s exactly what Gov. DeSantis is hoping for.
Because freedom of the press is for losers and Liberals.
