Dear John,
Five years ago, I founded Inequality Media with the simple goal of educating the public and spreading the truth.
Since then, this organization has become more than I ever imagined. We’ve produced hundreds of videos seen by tens of millions of people, providing crucial frameworks and context that equip the public to better understand our political and economic systems. Our videos were viewed 200 million times this year alone, and we now have close to 5 million followers in every state in the nation.
But we can and must do more.
The fact of the matter is, business-as-usual just won’t cut it anymore. We are staring down the barrel of the most consequential election of our lifetimes. American democracy as we know it hangs in the balance.
The greatest threat that we are facing is the tsunami of lies, distortions, and weaponized disinformation coming from Donald Trump and right-wing Republicans. We saw that with last week’s impeachment vote and primary debate. Worse yet, traditional truth tellers we’ve relied on are being excoriated and debased. Thanks to years of attacks, the press is distrusted and much of it is shrinking. Scientists, researchers, watchdogs, investigative journalists, and whistleblowers are under attack. Meanwhile, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media giants refuse to take responsibility for the lies being spread on their platforms.
Never before has the very basic notion of truth been attacked like this. The right-wing propaganda machine has taken full advantage of Facebook and Twitter’s unwillingness to regulate disinformation. It’s flooding every social media channel, from Facebook to Twitter to YouTube, with multiple pieces of untruthful content every single day. The right no longer cares about truth or facts — their one goal is to get Trump reelected and keep Republicans in power. With millions of dark-money dollars behind it, the right wing’s massive reach allows it to control the narrative and funnel lies into the mainstream media.
At Inequality Media, we’re fighting back. But in 2020, we need to double down on our efforts and do even more.
Our current model of putting out one video a week won’t cut it anymore. One video a week, no matter how in-depth and well-researched, is simply not enough to combat the massive wave of disinformation that we’re up against.
That’s why we’re shifting gears in 2020. With your help, we’re going to put out videos every day — short, snappy, but still fully-researched clips that will directly debunk whatever lies the right have been spreading that day. And we’re launching a YouTube talk show to take on the platform’s right-wing radicalization.
We have big plans. But we can’t do any of it without your support. Which is why I’m asking:
Can you chip in $5 or $10 a month to help us produce more content and educate the public in this make-or-break election year?
Your tax-deductible monthly gift will be matched, dollar-for-dollar, by generous supporters dedicated to our mission.
Yes, I'll chip in monthly.
No, I'm sorry, I can't chip in monthly.
Over the past five years, we have built an incredibly dedicated and passionate audience that continues to help us grow. We’re forever grateful to you for watching and supporting our work, and helping us get to where we are today.
But we need to reach an even bigger audience. We need to reach the independent voters, the swing-state voters, and the low-information voters who are most susceptible to right-wing lies.
To do this, we need to produce ten times the content at ten times the pace. That’s why we need your support more than ever.
Thanks to your past support, the American public was able to see through Trump’s lies about the economy, learn how Mitch McConnell is wreaking havoc on our democracy, and understand the historical context of impeachment.
But we need to make sure that we’re getting our messages out beyond our core audience.
This will take more staff, more equipment, more brainpower — and all of that requires significant resources.
We don’t rely on billionaire donors to fund our work — we rely on generous folks like you.
John, can you chip in monthly to help us overcome the right-wing disinformation machine and get the truth out to the American public?
Yes, I’ll make a tax-deductible monthly donation to Inequality Media now.
Every dollar you give means one more right-wing lie will get debunked, one more swing voter will know the truth, one more American will understand what’s at stake.
We’ve done great work for the past five years, but it’s time to do even more. The stakes are too high, and the threat against our democracy is too great.
I would not be able to sleep at night knowing that Inequality Media didn’t do every single last thing we could to combat right-wing misinformation and put our democracy back on the right path.
It’s time for truth to defeat lies.
It’s time for democracy to defeat authoritarianism.
It’s time to think big and educate the American people during this make-or-break election year.
Inequality Media is ready. But we need your support.
Are you with us?
Thanks for all you do,
Robert Reich
Inequality Media
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