Eric Levitz of New York magazine writes that Facebook and Google executives argue that reporters cover them more aggressively because of how they have disrupted the media industry, but that the opposite is more likely the case.
Levitx writes, “One piece of this analysis is indisputably true: Journalists (and their employers) have been adversely impacted by the rise of these tech giants, and are thus, acutely aware of the less benign aspects of their power. It is plausible that this experience has led some outlets to cover Facebook and Google more adversarially than they might have otherwise.
“But it’s also plausible that the immense power that Facebook and Google have amassed leads other outlets to cover them less adversarially than they should. For example, a newly hired tech editor at a digital-first publication that specializes in providing intimate access into the thoughts of the powerful (to readers who prefer their news in flash-card form) might write a ‘beat-sweetener‘ piece informing Facebook and Google executives that they are right to see themselves as victims of the Fourth Estate’s professional jealousy.
“It is true that many legacy-media outlets did a lackluster job of adapting to the internet revolution (present company excluded). And it’s true that this made it easier for tech platforms to eat their industry’s lunch. Rosenberg does a fine job of establishing a motive for ‘score-settling’ journalism. But where is the crime? It would be one thing if Axios presented a litany of libelous errors that journalists had made in the course of covering Silicon Valley with a vengeance. But if this alleged resentment isn’t producing misinformation, then what is the point of insinuating that critical coverage of Facebook is rooted in personal grievance? Who is served by such unsubstantiated insinuations?”
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