Higgins does not seem to have actually read the Twitter Files and your subsequent thorough explications. He is not alone--most of them thought your discoveries could be ignored in favor of "their" side. We wrote a paper earlier this year identifying reasons. Also, did Higgins not read the CJR articles cite in this paper?
Mainstream journalists, librarians, and academic scholars displayed a notable lack of curiosity toward significant investigative works on digital censorship, such as the "Twitter Files." These reports were largely overlooked by traditional media and information professionals, raising ethical concerns about censorship through selective omission. This paper examines how such incuriosity has limited public access to critical information and driven content creators to independent platforms like Substack.
The incuriosity of Higgins and others reflect the ethos Jim Rutenberg advanced at NYT when he argued, in 2016, that traditional journalistic standards no longer applied to covering Trump.
I remember that. Not long after, I had to listen to MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell say (with a straight face), "Don't vote with your mind, don't vote with your heart, we'll tell you how to vote." Seriously, it's how these folks think. Is it any wonder that a lot of people believe they're affiliated with the DC establishment?
It is exactly how these folks think. Remember when the 2016 election was called for Trump at about 2:30 in the morning? I was watching Martha Raditz, David Muir (I think) and one other elite talking head lamenting the outcome and Raditz, near tears, said "They listened to him, they didn't listen to us." I have not been able to find that clip since, but I remember it so well because I was so shocked that a "newsperson" would say such a thing.
Hubris from Rutenberg to soothe his loyal subscribers suffering severe anxiety over the tired “end of democracy”idiocy we’ve heard ad nauseam for the last decade.
Reminds me of a song with the lyrics “I love you so I told you a lie”.
I think it's far worse than incuriousity, with the NYT as the perfect example of a once reputable media leader caved to the woke newbies they hired away from places like Huff Post in order to catch up with the new digital media landscape. The article by Barrett, who was fired by the owners for objecting to how the news had become captive to the opininated columnists who now filled the "news" pages. The lengthy st of deliberate, woke instigated--demanded--media misses will forever mark the disgrace of this paper. Here's the link:https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/02/tom-cotton-new-york-times/677546/
Hubris from Rutenberg to soothe his loyal subscribers suffering severe anxiety over the tired “end of democracy”idiocy we’ve heard ad nauseam for the last decade.
Reminds me of a song with the lyrics “I love you so I told you a lie”.
We have become a soundbite electorate. There are ways to feed curiosity, multiple sources to read, multiple opinions and possibilities to engage. We have lost the will to wrestle the difference between truth and fiction. We have lost the desire and ability to think independently. We seem determined to live our lives as children curled in the arms of daddy.
It’s a lot easier to manipulate millions today. Curated news feeds makes it very difficult to seek out viewpoints we disagree with. Or to recognize when you’ve been snowed.
There's a new generation called Gen Z, and another after that called Gen Alpha. They are distrustful of an establishment which robbed them of some of their best years with the p(l)andemic. I have cautious hope for them.
This worries me more than the garden variety threats. We are surrendering our ability to recognize when we’ve been bamboozled because of ego or fear of being wrong. Its gross.
Such fears are well founded. Think of the number of people who lost their families and jobs because they had non PC opinions and made them known, or from whose statements these were inferred by the Woke Police.
Thanks for the article link! I wish I'd known about this when I was still a practicing academic librarian, but alas I left the field because I was so fed up with the unopposed extreme woke, PC (we used to call it), far left culture there.
If my family is any indication, many Americans still insist that Russiagate is real.
The Official Narratives seem to be failing but not fast enough: Officially hardly any Palestinians are being killed in Gaza and Epstein WAS NOT a profligate sex trafficker and had no important links to Israel.
The New York Times had a big sit-down with Podcasters and a few journos and continued to insist -- RussiaGate was covered well and is in fact true. I guess no surprise. The comedians asked why there was no indictments - the journos were aware, but talked in circles - frustrating!
The accepted dogma regarding the Twitter Files in the left's media silo (at least the one that my friends in tech have burrowed into) was that the whole issue was "such a nothing-burger that even Elon gave up on it after a few months". I don't know where that idea originated from, but the person that I heard it from had also described Gavin Newsom as "a visionary" around the same time and believed that mask mandates had "saved millions of lives" despite the multitude of studies showing that most of the masks which people used to satisfy those mandates (fabric, buffs, and surgical masks) were esentially useless.
The Twitter Files were the "hole in the dyke" on social media censorship. The nothing burger comments were successful, but not accurate. But you are correct that the dismissal gave a lot of cover to people who didn't want the "censorship industrial complex" to be exposed. I also think the hearings are an unappreciated Rosetta Stone level record --United States, and United States Congress House Committee on the Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. 2024. Election Interference : How the FBI “Prebunked” a True Story About the Biden Family’s Corruption in Advance of the 2020 Presidential Election : Interim Staff Report of the Committee on the Judiciary and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, U.S. House of Representatives.
[Washington, D.C.]: U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee.
The Party will tell you what is right and what is wrong. The party will tell you what is real and what is fake. The party will make sure you know exactly what to say and when, and where to be to say it.
Anybody that isn't part of the party is an enemy to be loathed, shunned, and eventually imprisoned. The Party will show you the way!
Matt has one challenge in this lawsuit: it was also a condition set by Musk that to get access to Twitter files material MT had to agree to first publish stories as threads on twitter. That is how they were all first published.
While I dont see that as selling out, because Musk made the $ from that not Taibbi, it might be claimed to be that. It also probably justifies some puppet string imagery.
He most certainly disclosed that was the agreement, but you may have meant something else.
Not sure if there is precedent or not in news history... weird arrangement.
Both Taibbi and Bari told Musk to F off after he made more demands on them of course. Musk's demand to Bari being "stop reporting in parallel on the fact that I'm hypocritically using my power now to surpress voices critical of me on Twitter" lol.
Matt made that clear but of course the idiot who wrote the book probably didn't read Matt's posts about it and the idiot interpreted it the way he wanted to.
Demands from sources are worse than rock and roll riders with curated M&Ms.
Snowden handpicked the specific journalists he wanted working on his leaks and had many conditions including not just dropping the info without context and research.
Like rock and roll contract riders we often don't hear about the details--but there are always details.
The Intercept forced anyone who wanted to see info in "The Snowden Archive" to sign a contract with a non disclosure that forced them to submit their stories to the US and British government for review, and gave the Intercept the ability to revoke publication of stories with any information from "The Snowden Archive". Referring to "The Snowden Archive" as "The Snowden Archive" was also a contractual obligation.
Leaks are valuable. Everybody wants to get paid somehow.
Snowden's demands served the source material, not served to drive eyes to a platform he made money on.
It didnt compromise Matt nor do I begrudge him since it was take it or leave it. But my opinion doesnt matter.
What matters is exactly what Higgins said and if nothing more specific than Taibbi "sold out" to Musk in his opinion, whether a jury says that this alone is enough to have that opinion
"Not sure if there is precedent or not in news history... weird arrangement."
I gave you two examples. I tend to agree about Snowden's original demands, even if they were ridiculously naive--but the Intercept's demands are infinitely worse than anything Musk asked for. And Snowden's demands lead to the Intercept's demands. And Snowden could have publicly smacked down the Intercept's demands at anytime had he seen them as a problem.
Again, not only is there precedent, but this really is common.
I haven't read Matt's lawsuit yet, so I can't comment on the likelihood of victory.
the incuriosity can be explained in a simple idea: Leftists cannot process any ideas that claim "republican good" or "democrat bad" It is the blinders from platos caves...there is no need to be curious about anything you have pre-concluded is wrong because the idea was "democrats bad" as is the case here.
Matt has a public profile to protect so scum like Higgins will come along and enjoy twisting the knife. As for their notable lack of curiosity about those who differ, that's standard. I say F 'em all.
I have carefully read everything at Racket since the Twitter files were first published. Matt has been consistent and honest and not at all prescriptive. I think he is too detailed for someone like Higgins to understand. People with no talent or depth can't write themselves with clarity and wit so they think to gain publicity by trashing someone who has those qualities.
The point is that we have slander and libel laws. It's how we put reasonable limits on freedom of speech that preserve liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all of us. Surely, Higgins knows this. He will have his day in court to answer whether his speech caused Matt harm/loss, as any other critic would have. The interesting thing is that he apparantly felt perfectly unassailable to make the statements he made. The social--and political climate has become drenched in "beggar thy neighbor" at any cost. As a result, ignoring our laws, as Higgins does, is considered legitimate behavior as long as it harms someone who doesn't agree with you, who isn't in step with PC! The Courts are our only recourse when we have become a target. The Left only seems concerned with due process when it comes to their favorite victim group du jour. that alone gives the game away, doesn't it.
I think you are correct. Interestingly, Higgins could get away with slander because it is a tool which so often goes unchallenged on the left - until it does and brings a real cost.
Huh. I'm browsing a list of Irish first names, and am surprised at how many there are! I'm a quarter-Irish and had no idea about these. Perhaps because we are Northerners (Armagh).
It says that Aoife is actually the #1 name for girls. The #2 and #3 slots also have three in a row (Caoimhe and Saoirse).
Always stumbled over the much more common Siobhán (at least outside of Ireland). Probably the three vowels in a row give nuance to how to pronounce the names.
While it's clear that this Higgins clown is idiotic, the publisher of this tripe may have bested him in the race for the dunce crown. It has become all to common for writers and publishers to disregard ethics in lieu of a possible big payday. It's a shame that integrity in journalism requires legal judgement to teach what should have been learned from parents and school. Best wishes on your legal endeavor Matt!
It looks like the theater kids have gotten high enough up in the Hachette leadership that vindictive politics has replaced sound judgement. I get that Higgins is trying to cause trouble to elevate his status. But Hachette is acting irresponsible and knowingly inviting legal action. Hachette's lawyers must have approved the publication, no doubt in anticipation of fees in excess of their retainer.
His book came out a couple of months ago, and it's already half price at Amazon. My self-published novels haven't been reduced to this - at least not yet, and they've been out since 2018 and 2020, respectively.
I guess most people have better things to do with their time and money than waste them on Higgins' unsupported defamatory idiocies.
Yes. And, I think the fact that he makes a claim that is so obviously 180 degrees from reality is what makes his claims, at a basic level, malicious, and that they were made with full scienter. The fact that Higgins is still cracking jokes about it provides confirmation of this.
And, while we're at it, bring back real shame. Political figures and their minions have always been shameless operators. The shift of journalism, to the "feel no shame" for lying column, is even more destructive. Now, when exposed, instead of apologizing for their dishonesty, they offer invigorated attacks, a Cheshire cat grin and nonsensical excuses. It's amazing how many "journalists" are just misunderstood victims of (fill in the blank ____)ism.
i went straight from finding Eoin’s reporting useful, to absolutely DESPISING him and it’s b/c of exactly this sort of needless character assassination. I HOPE YOU KICK HIS ASS.
Matt, I just wanted to tell you how much your 2021 piece “Thanksgiving is Awesome” meant to me. During the thick of COVID, when the holidays were especially lonely and our kids couldn’t come home, that article gave my wife and me a real boost. It brought some light to a pretty dark time. I’ve never forgotten that, and I’m still grateful for it.
Aeiou sacrificed any name grace when he published lazy fabrications about one of few ethical journalists reporting today. Hope Taibbi takes him for every dollar he will ever make
Matt - happy to make a contribution to a defense fund if initiated. As with the ridiculous attacks on Bari Weiss, keep in mind that none of your accusers or tormentors are journalists like you. They are propagandists and simply don’t think there’s a difference. Best wishes with your suit.
He’s probably already broke which is why he’s smearing you. The guy is a complete lowlife loser and has been for years. It’s desperation. I hope you clawback whatever ill-gotten gains he’s extracted from his resentful loser audience.
I think that is bang on...he will bankrupt himself and thats game over.
But the fun bit will be finding the transcripts of the cross examination when he tries to respond to lawyers..His publisher might be an interesting target as well for the case as he will have some assets..
It's horrifying to me, Matt, that they come for you the way they do. I can't help but see it as some of test. Can they break you? They couldn't destroy you. You came back and did good work with the Twitter files and here on Substack. I'll never be able to fully process what has happened to "the Left." It should not be a major crime to "associate" with "The Right." Yes, it's a dumb Civil War we're fighting because they have all of the power and they know it. YOU are helping to build a counterculture and guess what that means? People don't care much about their crap anymore. Why? Because they are all mandated to think the same way and say the same things. It's boring. I hope you sue the crap out of him. And ps. Elon is too sensitive...takes things too personally. He didn't "own" you...
The "left" or rather the Democrat party, thought Taibbi was firmly their journalist, is very much a cult. If they think you left their cult, then they ostracize and try to destroy you. Likewise, if they perceive you to be counter to their agenda. Hence the Trump Derangement Syndrome. All of the Trump hate was largely due to them not trusting him and thinking he would mess up their plans (he has to some extent but clearly not all the way) while being POTUS. Trump was also a former Democrat.
Whether Matt has a political affiliation or not anymore is besides the point. He is seen as the enemy and therefore these people, like the subject on this article and the nasty business during the past congressional hearings, feel as though they can get away with this. Such is our world and the days of civil discourse are in serious jeopardy of being gone forever.
If Eion The Groin is getting outside funding from a “benefactor,” Matt will find out soon enough. And if he’s self-funded, he’ll soon fold like a cheap suit and have to settle/retract.
There may be something that comes up in discovery, but I think one of the easiest pathways is to look at the publisher of the book in question. How a book like this is getting published, considering how borderline (or outright) slanderous/libelous it is says as much about the publisher as it does the author.
Because of all the bureaucracy and bad laws that impede justice and explode costs, courts are highly critiqueable spaces. Of course, if anything, they favor the idiots you're pantomiming.
You have to do what's best for you with everything in life. You understand that because you're a person of integrity. You're honest, with a great sense of humor.
I'm an old conservative woman. I know Matt, that if you and I were to sit down and discuss politics, we'd be frustrated by how differently our political views would be.
Matt, I can't remember when I first was introduced to your journalistic work. But I really liked how you conveyed news through honest story telling.
I support you 100%. I will always remain a paid subscriber. I will keep you and your family in my prayers.
Higgins does not seem to have actually read the Twitter Files and your subsequent thorough explications. He is not alone--most of them thought your discoveries could be ignored in favor of "their" side. We wrote a paper earlier this year identifying reasons. Also, did Higgins not read the CJR articles cite in this paper?
Mainstream journalists, librarians, and academic scholars displayed a notable lack of curiosity toward significant investigative works on digital censorship, such as the "Twitter Files." These reports were largely overlooked by traditional media and information professionals, raising ethical concerns about censorship through selective omission. This paper examines how such incuriosity has limited public access to critical information and driven content creators to independent platforms like Substack.
"𝗜𝗻𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗶𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗶𝗻 𝗡𝗼𝗻-𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝘄𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆."
𝗵𝘁𝘁𝗽𝘀://𝗵𝘅𝗹𝗶𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀.𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸.𝗰𝗼𝗺/𝗽/𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆-𝗼𝗳-𝗹𝗶𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀-𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮
The incuriosity of Higgins and others reflect the ethos Jim Rutenberg advanced at NYT when he argued, in 2016, that traditional journalistic standards no longer applied to covering Trump.
I remember that. Rutenberg argued something along the lines of, Trump is such a despicable figure, journalists don't owe him basic fairness.
Whether they owe him that or not, they owe their readers balanced and unbiased reporting.
Not a concern of Rutenberg's apparently.
I remember that. Not long after, I had to listen to MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell say (with a straight face), "Don't vote with your mind, don't vote with your heart, we'll tell you how to vote." Seriously, it's how these folks think. Is it any wonder that a lot of people believe they're affiliated with the DC establishment?
It is exactly how these folks think. Remember when the 2016 election was called for Trump at about 2:30 in the morning? I was watching Martha Raditz, David Muir (I think) and one other elite talking head lamenting the outcome and Raditz, near tears, said "They listened to him, they didn't listen to us." I have not been able to find that clip since, but I remember it so well because I was so shocked that a "newsperson" would say such a thing.
Hubris from Rutenberg to soothe his loyal subscribers suffering severe anxiety over the tired “end of democracy”idiocy we’ve heard ad nauseam for the last decade.
Reminds me of a song with the lyrics “I love you so I told you a lie”.
More like, "I love myself so I told you a lie."
That works as well.
I think it's far worse than incuriousity, with the NYT as the perfect example of a once reputable media leader caved to the woke newbies they hired away from places like Huff Post in order to catch up with the new digital media landscape. The article by Barrett, who was fired by the owners for objecting to how the news had become captive to the opininated columnists who now filled the "news" pages. The lengthy st of deliberate, woke instigated--demanded--media misses will forever mark the disgrace of this paper. Here's the link:https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/02/tom-cotton-new-york-times/677546/
Hubris from Rutenberg to soothe his loyal subscribers suffering severe anxiety over the tired “end of democracy”idiocy we’ve heard ad nauseam for the last decade.
Reminds me of a song with the lyrics “I love you so I told you a lie”.
We have become a soundbite electorate. There are ways to feed curiosity, multiple sources to read, multiple opinions and possibilities to engage. We have lost the will to wrestle the difference between truth and fiction. We have lost the desire and ability to think independently. We seem determined to live our lives as children curled in the arms of daddy.
Lazy Body, Lazy Mind, a pandemic of laziness
Some people yeah. Not everyone.
Thank heavens, but I can't help wondering about a demographic breakdown, esp generational.
The generational Bell Curve of Ethics has shifted mightily the last three decades, painfully obvious among the cohort born after about 1990.
It is painfully obvious that something has gone terribly wrong.
It’s a lot easier to manipulate millions today. Curated news feeds makes it very difficult to seek out viewpoints we disagree with. Or to recognize when you’ve been snowed.
There's a new generation called Gen Z, and another after that called Gen Alpha. They are distrustful of an establishment which robbed them of some of their best years with the p(l)andemic. I have cautious hope for them.
The Ewok generation and younger have spent their lives having everything handed to them, and won't accept anything that challenges their comforts.
This worries me more than the garden variety threats. We are surrendering our ability to recognize when we’ve been bamboozled because of ego or fear of being wrong. Its gross.
Such fears are well founded. Think of the number of people who lost their families and jobs because they had non PC opinions and made them known, or from whose statements these were inferred by the Woke Police.
We saw how that went with Joe Biden's four years.
Thanks for the article link! I wish I'd known about this when I was still a practicing academic librarian, but alas I left the field because I was so fed up with the unopposed extreme woke, PC (we used to call it), far left culture there.
If my family is any indication, many Americans still insist that Russiagate is real.
The Official Narratives seem to be failing but not fast enough: Officially hardly any Palestinians are being killed in Gaza and Epstein WAS NOT a profligate sex trafficker and had no important links to Israel.
The New York Times had a big sit-down with Podcasters and a few journos and continued to insist -- RussiaGate was covered well and is in fact true. I guess no surprise. The comedians asked why there was no indictments - the journos were aware, but talked in circles - frustrating!
«many Americans still insist that Russiagate is real»
This is still the official Narrative:
https://x.com/davidfrum/status/1845222460838564156
David Frum @davidfrum “Trump-Russia was real. The Twitter Files were the hoax.”
The accepted dogma regarding the Twitter Files in the left's media silo (at least the one that my friends in tech have burrowed into) was that the whole issue was "such a nothing-burger that even Elon gave up on it after a few months". I don't know where that idea originated from, but the person that I heard it from had also described Gavin Newsom as "a visionary" around the same time and believed that mask mandates had "saved millions of lives" despite the multitude of studies showing that most of the masks which people used to satisfy those mandates (fabric, buffs, and surgical masks) were esentially useless.
The Twitter Files were the "hole in the dyke" on social media censorship. The nothing burger comments were successful, but not accurate. But you are correct that the dismissal gave a lot of cover to people who didn't want the "censorship industrial complex" to be exposed. I also think the hearings are an unappreciated Rosetta Stone level record --United States, and United States Congress House Committee on the Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. 2024. Election Interference : How the FBI “Prebunked” a True Story About the Biden Family’s Corruption in Advance of the 2020 Presidential Election : Interim Staff Report of the Committee on the Judiciary and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, U.S. House of Representatives.
[Washington, D.C.]: U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee.
https://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo234285.
The Party will tell you what is right and what is wrong. The party will tell you what is real and what is fake. The party will make sure you know exactly what to say and when, and where to be to say it.
Anybody that isn't part of the party is an enemy to be loathed, shunned, and eventually imprisoned. The Party will show you the way!
Matt has one challenge in this lawsuit: it was also a condition set by Musk that to get access to Twitter files material MT had to agree to first publish stories as threads on twitter. That is how they were all first published.
While I dont see that as selling out, because Musk made the $ from that not Taibbi, it might be claimed to be that. It also probably justifies some puppet string imagery.
NO, I don't think so.
He most certainly disclosed that was the agreement, but you may have meant something else.
Not sure if there is precedent or not in news history... weird arrangement.
Both Taibbi and Bari told Musk to F off after he made more demands on them of course. Musk's demand to Bari being "stop reporting in parallel on the fact that I'm hypocritically using my power now to surpress voices critical of me on Twitter" lol.
Matt made that clear but of course the idiot who wrote the book probably didn't read Matt's posts about it and the idiot interpreted it the way he wanted to.
Demands from sources are worse than rock and roll riders with curated M&Ms.
Snowden handpicked the specific journalists he wanted working on his leaks and had many conditions including not just dropping the info without context and research.
Like rock and roll contract riders we often don't hear about the details--but there are always details.
The Intercept forced anyone who wanted to see info in "The Snowden Archive" to sign a contract with a non disclosure that forced them to submit their stories to the US and British government for review, and gave the Intercept the ability to revoke publication of stories with any information from "The Snowden Archive". Referring to "The Snowden Archive" as "The Snowden Archive" was also a contractual obligation.
Leaks are valuable. Everybody wants to get paid somehow.
Snowden's demands served the source material, not served to drive eyes to a platform he made money on.
It didnt compromise Matt nor do I begrudge him since it was take it or leave it. But my opinion doesnt matter.
What matters is exactly what Higgins said and if nothing more specific than Taibbi "sold out" to Musk in his opinion, whether a jury says that this alone is enough to have that opinion
You asked if there was precedent.
"Not sure if there is precedent or not in news history... weird arrangement."
I gave you two examples. I tend to agree about Snowden's original demands, even if they were ridiculously naive--but the Intercept's demands are infinitely worse than anything Musk asked for. And Snowden's demands lead to the Intercept's demands. And Snowden could have publicly smacked down the Intercept's demands at anytime had he seen them as a problem.
Again, not only is there precedent, but this really is common.
I haven't read Matt's lawsuit yet, so I can't comment on the likelihood of victory.
I can't open that URL. I've tried searching for the title with no results either.
I don't know why it didn't work--it was at heterodoxy in the Stacks --https://hxlibraries.substack.com/ it was published-Jul 10, 2025.
Thanks, that enabled me to find the article. Even though it looks the same as the one in your OP (which isn't formatted as a link and when copy-and-pasted does not work), this link works: https://hxlibraries.substack.com/p/incuriosity-of-librarians-and-media
the incuriosity can be explained in a simple idea: Leftists cannot process any ideas that claim "republican good" or "democrat bad" It is the blinders from platos caves...there is no need to be curious about anything you have pre-concluded is wrong because the idea was "democrats bad" as is the case here.
Matt has a public profile to protect so scum like Higgins will come along and enjoy twisting the knife. As for their notable lack of curiosity about those who differ, that's standard. I say F 'em all.
I have carefully read everything at Racket since the Twitter files were first published. Matt has been consistent and honest and not at all prescriptive. I think he is too detailed for someone like Higgins to understand. People with no talent or depth can't write themselves with clarity and wit so they think to gain publicity by trashing someone who has those qualities.
The point is that we have slander and libel laws. It's how we put reasonable limits on freedom of speech that preserve liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all of us. Surely, Higgins knows this. He will have his day in court to answer whether his speech caused Matt harm/loss, as any other critic would have. The interesting thing is that he apparantly felt perfectly unassailable to make the statements he made. The social--and political climate has become drenched in "beggar thy neighbor" at any cost. As a result, ignoring our laws, as Higgins does, is considered legitimate behavior as long as it harms someone who doesn't agree with you, who isn't in step with PC! The Courts are our only recourse when we have become a target. The Left only seems concerned with due process when it comes to their favorite victim group du jour. that alone gives the game away, doesn't it.
I think you are correct. Interestingly, Higgins could get away with slander because it is a tool which so often goes unchallenged on the left - until it does and brings a real cost.
Thanks for the link.
Am I the only one having trouble with that URL?
Your link to the article was malformed somehow, despite visually looking correct. This one worked for me: https://hxlibraries.substack.com/p/incuriosity-of-librarians-and-media
Thank you so much. It really helps to have a few more views or reactions.
I was today years old when I learned that there was a human being named Eoin Higgins.
So that’s not a name from The Hobbit?
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Hey - both things can be true at the same time
Sounds like he could use a kick to the Eoin…
Or arse. (Too many consonants)
I'd never even heard of that first name. Kind of interesting with 3 vowels in a row.
Tried coming up with others and I'm stuck after Beau and Caiaphas.
It's an Irish (Gaelic) name and is pronounced/anglicised to "Owen"
Thanks!
From the country that has such names as Aoife (Eefa!), Caoilfhionn (Kweelin!) and Naoise (Neesha) ..we love love and oul vowel party!
Huh. I'm browsing a list of Irish first names, and am surprised at how many there are! I'm a quarter-Irish and had no idea about these. Perhaps because we are Northerners (Armagh).
It says that Aoife is actually the #1 name for girls. The #2 and #3 slots also have three in a row (Caoimhe and Saoirse).
Always stumbled over the much more common Siobhán (at least outside of Ireland). Probably the three vowels in a row give nuance to how to pronounce the names.
looks closer to eeyore, the ass in Winnie the Pooh
Aeiou
eieio
Maia.
Ah, good one!
Also a variation on the Welsh name corresponding to "John," Ioan.
Now that is a tricky one, as it looks like lowercase Loan in sans-serif.
I once took out an loan for the evening in Cardiff.
That's a problem with sans-serifs. I don't much like them, myself. Give me Garamond!
Gaius
Pompeius
I cheated and looked up ancient Roman names.
Those are some great ones too!
Eggman Higgins, with a mug like that.
Sounds like Eeyore the donkey (or jackass) from Winnie the Pooh.
great minds think alike, I did not get to your comment, before I left an identical comment!
Me too. Everyone will remember where they were. For me, Jan 6 has a whole new meaning.
I hear he has hairy feet.
And I’ll be 1000 years old when I give a rats ass.
Only idiots could claim that NOT listening to (and going along with) the richest guy in the world is somehow greedy.
But their arguments don't have to make sense these days, they just have to make headlines.
While it's clear that this Higgins clown is idiotic, the publisher of this tripe may have bested him in the race for the dunce crown. It has become all to common for writers and publishers to disregard ethics in lieu of a possible big payday. It's a shame that integrity in journalism requires legal judgement to teach what should have been learned from parents and school. Best wishes on your legal endeavor Matt!
It looks like the theater kids have gotten high enough up in the Hachette leadership that vindictive politics has replaced sound judgement. I get that Higgins is trying to cause trouble to elevate his status. But Hachette is acting irresponsible and knowingly inviting legal action. Hachette's lawyers must have approved the publication, no doubt in anticipation of fees in excess of their retainer.
It’s a Hachette job, start to finish.
Similar to what happened at the NYT: the need to hire digital savvy Huff Post graduates meant turning over the reins to the Wokies.
His book came out a couple of months ago, and it's already half price at Amazon. My self-published novels haven't been reduced to this - at least not yet, and they've been out since 2018 and 2020, respectively.
I guess most people have better things to do with their time and money than waste them on Higgins' unsupported defamatory idiocies.
This guy sounds bought himself. Money behind his writing this. Glad you are suing him and I hope it works out.
Yes. And, I think the fact that he makes a claim that is so obviously 180 degrees from reality is what makes his claims, at a basic level, malicious, and that they were made with full scienter. The fact that Higgins is still cracking jokes about it provides confirmation of this.
Yep, exactly!
I'm a subscriber specifically because of your character.
I'm also a huge Matt Taibbi fan because of the terrific writing and the strong ethics and accountability. Too rare these days.
Rarer than hensteeth.
And, while we're at it, bring back real shame. Political figures and their minions have always been shameless operators. The shift of journalism, to the "feel no shame" for lying column, is even more destructive. Now, when exposed, instead of apologizing for their dishonesty, they offer invigorated attacks, a Cheshire cat grin and nonsensical excuses. It's amazing how many "journalists" are just misunderstood victims of (fill in the blank ____)ism.
I wonder if Higgins is going to call out the NYT for infecting their news reportage with bias and deliberately not reporting critical news that didn't fit the Woke narrative diet they were serving their readership.https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/02/tom-cotton-new-york-times/677546/
Many here are, I among them. Also for the good writing, Matt's tons of fun to read.
Same, exactly.
#metoo
Let me join this #metoo movement. Character still matters.
Ditto.
100%
i went straight from finding Eoin’s reporting useful, to absolutely DESPISING him and it’s b/c of exactly this sort of needless character assassination. I HOPE YOU KICK HIS ASS.
Kick him in the Eoin!
That would be an ad homonym attack.
This should have more likes.
Matt, I just wanted to tell you how much your 2021 piece “Thanksgiving is Awesome” meant to me. During the thick of COVID, when the holidays were especially lonely and our kids couldn’t come home, that article gave my wife and me a real boost. It brought some light to a pretty dark time. I’ve never forgotten that, and I’m still grateful for it.
I loved it too.
Unfortunately enjoying thanksgiving too much or being really patriotic does make one right-coded, and that’s an indictment of the left.
Love that you are defending your ground against scumbags like Aeiou.
Aeiou sacrificed any name grace when he published lazy fabrications about one of few ethical journalists reporting today. Hope Taibbi takes him for every dollar he will ever make
Aeiou is hilarious. Thanks for the grin.
I dunno, i can't really make fun of somebody due to their name. Guy can't help it that he was dealt an Irish name.
Please tell us more about the fascinating world of things you can't do
Matt - happy to make a contribution to a defense fund if initiated. As with the ridiculous attacks on Bari Weiss, keep in mind that none of your accusers or tormentors are journalists like you. They are propagandists and simply don’t think there’s a difference. Best wishes with your suit.
Me to
I'll donate to a legal OFFENSE fund.
ditto
I’m in for $50.
Me three
Yup. No choice. Just a little more ethics in the world wouldn’t do us any harm. Thanks for doing right.
He’s probably already broke which is why he’s smearing you. The guy is a complete lowlife loser and has been for years. It’s desperation. I hope you clawback whatever ill-gotten gains he’s extracted from his resentful loser audience.
I think that is bang on...he will bankrupt himself and thats game over.
But the fun bit will be finding the transcripts of the cross examination when he tries to respond to lawyers..His publisher might be an interesting target as well for the case as he will have some assets..
It's horrifying to me, Matt, that they come for you the way they do. I can't help but see it as some of test. Can they break you? They couldn't destroy you. You came back and did good work with the Twitter files and here on Substack. I'll never be able to fully process what has happened to "the Left." It should not be a major crime to "associate" with "The Right." Yes, it's a dumb Civil War we're fighting because they have all of the power and they know it. YOU are helping to build a counterculture and guess what that means? People don't care much about their crap anymore. Why? Because they are all mandated to think the same way and say the same things. It's boring. I hope you sue the crap out of him. And ps. Elon is too sensitive...takes things too personally. He didn't "own" you...
I'm left. And i want nothing to do with the professional (what passes for) "left".
I'm right, and we need honest-brokers of both. It is only in steel against stone that the blade becomes useful.
The "left" or rather the Democrat party, thought Taibbi was firmly their journalist, is very much a cult. If they think you left their cult, then they ostracize and try to destroy you. Likewise, if they perceive you to be counter to their agenda. Hence the Trump Derangement Syndrome. All of the Trump hate was largely due to them not trusting him and thinking he would mess up their plans (he has to some extent but clearly not all the way) while being POTUS. Trump was also a former Democrat.
Whether Matt has a political affiliation or not anymore is besides the point. He is seen as the enemy and therefore these people, like the subject on this article and the nasty business during the past congressional hearings, feel as though they can get away with this. Such is our world and the days of civil discourse are in serious jeopardy of being gone forever.
Have you found out through discovery who might be pulling his strings?
If Eion The Groin is getting outside funding from a “benefactor,” Matt will find out soon enough. And if he’s self-funded, he’ll soon fold like a cheap suit and have to settle/retract.
Excellent question, Bill.
There may be something that comes up in discovery, but I think one of the easiest pathways is to look at the publisher of the book in question. How a book like this is getting published, considering how borderline (or outright) slanderous/libelous it is says as much about the publisher as it does the author.
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/imprint/bold-type-books/
What is funny (or sad) is that the publishing company is actually called "Hachette Book Group" as in like "hatchet job."
I can't tell if this is a coincidence, or just like an unironic and honest anouncement of their mission statement and function.
Burn his crops and sow salt in his fields
Shitty journalists delenda est!
No need to apologize. Just kick his butt in court.
But courts, with, like, laws and stuff, are white patriarchal colonizing oppression.
Because of all the bureaucracy and bad laws that impede justice and explode costs, courts are highly critiqueable spaces. Of course, if anything, they favor the idiots you're pantomiming.
Hopefully.
You have to do what's best for you with everything in life. You understand that because you're a person of integrity. You're honest, with a great sense of humor.
I'm an old conservative woman. I know Matt, that if you and I were to sit down and discuss politics, we'd be frustrated by how differently our political views would be.
Matt, I can't remember when I first was introduced to your journalistic work. But I really liked how you conveyed news through honest story telling.
I support you 100%. I will always remain a paid subscriber. I will keep you and your family in my prayers.
Lovely comment.
Thank you.
Hang in there,Matt. We need you.