... which is that one of America's two political parties is based on lies & peopled almost entirely by liars. This is not an accidental state of affairs: reactionary politics is, not contingently but intrinsically, founded on lies. Denial of reality is core to its genesis, growth, & ongoing health.

To frame the problem as, "gosh, people seem to be lying more lately, and this institution we call journalism should try to stop them" just sidesteps the problem. If you try to impose social sanction on lies & liars, you come into direct conflict with the GOP & the conservative movement!

Journalism has to choose between political neutrality & truth. If it wants to pursue truth, it's not going to be neutral, it's going to end up on the other side from reactionaries, over & over again. That's been the basic problem for decades now & at the very least we should frame it clearly.