News (To Me) After Mainstream Media

Newsletter + On This Day

Once upon a time, I would tune into Peter Jennings or Charlie Gibson most evenings. But after Jennings died in 2005 and Gibson retired in 2009, I didn’t really watch news coverage for a few years.

When I tried to get back in the habit, I quickly realized the news game had changed. And not for the better. For me, it was “Game Over” for legacy and mainstream media.

Today, when I choose to check in on the “news,” I turn to online commentators and streamers. While they’re imperfect, they offer something mainstream media can’t: real, real-time interaction and unfiltered points of view.

Sometimes, it’s a bit too real and too unfiltered for my taste—but you take the good with the bad, right? Yesterday’s "debate" between Hasan Piker and Asmongold on Twitch is a perfect example of the good, the bad, and the ugh-ly.

ASMONGOLD + HASAN

In case you missed it, these two titans of the streaming world went head-to-head, debating the ongoing genocide in Gaza and Asmongold’s racist rant that got him (temporarily) suspended from one of his Twitch channels.

I won’t bore you with the rest of the drama. Long story short, while Asmongold leaves me feeling like I need a hot shower, Hasan Piker (aka HasanAbi) leaves me needing a cold one—and not just because I find him handsome. He’s smart too.

While I don’t agree with everything he says or does, I appreciate Hasan’s ability to cut through the bullshit and noise and deliver sharp political commentary while still being compassionate and relatable. As an LGBTQ ally and someone who stands for many of the same core principles I do, Hasan represents what I want in a news commentator—someone informed, but also deeply human.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I LOVE HASAN’S “THIRST TRAP” PHOTOS!

@HASANDPIKER ON INSTAGRAM

Not only doesn’t Hasan shy away from taking off his shirt, he tackles tough and uncomfortable issues head on and wears his heart on his sleeve. As the kids say, Hasan brings “deets and receipts” to every discussion.

More importantly, Hasan has the rare ability to break down complex topics in a way that’s both accessible and honest, while still being engaging and entertaining.

Dunno about you, but when I decide to scratch below the surface of the headlines, I want someone like him to help me understand and not leave me drowning in despair.

Even when I don’t agree with Hasan, I applaud his passion and perseverance. The man faces attacks 24/7, yet somehow still manages to stream 8+ hours of content most days, delivering entertainment and information on Twitch and YouTube.

This shift toward consuming news online isn’t just about avoiding the biases or clickbait of mainstream media—it’s about connecting with voices that feel more in tune with my own experience of the world. The corporate news cycle feels stale, like they're more interested in playing Monopoly than telling me what’s really happening.

Watching content creators like Hasan Piker offers a more nuanced perspective because they’re not just delivering the news—they’re responding to it in real-time, interacting with chat, and often presenting more than one side of the story.

Of course, there are risks. There are no real-time editors or fact-checkers on Twitch or YouTube, so it’s up to us as viewers to stay critical and discerning. But I’d rather take on that responsibility than blindly trust media giants who are beholden to advertisers, investors, lobbyists, politicians, and PR “experts” too.

For me, it’s not about finding the perfect source of information, because that doesn’t exist. It’s about finding voices that resonate, challenge me, and give me hope. And as the streams keep rolling—on YouTube, Twitch, and beyond—I’m here for it.

Thanks for reading and watching!
Clint

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ON THIS DAY = OCTOBER 16

BIRTHDAYS

• 1854 = Oscar Wilde = Irish playwright, novelist, and poet

• 1888 = Eugene O'Neill = American playwright and Nobel Prize laureate

• 1890 = Michael Collins = Irish general and politician

• 1890 = Paul Strand = American photographer and director

• 1925 = Angela Lansbury = English-American actress, singer, and producer

• 1946 = Suzanne Somers = American actress and producer

• 1958 – Tim Robbins, American actor, director, and screenwriter

• 1961 = Scott O'Hara, American adult performer, author, poet, and publisher

• 1962 = Flea = Australian-American bass player, songwriter, and actor

• 1977 = John Mayer = American singer-songwriter

• 1983 = Andrew Santino = American comedian, actor, and podcaster

CELEBRATIONS

• International Pronouns Day

• Dictionary Day

• Global Cat Day

EVENTS

• 1923 = Walt and Roy Disney found the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, today known as The Walt Disney Company.

• 1929 = In Germany, a Reichstag Committee votes to repeal Paragraph 175, however, the Nazis’ rise to power prevents the implementation of the vote.

• 1954 = A Star Is Born, starring Judy Garland, is released in theaters.

• 1962 = The Cuban Missile Crisis begins when POTUS John F. Kennedy learns of photos taken on October 14 by a U-2 showing nuclear missiles. The crisis lasts for 13 days.

• 1968 = Tommie Smith and John Carlos are ejected from the US Olympic team for participating in the Olympics Black Power salute.

• 1975 = Deputy Mayor of Los Angles Maurice Weiner is arrested during a vice-squad raid on a gay porn theater in Hollywood. He later resigns from office.

• 1995 = Nation Of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan’s Million Man March divides African-American gay men. Some, disturbed by Nation of Islam homophobia, decide to stay home. Others, viewing the march as an affirmation of the need for black unity, attend. No openly gay speaker is permitted to speak at the rally that follows the march.

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PHOTO + QUOTE OF THE DAY

OSCAR WILDE BY NAPOLEON SARONY (1882)

“KEEP LOVE IN YOUR HEART. A LIFE WITHOUT IT IS LIKE A SUNLESS GARDEN WHEN THE FLOWERS ARE DEAD.”
OSCAR WILDE

NEW + FEATURED

• Photos (Of Men) I Love #3

• Nocturnes (NSFW)

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