Like the two commenters below me are pointing out -- The Drudge Report is much different today than it was 7 years ago. Around 2019 is when it fell off the cliff. This drastic change in tone and story selection is a great mystery to me, as Matt Drudge was at one time one of my personal heroes.
I've done research on this and the only conclusion I can determine - and this is speculation, I have no solid evidence for this - around 2019 Matt Drudge was offered a ton of money for the website--so much money that he couldn't refuse the offer--and the deal included him signing a non-disclosure agreementt. Matt has not been running the site since 2019, me thinks.
Hopefully Matt is healthy and still with us somewhere on a beach. I am concerned about his safety as we never see him on video. EVER. Since 2019 that I'm aware of.
The editorial tone and position of the DrudgeReport has changed so dramatically and thoroughly that it begs explanation, and it's fair to question whether Matt remains at the helm. It's possible that Matt himself had a shift in alliance, such things have happened, but the overall circumstances are such that it's fair to wonder if he'd sold out or was otherwise subborned.
It is also suspicious that this change entirely coincides with the general trend of subversion and suppression of independent Internet delivered media that started around 2015 and accelerated with the arrival of the Sars-Cov-2 pandemic.
Regardless, the New Age he proclaimed has clearly entered a suppressive phase are adversary factions have figured out various ways of stuffing cats back into bags.
I'm in total agreement that Matt Drudge was made 'an offer he couldn't refuse' and as part of the deal had to sign a NDA. It was Drudge that broke the Monica Lewinsky story when the MSM tried to bury it. Now all the site does is hate on Trump and carry water for the Democrats. I'd love to buy the guy a cup of coffee and get the real scoop. The new owners don't even have the courage to disclose who owns it now.
I believe many followers of the old Drudge Report were because of Rush Limbaugh. He was the reason many I know, myself included, followed Drudge. He made mention to his sight a lot during his radio shows. The Drudge is no long what it was back then.
The Drudge Report is without a doubt left-wing. Nearly all (lazy) links are to Mediaite, CNN, AP or any number of liberal/left sites. It's almost impossible to find a link critical of Democrats. Is Matt Drudge even involved or did he sell his soul for 30 pieces of silver?
25 years ago, is not today. Drudge has apparently sold out to who knows who and the site has become an electronic National Enquirer circa 1965. Trashy stories, gossip and sensationalism. sad.
The Drudge Report was far better when it wasn't a parrot organ for Silicon Valley (where its soul is now based) and considering Drudge is no longer part of it and The Drudge Report is now the establishment, how is it a win? It's a cynical joke today and Drudge is RICH - as was his goal but he started with good intentions. A perfect example of power corrupts.
I have Drudge on another tab as write this comment. As I move my cursor over today's links, I can see the linked websites appear at the bottom-left of my screen. Today's sources of news for our "cultural maverick": cbsnew.com; msn.com; dailystar.co.uk; news.yahoo.com. Our favorite "cultural maverick" posts very few stories that take a skeptical view of Zelensky's increasing demands for unlimited military resources, courtesy of the US tax payer. I rarely see links connecting to stories by Greenwald or Taibbi.
I like checking in on the Drudge Report. It's a nicely aggregated collection of political, media, human interest and entertainment news. And they're all within the safe confines of accepted establishment positions. I thought the future would be cooler. Then again, let's be honest with each other: the story that launched the career of our favorite "cultural maverick" was based on nothing more than private relationship tittle-tattle.
I see a lot of coping in the comments here so I thought I’d just leave my 2¢.
The fact is Drudge had pushed for someone like Donald Trump for decades as a populist, and then when he saw what really Trump was, he reconsidered. I’ve read the Drudge Report practically everyday since I was 13 (now 28) and while obviously there is a change in political slant, I’ve not actually seen a major change in tone. There’s still plenty of snark, there’s still a general suspicion of elites, interest in fiscal conservatism, and opposition to big govt. But on the other hand, I think you could call it more leaning Neo-liberal (Milton Friedman, Hayek, non-Christian side of Reaganism) than it did before 2016.
I know it’s easy to read the assaults on Trump they put up as some kind of indicator that Drudge left the site, but I think most people forget how infuriated he was with Trump. And since he and Trump had their split, Drudge has had to watch a party and a voter base only appeal more and more to Trump. I can only imagine how that’d affect your politics after being the voice of the populist wing of conservatism for decades.
Finally, I think it’s far more likely that Drudge is still semi-active with the site, but knows there’s practically no reason for him to go back to the pre-2016 politics. With Breitbart leading the pack, there’s just a massive saturation of pro-Trumpian conservative sites now. If anything, the Drudge Report now reads more like a fairly moderate conservative site but not in the grotesque manner you’d see in the Weekly Standard. You still get the absurd stories (which have always been there, there was always a sensationalist element to it) but it’s far more likely to find stories that won’t just take the far right’s side or analysis. I suspect that whenever Trump and the populist right eventually collapse, I’ve no doubt Drudge will still be there.
Like the two commenters below me are pointing out -- The Drudge Report is much different today than it was 7 years ago. Around 2019 is when it fell off the cliff. This drastic change in tone and story selection is a great mystery to me, as Matt Drudge was at one time one of my personal heroes.
I've done research on this and the only conclusion I can determine - and this is speculation, I have no solid evidence for this - around 2019 Matt Drudge was offered a ton of money for the website--so much money that he couldn't refuse the offer--and the deal included him signing a non-disclosure agreementt. Matt has not been running the site since 2019, me thinks.
Hopefully Matt is healthy and still with us somewhere on a beach. I am concerned about his safety as we never see him on video. EVER. Since 2019 that I'm aware of.
The editorial tone and position of the DrudgeReport has changed so dramatically and thoroughly that it begs explanation, and it's fair to question whether Matt remains at the helm. It's possible that Matt himself had a shift in alliance, such things have happened, but the overall circumstances are such that it's fair to wonder if he'd sold out or was otherwise subborned.
It is also suspicious that this change entirely coincides with the general trend of subversion and suppression of independent Internet delivered media that started around 2015 and accelerated with the arrival of the Sars-Cov-2 pandemic.
Regardless, the New Age he proclaimed has clearly entered a suppressive phase are adversary factions have figured out various ways of stuffing cats back into bags.
I'm in total agreement that Matt Drudge was made 'an offer he couldn't refuse' and as part of the deal had to sign a NDA. It was Drudge that broke the Monica Lewinsky story when the MSM tried to bury it. Now all the site does is hate on Trump and carry water for the Democrats. I'd love to buy the guy a cup of coffee and get the real scoop. The new owners don't even have the courage to disclose who owns it now.
The Drudge Report is all left wing propaganda.
Where is Matt today?
Any explanations, or is he still hiding out?
This so called news-aggregator is no revolutionary, and not worth the mention.
Where the heck is Drudge?
Is he frozen at 200 degrees below zero in liquid nitrogen? Has his brain been removed controlled by (AI)?
I believe many followers of the old Drudge Report were because of Rush Limbaugh. He was the reason many I know, myself included, followed Drudge. He made mention to his sight a lot during his radio shows. The Drudge is no long what it was back then.
The Drudge Report is without a doubt left-wing. Nearly all (lazy) links are to Mediaite, CNN, AP or any number of liberal/left sites. It's almost impossible to find a link critical of Democrats. Is Matt Drudge even involved or did he sell his soul for 30 pieces of silver?
fuck Drudge. Traitor.
25 years ago, is not today. Drudge has apparently sold out to who knows who and the site has become an electronic National Enquirer circa 1965. Trashy stories, gossip and sensationalism. sad.
The Drudge Report was far better when it wasn't a parrot organ for Silicon Valley (where its soul is now based) and considering Drudge is no longer part of it and The Drudge Report is now the establishment, how is it a win? It's a cynical joke today and Drudge is RICH - as was his goal but he started with good intentions. A perfect example of power corrupts.
I have Drudge on another tab as write this comment. As I move my cursor over today's links, I can see the linked websites appear at the bottom-left of my screen. Today's sources of news for our "cultural maverick": cbsnew.com; msn.com; dailystar.co.uk; news.yahoo.com. Our favorite "cultural maverick" posts very few stories that take a skeptical view of Zelensky's increasing demands for unlimited military resources, courtesy of the US tax payer. I rarely see links connecting to stories by Greenwald or Taibbi.
I like checking in on the Drudge Report. It's a nicely aggregated collection of political, media, human interest and entertainment news. And they're all within the safe confines of accepted establishment positions. I thought the future would be cooler. Then again, let's be honest with each other: the story that launched the career of our favorite "cultural maverick" was based on nothing more than private relationship tittle-tattle.
I see a lot of coping in the comments here so I thought I’d just leave my 2¢.
The fact is Drudge had pushed for someone like Donald Trump for decades as a populist, and then when he saw what really Trump was, he reconsidered. I’ve read the Drudge Report practically everyday since I was 13 (now 28) and while obviously there is a change in political slant, I’ve not actually seen a major change in tone. There’s still plenty of snark, there’s still a general suspicion of elites, interest in fiscal conservatism, and opposition to big govt. But on the other hand, I think you could call it more leaning Neo-liberal (Milton Friedman, Hayek, non-Christian side of Reaganism) than it did before 2016.
I know it’s easy to read the assaults on Trump they put up as some kind of indicator that Drudge left the site, but I think most people forget how infuriated he was with Trump. And since he and Trump had their split, Drudge has had to watch a party and a voter base only appeal more and more to Trump. I can only imagine how that’d affect your politics after being the voice of the populist wing of conservatism for decades.
Finally, I think it’s far more likely that Drudge is still semi-active with the site, but knows there’s practically no reason for him to go back to the pre-2016 politics. With Breitbart leading the pack, there’s just a massive saturation of pro-Trumpian conservative sites now. If anything, the Drudge Report now reads more like a fairly moderate conservative site but not in the grotesque manner you’d see in the Weekly Standard. You still get the absurd stories (which have always been there, there was always a sensationalist element to it) but it’s far more likely to find stories that won’t just take the far right’s side or analysis. I suspect that whenever Trump and the populist right eventually collapse, I’ve no doubt Drudge will still be there.
drudge the faggot.
F - DRUDGE. Traitor.
Drudge changed when soon after his mother died no Republican ( or Democrat) official proclaimed sorrow.