I had a hallelujah moment when I came across Naked Capitalism years ago. Here finally was a site that didn’t adhere to the traditional American red-blue divide in its coverage and analysis, it knew the real story was and continues to be economic power, and that US foreign policy is driven by the same plutocratic forces waging a relentless class war at home. I rejoiced because I had spent years in journalism where this reality is ignored if there’s a realization it even exists.
The biggest reason Naked Capitalism can fill this yawning void in journalism is because of the support it gets from readers like you. That’s why we’re asking you to give what you can this year because as the American empire is increasingly stymied abroad the looting at home will likely only get worse — which is to say Naked Capitalism’s coverage is only growing in importance. The Tip Jar is to your right!
I spent a decade working at news outlets both domestically and abroad, and I saw how the trickle down ill effects from plutocrat rule are covered as unavoidable natural events. Due to time, ideological, or funding constraints, the why behind all of carnage was rarely explored. To do so requires time, effort, digging, and familiarity. Often, all were lacking.
Reporters at local news sites often must meet a daily quota of a few stories per day. Self-censorship can be just as problematic — especially for those looking to rise quickly. If you want to dig into the tangled web of rapaciousness behind the local factory being gutted and people being laid off, well, you’d better clear your social calendar because you’re going to have to spend your free time doing so, and then it’d usually be met with resistance from above. Owners and editors often share the same world views as Peter Thiel or Hillary Clinton.
Naked Capitalism, on the other hand, is taking on the most powerful actors in the country that are trying to swindle you or worse, and it does so with a team that’s the fraction the size of a small newsroom.
That’s also why it is so reliant on your support — the Tip Jar is to your right — which affords it the time, independence, and resources to go after the story behind the story.
Everyone can look around and see how screwed up things are, but Naked Capitalism helps explain the why. Yves’ coverage of economic power, private equity, endless scams, the loss of executive function, unchecked neoliberalism, and more, gets to the heart of the story behind the story. Lambert’s relentless pursuit of the why behind the institutional collapse of public health, as well as his incisiveness on money and spook machinations in politics — always with an eye to cui bono — does the same.
If their insights weren’t enough, the comments section on nearly every post at Naked Capitalism provides even more layers of historical, economic, and political context. To any reporters reading this, take note: there is a wealth of leads to chase down in every comments section here at Naked Capitalism — if you can find the time and don’t mind clashing with your editors.
That’s because Naked Capitalism understands that the endless parade of awful stories (and even the uplifting ones like the community coming together to help an individual fundraise to pay off a particularly egregious medical bill) are not just the result of bad luck or a bad apple. They are the result of systems — systems presently constructed to serve concentrated wealth.
As the transformation of traditional news and even independent media into advocacy groups accelerates, Naked Capitalism stands out even more for its understanding that class warfare is a bipartisan affair and that when it comes to death and destruction abroad, the war uniparty is in charge in Washington.
Naked Capitalism is also fulfilling this role during a time of rising censorship. It is able to withstand pressure like that of Google threatening to demonetize it because the site is independent thanks to reader support. It surely won’t be the last time Naked Capitalism faces such threats as the crackdown on voices challenging the status quo looks set to intensify.
Naked Capitalism is also one of the few sites out there really documenting the dangerous machinations by the American empire with a focus on the intersection of the socioeconomic, political, and imperial structures. This includes the effects of Project Ukraine on Europe, EU-enforced neoliberalism, the bloc’s perpetual decline in living standards, coupled with the rightward shift of the political “center,” the reasons for Turkiye’s increasing friction with Washington, Eurasian integration, energy infrastructure, trade corridors, and much more.
The struggle underway across the world hinges on a central question: how much of the world will the American plutocrats destroy until — or if — they accept multipolarity?
These developments are only set to intensify, so please give us your support to help Naked Capitalism continue to deliver you the story behind the story. Most of all, give so that you can remain informed and actually able to make a personal risk assessment about the latest scam, pandemic, war, and much more. The Tip Jar is to your right.
