THE BILLIONAIRE BLOCKADE AND THE BROADCAST BLUES
This Saturday, October 18, 2025, the streets of America will pulse with the defiant heartbeat of democracy as the No Kings 2.0 movement rallies from sea to shining sea. This isn’t just a protest; it’s a clarion call to protect the soul of our 250-year-old experiment in self-governance. At stake? The free press, the cornerstone of liberty, now teetering on the edge of an abyss carved by billionaire oligarchs and their authoritarian cheerleader, Donald Trump. With David Ellison, heir to Oracle’s Larry Ellison, tightening his grip on CBS and other media outlets, and Bari Weiss installed as a controversial editor-in-chief, the parallels to a modern-day Ministry of Propaganda are chilling. It’s time to say no to kings, no to monopolies, and no to the creeping shadow of oligarchy.The Billionaire Takeover: A Media Monopoly in the MakingLet’s start with the elephant in the room: the free press is under siege, and the billionaires are storming the gates. David Ellison, backed by his father’s Oracle billions, is poised to take over Paramount Global, which includes CBS News, a once-venerable institution now facing a troubling transformation. The appointment of Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief, a figure with no broadcast experience and a track record of polarizing, often misleading journalism, has sent shockwaves through the industry. John Oliver, never one to mince words, called her appointment a red flag, pointing to her history of publishing poorly fact-checked pieces on her platform, The Free Press. CBS staff, already reeling from planned workforce cuts, are reportedly apoplectic, and the Writers Guild of America has advised members to hold their tongues on Weiss’ bizarre memo requesting feedback on their work habits. This isn’t leadership; it’s a loyalty test straight out of a dystopian playbook.But Ellison’s ambitions don’t stop at CBS. Rumors swirl of a potential bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, a move that would further consolidate his influence over the media landscape. He’s not alone. Jeff Bezos, who owns The Washington Post, and Patrick Soon-Shiong, who controls the Los Angeles Times, have already reshaped their outlets to align with their agendas, slashing staff and steering editorial direction. Elon Musk’s takeover of X (formerly Twitter) has turned a public square into a megaphone for right-wing narratives, with algorithms now favoring his allies and silencing dissent. Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, meanwhile, has dismantled fact-checking to appease political pressures, letting inflammatory content run rampant. And let’s not forget the forced sale of TikTok, orchestrated under the guise of national security, which critics argue is a power grab by U.S. oligarchs like Larry Ellison to control a platform that shapes youth culture.This isn’t just consolidation; it’s a coup. The concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few ultra-wealthy players mirrors the Nazi Propaganda Ministry’s playbook under Joseph Goebbels, who crushed dissent by controlling every lever of information—radio, film, press, and theater. While today’s billionaires may not wear swastikas, their ability to shape narratives, suppress voices, and amplify propaganda through algorithms and acquisitions is no less dangerous. When a handful of billionaires can decide what 330 million Americans see, hear, and read, the free press isn’t just hanging by a thread—it’s being systematically unraveled.The Oligarchic Threat: Democracy’s Silent KillerThe No Kings 2.0 movement isn’t just about media; it’s about the broader threat of oligarchy, where wealth and power concentrate in the hands of a few, leaving democracy gasping for air. Oxfam America has sounded the alarm, noting that the wealthiest 1% now control over a third of U.S. wealth, while billionaires like Musk, Bezos, and the Ellisons wield disproportionate influence over politics and policy. The 2010 Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United opened the floodgates for “dark money,” allowing billionaires to pour billions into elections through PACs and super PACs. Elon Musk alone spent a fortune on the 2024 campaign, proving that democracy can be bought, one check at a time.Under the Trump administration, this oligarchic power has found a willing partner. Policies favoring tax cuts for the ultra-rich, deregulation, and the gutting of public programs have enriched billionaires while leaving working Americans struggling. The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, a blueprint for a second Trump term, calls for defunding NPR and PBS, creating “news deserts” in rural areas and forcing communities to rely on billionaire-controlled propaganda. The FCC, once a neutral regulator, is now a weapon, with Paramount Global reportedly paying Trump $16 million to settle a frivolous lawsuit over a 60 Minutes interview. This isn’t governance; it’s coercion.The parallels to history are unmistakable. The Nazi regime didn’t just control media; it destroyed it, shutting down opposition newspapers and seizing Jewish-owned publishing houses. Today’s oligarchs don’t need stormtroopers—they have algorithms, layoffs, and regulatory pressure. The result is the same: a “fool’s freedom” where you can say what you want, but no one will hear you if it doesn’t align with the regime’s narrative.No Kings 2.0: A Movement for the PeopleThis is why No Kings 2.0 matters. On October 18, Americans from every walk of life—urban and rural, young and old, liberal and conservative—will take to the streets to demand a return to the principles that built this nation. This isn’t just about David Ellison or Bari Weiss; it’s about rejecting the idea that a handful of billionaires can play king while the rest of us are pawns. It’s about saying no to monopolies that choke competition, no to algorithms that silence dissent, and no to a political system that bows to wealth over will.The movement is a reminder that democracy isn’t a spectator sport. It’s a call to action for every patriotic American who believes in liberty, accountability, and the power of a free press to hold the powerful to account. We must show our representatives in Congress and state legislatures that we won’t vote for those who enable this authoritarian takeover. We must demand systemic reforms—higher taxes on the ultra-wealthy, stronger labor rights, and policies to break up media monopolies. We must support independent outlets like Mother Jones and ProPublica, which refuse to bend to billionaire influence.A Witty Rejoinder to the Would-Be KingsLet’s not kid ourselves: the billionaires think they’ve got this in the bag. They’re sipping champagne in their penthouses, tweaking algorithms, and laughing at the idea of a ragtag bunch of protesters challenging their empire. But here’s the thing—they’ve underestimated us. The American spirit doesn’t bow to kings, whether they’re wearing crowns or stock options. We’ve toppled tyrants before, from George III to the robber barons, and we’ll do it again. So, to David Ellison, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and their ilk, we say: enjoy your thrones while they last. The people are coming, and we’re bringing pitchforks, megaphones, and a few choice memes to remind you that this is our country, not your personal fiefdom.This Saturday, join No Kings 2.0. Bring your friends, your neighbors, and your loudest voice. March for a free press that answers to the public, not billionaires. March for a democracy that serves the many, not the few. March for the next 250 years of liberty, where no king—Trump, Ellison, or otherwise—can silence the will of the people. The free press is hanging by a thread, but we’re the ones holding the scissors. Let’s cut ourselves free.
Bari Weiss: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Bari Weiss: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Bari Weiss: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gieTx_P6INQ
No Kings https://www.nokings.org/
No Kings: Protest Safety, Know Your Rights & De-Escalation Training 10/15 https://act.aclu.org/a/no-kings-kyr-eng2
No Kings https://www.nokings.org/
Indivisible https://indivisible.org/
Big Education Ape: NO KINGS 2.0: NO KINGS, NO TYRANTS, NO TEA IN THE HARBOR: THE BOSTON TEA PARTY AND THE SPIRIT OF AMERICAN DEFIANCE, THEN AND NOW #NoKings https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2025/10/no-kings-20-no-kings-no-tyrants-no-tea.html
Big Education Ape: NO KINGS II: TRUMP - THE KING WHO CRIED "FREE SPEECH" https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2025/09/no-kings-ii-trump-king-who-cried-free.html
