Texas Tribune Disparages Conservative Texans Eight Times in Two-Page Story

Just beneath the Texas Tribune logo, on the newspaper’s website, it says “Trusted by Texans.”  I’ll bet that’s true in Austin, where the newspaper is headquartered, and probably true in Dallas, San Antonio and Houston.  But Texas is more than just a few left-wing urban enclaves.

If you live in rural Texas as millions do, or if you actually research news through multiple sources, you might be taken aback by the sheer blatancy of the left-wing bias in the Tribune.

On August 16, 2023, the Tribune published a relatively short story about Kyle Rittenhouse, the young man who was acquitted of killing two Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020 in Kenosha, Wisconsin when he was 17 years old.  Different people have different views of what happened, but Rittenhouse shot and killed one protester after the man chased him and grabbed the barrel of his rifle.

Rittenhouse fled and was chased by the rioters.  He shot and killed another protester who whacked him with a skateboard and tried to grab the rifle.  Rittenhouse also shot and wounded a third protester who pointed a Glock at him.

It seems likely to me that Rittenhouse would now be deceased if he hadn’t taken these actions.  And you can argue that he never should have gone to the riot in the first place, but if the BLM thugs had the right to be there, then so did Rittenhouse.

Now to the point.   

The Texas Tribune doesn’t like Kyle Rittenhouse, or “far-right Texas” by whom they may not be trusted as the slogan claims.

You can read the story for yourself, but it’s about Rittenhouse moving to Texas, starting a nonprofit organization in support of gun rights, and being supported by conservative individuals and groups.

The story, written by Robert Downen, literally drips with contempt for conservatives.

The first of eight mentions of the terms “far-right,” and “ultraconservative” is in the headline:

“Kyle Rittenhouse launches nonprofit with far-right Texans as he ramps up political engagement in the state”

The subhead of the story mentions the leadership of this new organization as people who:

“…have close ties to ultraconservative megadonors…”

Filling out the story are six additional mentions of “far-right” or “ultraconservative” people or groups that support what Rittenhouse is doing.

A trio of West Texas oil magnates is mentioned:  Tim Dunn and Farris and Dan Wilks, who according to the Tribune have “for decades funded campaigns, nonprofits and movements to promote their ultraconservative religious and social views.”

If you think this is a bit over the top, you’re not alone. 

Detail from the Rittenhouse story’s headline. (Photo by Lynn Woolley for WBDaily)

Lots of conservatives, “ultra” and otherwise, are becoming uneasy with the fact that the grocery store we shop at and the colleges we send our kids to are supporting a general-interest Texas online newspaper that’s supposed to be reporting the news.

Perhaps if the Tribune were routinely to refer to Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke as an “ultraliberal,” that might even out the coverage.  Unfortunately, it never seems to be balanced in that way.

The Texas Tribune recently published a series of articles about a left-wing journalism professor who was more into “diversity” than journalism, and how Texas A&M paid her $1,000,000 to go away.

This woman was a bad hire, and Texas A&M regents and alumni realized it and prevented the University from making a big mistake.

The Tribune considered the story a “scoop,” and wrote the stories from her point of view.  She seemed to believe that news should not be about just facts, but also must be slanted to a more left-wing point of view – essentially, because the political Right is always wrong.

That seems to be the view of The Texas Tribune as well.

But there’s good news!  The Texas Tribune has won two national Edward R. Murrow awards for excellence.

These awards are from the Radio Television Digital News Association, about which I know nothing.

But here’s the kicker.  The Texas Tribune competed against the likes of:  The New York Times, ProPublica, USA Today, and The Washington Post.  All these sources report the news from a liberal point-of-view.   This appears to be an award for the best on-line, left-wing news source.

Here’s a list of publications I trust to give me both sides of a news story without leaving out critical information:  The Epoch Times.   (Disclosure:  I write some of their promotional materials.)  Maybe the Wall Street Journal.

I’ve written this before and I’ll say it again.  The Texas Tribune is a great idea.  They have great researchers, writers, and story content.  But they fail at the most basic level of what true journalism is supposed to be about.  They are not fair and balanced, and they take political sides.  They come across as the MSNBC of online newspapers.

So, is The Texas Tribune “Trusted by Texans?”  I think a better question, given the newspaper’s left-wing slant is this:  Should The Texas Tribune be trusted by Texans?  Your answer might depend on which side of the aisle you’re on, and that alone is telling.

Lynn Woolley is a Texas-based author, broadcaster, and songwriter.  Follow his podcast at https://www.PlanetLogic.us.  Check out his author’s page at https://www.Amazon.com/author/lynnwoolley.  Order books direct from Lynn at https://PlanetLogicPress.Square.Site.  Email Lynn at lwoolley9189@gmail.com.

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