Jack Shafer (born November 14, 1957) is an American journalist who writes about media for ''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...

''. Prior to joining ''Politico'', he worked for

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was estab ...

and also edited and wrote the column'' "''Press Box" for ''Slate'', an online magazine. Before his stay at ''Slate'', Shafer edited two city weeklies, ''

Washington City Paper The ''Washington City Paper'' is a U.S. alternative weekly newspaper serving the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The ''City Paper'' is distributed on Thursdays; its average circulation in 2006 was 85,588. The paper's editorial mix is focused ...

'' and ''

SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards, ...

''. Much of Shafer's writing focuses on what he sees as a lack of precision and rigor in reporting by the mainstream media, which he says "thinks its duty is to keep you cowering in fright." One frequent topic is media coverage of the

War on Drugs The war on drugs is a Globalization, global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of prohibition of drugs, drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the Unite ...

Libertarianism

Shafer has written supportively of

libertarianism Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...

. He wrote, "Traditionally, the state censors and marginalizes voices while private businesses tend to remain tolerant." In 2000, he explained his political views as follows: "I agree with the

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

platform: much smaller government, much lower taxes, an end to

income redistribution Redistribution of income and wealth is the transfer of income and wealth (including physical property) from some individuals to others through a social mechanism such as taxation, welfare, public services, land reform, monetary policies, confis ...

, repeal of the drug laws, fewer

gun laws Gun laws and policies, collectively referred to as firearms regulation or gun control, regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, and use of small arms by civilians. Laws of some countries may afford civilians a right to ...

, a dismantled

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitabl ...

, an end to corporate subsidies,

First Amendment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

absolutism, a scaled-back

warfare state Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...

. (You get the idea.)" Consistent with this perspective, on 20 April 2020 Shafer expressed opposition to the

Local Journalism Sustainability Act The Local Journalism Sustainability Act () is a bill introduced into the United States House of Representatives on July 16, 2020, by Representative Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ-2) that would give tax credits to local newspapers. It was introduced in 2020 ...

, saying, "You wouldn't put a dead man on a ventilator, would you?".

Notes

External links

Jackshafer.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shafer, Jack American libertarians American male journalists American columnists Princeton University alumni Slate (magazine) people Living people 1957 births Politico people