Legacy media have given Americans plenty of reasons to distrust their hack-tivist “journalism” — and an Arizona outlet’s attempt to discredit The Federalist’s reporting on Democrats’ dark money elections scheme is just the latest example.
On Jan. 8, The Federalist published an article detailing Coconino County, Arizona’s collusion with the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence, an $80 million venture launched in 2022 by left-wing nonprofits to “systematically influence every aspect of election administration” and advance Democrat-backed voting policies in local election offices. The piece specifically examined internal communications between the Coconino recorder’s office and the Alliance, and how the two entities coordinated on election administrative issues and the crafting of election-related materials to distribute to voters ahead of Arizona’s 2024 elections.
Rather than delve into the specifics of The Federalist’s reporting, the Arizona Daily Sun’s Adrian Skabelund penned an article on Sunday that reads more like a press release issued by the Coconino County recorder’s office than a news article. Titled, “Local officials reject allegation of bias in Coconino Elections office by conservative outlet,” the article attempts to cast doubt on the notion that Coconino officials are colluding with “left wing dark money” groups — but it does so without actually digging into the background of such organizations or describing why conservatives are alarmed by their coordination with local election offices.
“Coconino County Recorder Patty Hansen, who helps lead the county election office, said she found the allegation humorous yet sad,” the article reads before quoting Hansen, a Democrat, who downplayed her office’s
