Part of the Series
Moyers and Company
Truthout is a vital news source and a living history of political struggle. If you think our work is valuable, support us with a donation of any size.
The Center for Media and Democracy’s PR Watch reports that during the primary and general elections in the 2012 election cycle, and during recall elections held since 2010, 117 members of the American Legislative Exchange Council lost their seats. Arizona, Wisconsin and Minnesota were three states where ALEC lost considerable ground.
ALEC is a national organization that brings state-level legislators and corporate lobbyists together to write legislation behind closed doors. The model bills developed by ALEC have been the subject of criticism by groups including Color of Change and CMD, which launched the site ALEC Exposed. Earlier this year, Moyers & Companytook a closer look at ALEC with the documentary “United States of ALEC,” which will be rebroadcast this weekend on many public television stations.
We’ve updated our interactive map, which identifies state legislators who are members of ALEC, to reflect the recent elections. But many ALEC legislators still serve at the state level, and it’s unclear how many newly elected state representatives will join the group.
You can help us complete our map of ALEC legislators by calling your local representatives — if you discover that they’re ALEC members, or if you discover that they were once members but have publicly renounced the group, let us know using our the form on our ALEC map.
Important Message: Please Read
For 25 years, Truthout has survived by publishing impactful investigative journalism and analysis; distributing full editions 365 days a year; and building a community of readers who support us with small, hard-earned donations.
Eighty percent of our $3 million yearly budget comes from small donors alone. Of those, 8,000 readers support us with monthly donations. Back in 2018, when Facebook decided to suppress the circulation of posts made by organizations, thereby cutting readers off from seeing many articles shared by the news organizations they had intentionally decided to follow, Truthout’s total traffic declined by 40 percent, as nearly all of our traffic from that platform disappeared.
Now, Google has recently rolled out its AI search bar, providing AI summaries instead of directing readers to our site. Google Search is our single largest source of traffic; it’s the route by which nearly one third of our readers find us. Much like in 2018, a shocking 40 percent of our Google traffic has disappeared overnight.
It will not be easy for Truthout to shoulder this blow. Nor will it be easy for our peers and collaborators — news sites that depend on traffic and aren’t bankrolled by large corporations.
If you can support Truthout with a donation today, you can help us resist the AI onslaught. Please give today.