"For the people who actually study the origins of civil wars, not just in the U.S., but as a class of events," says Dr. Timothy Snyder, who does just that as the Richard C. Levin Professor of History at Yale University, "America doesn't look good right now, with its high degree of polarization, with its alternative reality, with the celebration of violence."

Every two years, exit pollsters attempt to survey voters who’ve just cast ballots. They post interviewers at hundreds of voting sites across the country. They call and email voters who cast ballots by mail. The resulting exit polls are often roundly criticized and improperly reported (such as when journalists circulate and comment on raw exit-poll totals on Election Night that have not been weighted based on actual election returns).

You’ve likely seen talking heads or social media mavens blasting opposition to critical race theory by linking it to a refusal to teach American history. More specifically, the accusation often states that conservatives merely want to do away with teaching the history of the American civil rights movement or other black experiences in the past, such as slavery. It’s one of the most dishonest pivots in the public square today, particularly given that the American civil rights movement shares many qualities with conservatism.

It’s well past time to try a different approach with COVID, and the Omicron variant in particular. The mainstream media must adjust its reporting, as well, to reflect reality and, well, to infuse some common sense. To stop reporting the rise in cases and hospitalizations, because both are skewed and fundamentally inaccurate.