Media Continued from page 44 Overall page views for the Drudge Report, while still
high by industry standards, have been nearly halved since their peak as social media platforms like X cover breaking news faster, usurping much of what Drudge had built his business model around. Chris Moody, a longtime journalist and host of the Find-
ing Matt Drudge podcast, told Newsmax the same conserva- tive base that first launched Drudge into prominence in the 1990s now feels backstabbed by its leftward tilt. “I was shocked by how few people in the conservative
base read Drudge anymore,” said Moody. “There was a very real sense of betrayal that they felt.” The conservative media ecosystem underwent a seismic
shift in recent years with the death of influential radio host Rush Limbaugh, as well as the decline of Fox News, which lost credibility with much of its core conservative base, according to Moody. Drudge had based his model on an ability to keep read-
ers ahead of the news cycle via an all-in-one, easy-to-nav- igate homepage. Today, those looking for the latest news turn to social media. The website Citizen Free Press, whose creator goes by
the alias “Kane,” says that while traffic to Drudge has been shrinking, it would be impossible for any one person, media organization, or website to ever replace the Drudge Report. “He has always had a great journalistic eye and knows
what’s interesting,” said Kane. “He still gets a lot of readers, but they just aren’t driving
the traffic like they used to, and as a result, his power has diminished.” Kane said that while Drudge’s influence on the history
of journalism can’t be overstated, he believes the website in its current iteration won’t serve as much more than a media curiosity in the upcoming election. For Drudge, the motivations of his website, like the man
himself, remain shrouded in mystery. He hasn’t appeared in public for nearly a decade. It’s been years since anyone has snapped a picture of the reclusive editor, and records show he recently sold his home in Florida and is now believed to be residing in multiple residences around the world.
“Drudge was a force in so many past election cycles,
whether it be in the media, campaign operatives, or the candidates themselves, but he seems to have drifted into the background in 2024,” Kane told Newsmax. Several attempts by Newsmax to contact Drudge were
not successful. Drudge has made it known that what the rest of the
world thinks of him, his website, or what remains of his power isn’t top of his mind. “I don’t need to be liked. I don’t need to be liked at all
. . . it doesn’t mean anything,” he said in an unscheduled appearance in 2015 on The Alex Jones Show.
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