One of the most deceptive media practices isn’t lies; it’s omissions. They don’t tell people things that would dispose people favorably to conservativism. For example, despite being a brilliant economist and an incredibly accessible writer, the MSM ignore Thomas Sowell entirely. They know that exposure to his work might cause outbreaks of conservativism. In the same way, professional reviewers are assiduously ignoring Matt Walsh’s Am I Racist? They can’t attack this brilliant film, so they won’t review it.

Now, we can add Duke Buckner, who is opposing Jim Clyburn in South Carolina’s Sixth congressional district, to the roster of conservatives the media ignore. That’s because leftists know that any focus on my friend (and yes, I have an interest in Duke’s winning, not just because I agree with his politics but because he is a friend) is bad for Democrats. When you compare Duke’s values to those of his opponent, Rep. Jim Clyburn, the difference is stark, and the media worry that voters will prefer Duke.

Image courtesy of Duke Buckner.

The preeminent newspaper in the Sixth District, which encompasses a huge region in and around Charleston, is The Post and Courier. Indeed, The Post and Courier is the largest newspaper in South Carolina. The paper has always been a Democrat staple, so much so that, during the Civil Rights era, it was the leading segregationist newspaper in the South.

Today, The Post and Courier is still a staunchly Democrat paper, assiduously toeing the Democrat party line. Even though I grew up reading the San Francisco Chronicle, and spent a large part of my adult life still reading it, I was shocked by The Post and Courier’s hard-left bias.

If you think I’m exaggerating, just take a glance at the paper’s website. While it does a decent job covering local news, there is no leftist topic that the editors and writers don’t embrace. Just look at the attacks on Prager U coming to South Carolina schools (which I think is awesome to balance the non-stop leftist indoctrination):

• Education groups question how PragerU materials are now allowed in South Carolina classrooms
• Hicks: SC education superintendent invites right-wing talk show hosts to teach your kids
• SC Education Department partners with conservative media platform PragerU—a “news report” that claims in its second paragraph that the “short videos have faced criticism of inaccurately portraying American history and advancing conservative political arguments.” The link is to the WaPo.)

The paper is to the left of left on the LGBTQ+ agenda, too:

• Summer camp provides a place of joy for Charleston's queer youth amid adversity
• Queer Adult Prom lets Charleston LGBTQ community re-do their high school experience
• With ban on gender-affirming care now law in SC, LGBTQ+ community responds with resources
• What to do in Columbia for 2024 Pride Month
• Moms for Liberty to host CCSD board chair, anti-trans group

And don’t even get me started on the paper’s endless reverence for the climate change agenda.

However, one of the topics The Post and Courier tries hard to avoid is Duke Buckner. Before the primary that made Duke the Republican candidate for the Sixth District, the paper wrote one brief essay describing his platform and that of his primary opponent Justin Scott. Since then, the paper will not mention him. Considering Duke’s incredibly good showing the first time he ran against Clyburn, when he got almost 38% of the votes, and Clyburn’s prominence, this is not an accidental omission; it’s a studied one. After all, just as a David v. Goliath story (with David having a real fighting chance), it’s newsworthy.

Tellingly, the last time The Post and Courier published an essay from Duke was on January 4, when Duke attacked Joe Biden for his depredations against the black community. Since then...nothing.

While the state’s major paper may not want to let people hear from Duke, Duke has a lot of important things to say. Fortunately, a popular and independent South Carolina outlet has been willing to let Duke speak.

FITS News has published three of Duke’s essays. The first tells how Democrat policies impose economic slavery on the Sixth District—policies that Jim Clyburn enthusiastically supports. The second, published shortly before Biden withdrew from the race, notes how damaged Biden is and describes how his presidency and plans for the future (plans Kamala embraces) harm the Sixth District, all with Clyburn’s approval. The third talks about education reform, which matters greatly to Duke, a one-time teacher. And again, Duke points out Clyburn’s complicity in the Democrat party’s attacks on educating America’s children.

Thankfully, FITS News isn’t the only outlet letting Duke speak to voters. Newsbreak, which focuses on providing people with local content, covered one of Duke’s town halls (in Richland County). It pointed out that Clyburn is doing exactly what The Post and Courier is doing, namely, ignoring Duke as hard as possible (“Clyburn declined Thursday to address his opponent’s campaign”).

Clyburn is right to be afraid. To give you a sense of what a good campaigner Duke is, the essay ends this way:

Marah Grant, a 23-year-old media coordinator for a magazine, said she is a Democrat but wants to see change.

“I like everything that (Buckner is) saying. I agree with a lot of it,” she said after the town hall.

At the end of August, in a guest post in The Sumter Item, Duke Buckner spoke to American Jews about the shoddy way the Democrat party—including Rep. Clyburn—has treated them and Israel. It’s a beautiful essay. It seems important to note that, back in the Colonial Era, Charleston, of all the colonies, was the one most welcoming to Jews. Duke carries on that tradition.

So yes, Duke is getting the word out in some outlets. Still, it’s incredibly shoddy that the major regional paper, the vehicle that would allow voters to understand the choice they have in the upcoming election, refuses to cover him and his message.

With the election approaching, Duke wants to do a media buy to get around the major media’s silence. However, Duke’s is not a wealthy district, so he can use some help. If you’d like to replace Jim Clyburn—an extremely powerful Democrat who’s morphed over his 32 years in office from a relatively sensible person to a pure leftist—with a principled conservative who is a good human being, please help Duke out.