People can criticize "the mainstream media" all they want, but for a long time there were relatively few "mainstream" sources of news (broadcast TV, print newspapers and magazines) who had to appeal to broad audiences. They fact-checked what they reported and acted as filters for all the bad info that we see out in the public realm today. Uninformed opinion was not presented on equal footing with expert opinion. Random crazies and fringe-dwellers did not have a platform to instantly reach a mass audience. We had regulations on ownership of mass media and news was considered a service to the public, not a source of profit.

Now there are so many sources of "news" out there that are tuned to niche audiences, they are literally seeking viewers who want to be told a certain thing. Roughly a third of the country has abandoned truth altogether and has more or less joined a cult, and there are plenty of "content providers" out there willing to make money telling them what they want to hear. Whether the content providers actually believe their own content is almost irrelevant. And of course this audience is ripe for foreign disinformation.

The other consequence of print newspapers' decline (and corporate ownership of numerous TV & radio stations) is the loss of local news. Many small markets across America no longer have in-depth coverage of local news and events. A side effect of that is now all news is national, and the hot-button issues that are the most divisive are the national issues.