The George Santos Scandal Reveals A Journalistic Gap

New York’s newest member of Congress, who said he was 'Jew-ish,' benefited from a lack of aggressive reporting.

Lyin’ in winter: Santos is under investigation by federal and local authorities regarding possible criminal activities during his campaigns.

As George Santos (R-NY) becomes a member of the House of Representatives this week, proving that you can lie about everything today and still get elected, consider an important backstory here.

It’s about the tiny Long Island newspaper that called Santos out in September (but was largely ignored). The incident also raises the sad fact that, though sorely needed, authentic local news reporting is disappearing from our society.

Major New York newspapers missed the fabricated Santos stories until late in the game. During his campaign last fall in New York’s 3rd Congressional District, Santos offered countless false details of his life, his religion, his education, his work, his family, his finances – even his name.

 It was The North Shore Leader, with its part time staff of students and retirees, that rose to the occasion.

The paper ran a story about Santos in September pointing out a number of suspicious elements to his “inexplicable rise” in wealth in the last two years, including that he lived in a rented apartment in Queens while claiming to own two mansions. 

The Leader told its readers: “This newspaper would like to endorse a Republican,” but explained it was supporting the Democratic candidate in the race because Santos “is so bizarre, unprincipled and sketchy” and is “most likely just a fabulist – a fake.”

Sarah Ellison, reporting in The Washington Post last week on The Leader’s overlooked scoop, noted that it is the responsibility of larger, regional newspapers to pick up on the reporting of publications like The Leader, and “verify and amplify the story,” giving it wider attention and credibility.

“But that system … appears to have failed completely this time,” Ellison wrote, pointing out that part of the blame is the economic crisis that has crushed many American media outlets. 

Newspapers are hurting, forcing them to cut staff and coverage, while trying to survive. She cited research from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University that found “on average two newspapers are disappearing in the U.S. every week.” It is expected that in the next three years the country will have lost one-third of its newspapers since 2005.

Community newspapers, both Jewish and general, have a vital role to play, representing the Public Square in our society – the platform that reaches a wide range of citizens, informs and seeks to engage them in addressing the vital issues of the day. 

What do we know about the new Congressman from the 3rd District representing hard- working New Yorkers? How sincere was his sworn oath to uphold the Constitution? 

When we are without a respected vehicle for news and public discourse, we don’t know what we’re missing.