Just found what seems to be a solid source [1] on the origin of the phrase. And it delivers. It was a sarcastic condemnation of the media pointing out the hypoc

Just found what seems to be a solid source [1] on the origin of the phrase. And it delivers. It was a sarcastic condemnation of the media pointing out the hypocrisy, misinformation, and so forth regularly printed in papers. It comes from one of his writings of Finley Peter Dunne. The whole book ("Observations by Mr. Dooley") is available here. [2] "Th' newspaper does ivrything f'r us. It runs th' polis foorce an' th' banks, commands th' milishy, conthrols th' ligislachure, baptizes th' young, marries th' foolish, comforts th' afflicted, afflicts th' comfortable, buries th' dead an' roasts thim aftherward. They ain't annything it don't turn its hand to fr'm explaining th' docthrine iv thransubstantiation to composin' saleratus biskit. Ye can get anny kind iv information ye want to in ye'er fav'rite newspaper about ye'ersilf or annywan else. What th' Czar whispered to th' Imp'ror Willum whin they were alone, how to make a silk hat out iv a wire matthress, how to settle th' coal sthrike, who to marry, how to get on with ye'er wife whin ye're married, what to feed th' babies, what doctor to call whin ye've fed thim as directed,--all iv that ye'll find in th' pa-apers." Dated 1893. It's so interesting that our problems with media feel so new and even seem attributable to the digital era, yet they are literally centuries old. The digital era just brought everything to an extreme since there's more media than ever before and more people consuming it than ever before. That somebody would take a self contradictory piece of rhetoric and state it as genuine advice... well, who needs critical thinking when you have critical theory. [1] - https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2014/today-in-media-history-mr-dooley-the-job-of-the-newspaper-is-to-comfort-the-afflicted-and-afflict-the-comfortable/ https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2014/today-in-medi... [2] - https://ia802302.us.archive.org/24/items/observationsbymr04729gut/omdoo10.txt https://ia802302.us.archive.org/24/items/observationsbymr047...