| In our final newsletter of 2023, we reflect on the predictions we all got wrong.͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ |
 | Max Tani |
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Welcome to Semafor Media, where we admit when we’re wrong.
Being wrong is not particularly fun if you’re a member of the media. People may not remember last week’s scoop, but they certainly have long memories for your mistakes, and despite the fact that parts of the internet are disappearing, a terrible food take you had years ago or your decision to trust a dishonest spokesperson may live on forever.
But a big part of what we’re trying to do at Semafor is to be transparent with the limits of our knowledge. Every week in this newsletter, we try to parse through the facts that we know and what we just think we know, which occasionally isn’t as much as we’d like.
In this spirit, as the year comes to a close, we wanted to ask some of the most interesting Semafor Media readers to look back on their own bold, totally wrong predictions for 2023. We asked people like Barry Diller, Mark Cuban, Richard Pleppler, Sunny Hostin, Radhika Jones, Janice Min, Ben Shapiro, and many more about what narratives went sideways, and which assumptions they had that just didn’t pan out.
The responses we got back were as varied as the stories that dominated news in 2024: Some, people like Televisa anchor Enrique Acevedo, were reflective on personal shortcomings that led to failures in their newsgathering. Others, given the opportunity, shared what they thought we in the news media got wrong; no one was quicker to respond to my inquiry than Ben LaBolt, the White House communications director who said journalists’ incorrect, needlessly pessimistic economic forecasts warranted some reflection on future coverage. Despite our best efforts, Ben Smith and I also struck out a few times: almost immediately after declaring Twitter’s push into political advertising to be a bust, Democrats surprised me with their willingness to spend money on Elon Musk’s platform.
With a presidential election, two horrifying wars, and massive, ongoing technological upheaval, the stakes for being wrong in 2024 are as high as ever. Every week we’ll keep trying to be as ahead of the curve and close to the truth as possible. And of course, you can do your part next year, as always, by sending us your best, juiciest tips and best story ideas.
Semafor will be in Davos next month, again producing the definitive daily newsletter for the global power elite and everyone who loves to hate them. Sign up here.
 - A naval commander has been appointed as China’s new defense minister, months after the unexplained disappearance of his predecessor.
- The U.S. and Mexico discussed how to stem the flow of migrants as a caravan of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers headed toward the U.S. border.
- Poland will liquidate state media agencies. While Poland’s new PM says they are mouthpieces for the former right-wing ruling party, human rights organizations say the move raises “serious legal doubts.”
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