The great capitulation: how our most powerful institutions bowed to Trump
Corporations and universities with the power to stand up to Trump are instead bowing to his authoritarianism and fascism.
How do we live in a world were the leading lights of responsible journalism are Rolling Stonee (which has a lot to make up for), Teen Vouge, and most surprisingly of all, Wired magazine, which had become a bit of a joke in the industry it covers.
Most recently, Rolling Stone detailed how great America institutions chose submission over resistance to authoritarianism. From Silicon Valley giants to Ivy League universities, corporate titans to big-city mayors, the response has been disturbingly uniform: to bend the knee.
These institutional surrenders that should alarm anyone who values democratic principles. These aren't small, vulnerable organizations being steamrolled—they're trillion-dollar corporations, massive news organizatinos, and prestigious universities. They all have the resources, legal firepower, and public influence to resist. Instead, they've chosen to "create a glide-path" for fascism.
A presidential protection racket
This doesn't involve stereotypical gangsters threatening to break legs if you don't pay. It's much white collar than that. Major media companies are paying what looks like extortion money disguised as legal settlements.
Disney
Disney's agreed to pay a $16 million settlement for a Geoerge Stephanopoulous report. The ABC's reporter accurately described Trump's sexual abuse of E. Jean Carroll as "rape". This was the precedent. The company settled a weak defamation case by donating $15 million to Trump's future library. It also paid $1 million in legal fees—despite a judge explicitly stating that Carroll's assault could indeed be described as rape in common usage.
Paramount, Skydance, and CBS News
Paramount and Skydance went even further, paying $16 million to settle Trump's frivolous lawsuit over a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris. The companies, seeking federal approval for an $8 billion merger, threw in additional concessions:
- Goodbye Stephen Colbert
- Hello to a "viewpoint diversity" overseer(i.e., politcal officer) at CBS
- All DEI programs eliminated
CBS had already lost Bill Owens, thee executive producer of its news flagship, 60 Minutes.
Trump has also brazenly announced he expected another $20 million in advertising, bringing his total haul to over $36 million.
The Washington Post tries preemption
Earlier this year, Jeff Bezos announced a "significant shift" at The Washington Post, restricting the opinion section to two editorial "pillars": free markets and personal liberties, while excluding opposing viewpoints. Editorial page editor David Shipley resigned rather than lead this transformation.
Post staffers publicly criticized the move as abandonment of journalistic principles and "self-interested agenda," while conservatives celebrated.
The overhaul follows Bezos blocking the paper's Kamala Harris endorsement, which triggered 250,000 subscription cancellations and multiple staff resignations. Former editors called the changes a betrayal of the Post's principles, with some vowing never to write for the paper again under Bezos's ownership.
t doesn't take a rocket surgeon to see this an abondonment of journalistic integrity for the Trump administration's approval.
Sucking up across the board
These aren't business decisions—they're tribute payments and evasive actions to appease an authoritarian regime.
Tech companies capitulate
Silicon Valley's response has been particularly nauseating. The industry that once prided itself on disruption and independence has become a parade of billionaires bending the knee at Mar-a-Lago.
Apple's gold-plated bullshit
Tim Cook's performance stands out for its sheer obsequiousness. The Apple CEO didn't just attend Trump's inauguration after donating $1 million—he personally hand-assembled a 24-karat gold desk ornament for the Oval Office. His reward? Exemptions from Trump's China tariffs for smartphones and computers.
Amazon's sweetheart deal with Melania.
Amazon inked a $40 million deal with Melania Trump and brought The Apprentice exclusively to Prime Video. Bezos's rocket company Blue Origin conveniently won a $2.3 billion Space Force contract.
Meta as MAGA enabler
Mark Zuckerberg's transformation from Trump critic to his enabler exemplifies the moral bankruptcy. Meta paid $25 million to settle Trump's lawsuit over his post-January 6th deplatforming, eliminated fact-checking (earning FCC approval), reversed policies protecting LGBTQ users from hate speech, and jettisoned all diversity initiatives.
Zuckerberg has even shut down a free school serving underrepresented minorities.
Open AI is the scarecrow and lion in Oz simlultaneously
Sam Altman went from calling Trump "an unprecedented threat to America" to flattering him at the Stargate AI announcement: "We wouldn't be able to do this without you, Mr. President." OpenAI now provides its platform to federal agencies for $1 annually, effectively making the government dependent on their technology.
In short, these are all assholes that care more about laying low for sweetheart deals and increased profits in the short term. Don't be evil my ass (Alphabet is hell for other, more insidious reasons).
Universities under siege surrender
Higher education's actions have been particularly devastating for vulnerable student populations. Universities that could afford lengthy legal battles instead chose to sacrifice principles for federal funding. And I'd never thought I'd write defending Harvard's steel, but event that may be wavering.
Penn
The University of Pennsylvania banned transgender athletes and erased swimmer Lia Thomas's records to unlock $175 million in frozen federal funds. President J. Larry Jameson publicly apologized to those who "experienced anxiety" due to transgender inclusion—a breathtaking betrayal of students under his care.
Columbia
Columbia University paid $221 million to resolve fabricated antisemitism charges while agreeing to abandon diversity in admissions and hiring. The 22-page agreement forbids using "diversity narratives" or any reference to racial identity in applications.
Brown
Brown University's $510 million concession may be the most harmful. The institution committed to denying gender-affirming care to minor transgender students and appears to exclude trans students from single-sex bathrooms and housing, making the university "functionally inaccessible" to transgender students, according to LGBTQ advocates.
UVA
The meddling at th University of Virginia was direct. President James E. Ryan resign under pressure from the Trump administration to step down amid the Justice Department’s probe into the school’s diversity, equity and inclusion practices. As Ryan said:
Corporate Cowardice Across Industries
The rot extends beyond tech and education. Target's CEO Brian Cornell reversed diversity initiatives that he had previously credited with "much of our growth over the last nine years." The NCAA banned transgender women from competition, with former GOP governor Charlie Baker framing discrimination as "bringing much needed clarity."
Go shop at Costco instead, who staunchly stand defiant in support of diversity.
Even blue-city mayors have capitulated. Washington D.C.'s Muriel Bowser dismantled Black Lives Matter Plaza to appease the White House, only to see federal troops invade her city anyway. D.C.'s reward, a pilot program for a police state as National Guard troops from red states arrive there for optics.
In Portland, mayor Keith Wilson stripped racial and gender preferences from city programs. He did so to protect $350 million in grants. Local NAACP president James Posey condemning the "normalization of political coercion."
History will judge, but we can only save ourselves
All the systemic bulwarks against fascism are caving like a house of cards. This institutional surrender represents more than individual acts of cowardice—it's a systematic dismantling of checks and balances that protect our democracy. These capitulations to authoritarian demands are more than just protecting their bottom lines. They legitimizing and enable further abuses of power.
The pattern is clear: threaten federal funding, file frivolous lawsuits, and watch America's most powerful institutions fold. These organizations have the resources to fight, the legal standing to resist, and the public platform to expose authoritarian overreach. Instead, they have chosen short-term financial protection over long-term democratic preservation.
The fascist goodellas don't even need to break a sweat, much less a leg.
History will remember this moment not for the authoritarian's demands, but for the shameful ease with which America's supposed guardians of democracy chose collaboration over resistance. When fascism came to America, it didn't need to break down doors (though ICE does plenty of that too)—the institutions opened them voluntarily.
Non in cautus futuri.
