CNN ran a story this morning claiming the Iran war is "squeezing" US small businesses through gas prices. The headline was written before the first interview ever happened. As a 22-year broadcast veteran who's supervised newsrooms and sat in assignment meetings, Pat Miller knows exactly how this works — and he's done being quiet about it.
But the gas price math isn't even the real story here.
The real story is HOW the media talks about small business owners. Every single time. The sad music. The sympathetic reporter standing outside a coffee shop. "Times are tough for small businesses." They talk to one owner, find the saddest quote they can, and suddenly all 33 million of us are helpless victims of the economy who need politicians and Fortune 500 companies to save us.
"Oh, those poor mom and pop shops on Main Street."
Like we're uneducated. Like we have no idea how the world works. Like we couldn't make it in corporate America so we're out here fumbling around in our little businesses hoping someone will help us survive.
They never cover Microsoft "passing costs on to customers." They never interview a Fortune 500 CEO about how tough things are. But a cupcake shop raises prices by 50 cents? Front page crisis.
The media has one frame for small business: victim. And it's wrong. It's condescending. And it's actively hurting business owners who internalize that narrative instead of fixing what's actually broken.
We eat what we kill. No safety net. No paid vacation. No company match. We are the backbone of this economy and we deserve to be covered like it.
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