You are probably aware that all mainstream media have been shrinking their staffs for years, in the face of declining circulation and advertising revenue. The New York Times has not been spared. According to MacroTrends here, the number of employees at the New York Times Company has shrunk from almost 12,000 in 2005 to only about 4,500 in 2019 (although that 2019 figure does represent a small uptick from a low in 2014)

But have things gotten so bad at Pravda that they have been reduced to re-running stories from four years ago as if they were news today, hoping no one will notice?

As you consider that question, I ask you to take today’s Manhattan Contrarian Quiz. I will post below long excerpts from two New York Times stories, one of which ran in October 2016, and the other yesterday. Your task will be to see if you can determine which one of these stories is four years old, and which is supposedly “news.” You will not be surprised to learn that both stories concern the Trump campaigns for President, focusing on how Trump is doomed to lose disastrously in a matter of a mere days.

New York Times Story Number 1

Donald J. Trump’s support has plunged across the swing-state map. . . . Having muted their criticism of Mr. Trump in hopes that he could at least run competitively through Election Day, Republicans must decide in the next few days . . . whether to seek distance from his wobbly campaign. . . .

Mr. Trump has already slipped perceptibly in public polls, trailing widely this week in Pennsylvania and by smaller margins in Florida and North Carolina — three states he cannot afford to lose. But private polling by both parties shows an even more precipitous drop, especially among independent voters, moderate Republicans and women. . . . [A] Republican strategist involved in several House races in swing states, said she was dismayed by a sudden exodus of independent voters in more diverse parts of the country. “They are really starting to pull away from Trump,” said [the strategist], describing his soaring unpopularity with independents as entering “uncharted territory.” . . .

[A] petroleum executive and Republican donor from Illinois, said his fellow contributors were no longer optimistic that Mr. Trump will win, and they have lowered their sights. . . . Sensing new opportunity, Democrats intend to redouble their efforts to tie Republican candidates to Mr. Trump in states and districts with large numbers of college-educated voters and minorities. . . .

New York Times Story Number 2

In public, . . . Trump and his campaign team project a sense of optimism and bravado. When they meet with Republican donors and state party leaders, . . . aides insist they are fully capable of achieving a close victory. . . . On television and in campaign appearances, Mr. Trump and his children dismiss public polls that suggest that his prospects are bleak. . . . Away from their candidate and the television cameras, some of Mr. Trump’s aides are quietly conceding just how dire his political predicament appears to be, and his inner circle has returned to a state of recriminations and backbiting. . . .

Less than three weeks before Election Day, there is now an extraordinary gulf separating Mr. Trump’s experience of the campaign from the more sobering political assessments of a number of party officials and operatives, according to interviews with nearly a dozen Republican strategists. . . . Among some of Mr. Trump’s lieutenants, there is an attitude of grit mixed with resignation. . . .

Mr. Trump’s advisers have not given up hope for a reversal in fortune. Facing a financial crunch, his campaign appears to be concentrating its advertising on a handful of states that provide a slim route to an Electoral College victory. . . . “The reality is they are probably out of time,” said . . ., a California-based Republican strategist.

OK, cast your vote. Answer below the fold.

Answer to Manhattan Contrarian New York Times 2016 versus 2020 quiz:

Story number 1 appeared on October 6, 2016 under the headline “Donald Trump’s Slip in Polls Has G.O.P. Worried About Congress.”

Story number 2 appeared on October 18, 2020 under the headline “Trump Runs the Kind of Campaign He Likes, but Not the One He Might Need.”

As you can see, the two are almost completely interchangeable. (OK, I deleted references to Hillary Clinton in story number 1, and to Joe Biden in story number 2.)

If you enjoyed this quiz, you might also try the famous Manhattan Contrarian Climate Tipping Points Quiz.