"Riffed from the Headlines" is Townhall's daily VIP feature with coverage on the deeply flawed aspects of journalism in the nation. We'll look to bring accountability to the mishaps, malaprops, misdeeds, manipulations, malpractice, and manufactured narratives in mainstream media.
09.08.21 (Update)
Blue-Anon – MSNBC
Normally when you see the Supreme Court upholding a law, you would expect pundits who might disagree or be disappointed in the ruling, at least acknowledge there is a legal affirmation that something is legally proper. But this is MSNBC we are discussing, and it is the rarely rational Nicolle Wallace we are dealing with.
The former conservative was diligently impressing her bosses by expressing her utter dismay with the Republicans in Washington and in state legislatures who have been passing laws recently. When SCOTUS upheld the Texas fetal heartbeat law and struck down Biden's effort to extend the eviction moratorium, this made Nicolle sad. To assuage her angst, Ms. Wallace did the only normal thing expected – she cooked up a wingnut theory for the ages.
- "It sounds a whole lot like collusion - between Republican-dominated right-wing-centric legislatures and the far-right members of the United States Supreme Court – whether it's a crime or whether it's real...maybe Mueller will look into it."
Anti-Social Media – CNN
- When a vulgar teen is the best spokesperson you can find, then your messaging needs some work.
On CNN's morning show "New Day," they wanted to delve into the complexities of our social strife regarding mandated mask-wearing and vaccine requirements. For such a nuanced and multifaceted topic, they turned to Fiona Downey. If you are not sure why she is regarded as a crucial voice in the debate, we will let her explain.
- "OK, so the protesters are there every single day. And they come over, and they just hold up their signs, and for me, I was just fed up, and I was filled with anger. And I just decided to give them the finger because I thought it was the best thing I could do."
Annnnd...CNN thought this was the best guest they could find.
A teen explains why she flipped off anti-mask protesters outside her Vermont school: “The protesters are there every single day. And they come over and they just hold up their signs, and for me, I was just fed up. … We're all just annoyed with it.” pic.twitter.com/wtjeImBqSG
— New Day (@NewDay) September 8, 2021
DNC PR Firm – THE NEW YORK TIMES
Biden's economy has refused to cooperate with the White House's rosy projections. Jobs are not returning, gas continues to rise, and the Federal Reserve's preferred price index rose 4.2 percent in July, more than twice what they projected at 2.0 percent. Things are bad enough that the Biden administration is straining mightily to gaslight us that things are actually right where they should be.
''If you take out the engine compartment, the drive train, and the passenger seat we have a vehicle more in line with historical driving norms.'' https://t.co/BC9Kv4NcjS pic.twitter.com/wpkMNkqY6N
— Brad Slager - Focused On Lasers (@MartiniShark) September 8, 2021
Not to worry, folks, The New York Times is here to place everything in the proper context. That inflation you see doubling its rate from what it should be? Hey, what do you know – it's actually a swell thing to happen!
Inflation is surging across the globe, fueled by consumer demand, shortages and other pandemic-related factors. Here’s why that may be a good sign. https://t.co/CxdNXB9sfQ
— The New York Times (@nytimes) September 7, 2021
Pulitzer Prize Nomination – CBS NEWS
You know how it is. You have a story that can sound a little bit negative, but you are a news network and that won't cut it – you need it to be a lot of bit negative! Well, there is a simple solution; go for the bigger, scarier number while remaining accurate.
There were two ways CBS News could go when detailing some hospitals have longer waiting times. They could have said in some areas that the wait times are hours long, but this sounds much direr.
Patients forced to wait thousands of minutes in rural Texas ER: "We've never seen this. Ever." https://t.co/gfNbeKDgvJ
— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 7, 2021
09.08.21 (Original)
Anti-Social Media – CNN
- "We have disturbing news that people were enjoying their freedom this weekend…"
With news of Americans being held hostage, another horrid jobs report, and Joe Biden trying to rename tornadoes, CNN has the mighty task of deflecting away from Joe Biden's foibles. The best way to do that? Apparently, dumping on Americans for daring to go out and enjoying themselves in crowds.
In a lengthy segment, Ana Cabrera introduced the dire specter that she witnessed over the weekend. The anchor addressed the topic of college football beginning its season and people once again getting together and enjoying themselves. "I just can't get over the pictures of those outdoor stadiums," said Cabrera, clearly shaken by the visuals of fans attending games.
She next turned to one guest, Dr. William Schaffner, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, who was by all appearances the embodiment of the "Get off my lawn" codger we all endured in our youth. Schaffner is the perfect guest to have on to condemn freedom, as he began to say he would never resort to using what he calls a four-letter word – Safe – and went on to describe the problem with fans going to a live football game.
- "People are cheering and enthusiastic, exhaling with vigor; if there are people infected, they can infect people around them … Nobody was wearing a mask … I'd be very surprised if we didn’t have outbreaks."
CNN continues its campaign against college football:
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) September 7, 2021
“People are cheering and enthusiastic, exhaling with vigor; if there are people infected, they can infect people around them … Nobody was wearing a mask … I'd be very surprised if we didn’t have outbreaks" pic.twitter.com/kVqW4kn8R9
Pre-Written Field Reports – WASHINGTON POST
It is a familiar pattern by now in the press, where they condemn gatherings they disapprove of while excusing the same behavior if it is a group they support. Last year, we were told that gathering in crowds was unsafe and would kill grandma, but BLM protests were perfectly acceptable and would not spread Covid. Now, we get an even more blatant example from the Washington Post.
The Sturgis motorcycle rally held in South Dakota was, again, promised to become a superspreader event, and writer Ashish Jha delivers on that promise. He cites numbers showing a six-fold rise in cases in the South Dakota area, but then he takes a curious detour. He brings up the massive Lalapalooza concert held in Chicago, declaring that event led to "only a few hundred" cases.
The problem? That number exceeds the outbreaks seen at Sturgis, so says Ashish Jha's own publication.
Here is an abject lie in the press regarding super spreaders.@Ashishkjha excuses Lalapalooza as having led to ''only'' a few hundred cases, while Sturgis ''infection numbers have shot up more than 600%.''
— Brad Slager - Focused On Lasers (@MartiniShark) September 8, 2021
That 600% amounts to just over 100 cases.
ACCORDING TO HIS OWN PAPER https://t.co/X1zQ9rIvuL pic.twitter.com/Dku7ZGFmJO
Stealth Story Evolution – ABC / JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE
- If you have been pining for angry and lecturing comedy, your wait is over.
Last night, Jimmy Kimmel returned to host his late-night talk show after a summer break, and he wasted no time in returning to his hectoring unfunny comedy. During his opening routine, he addressed his masked and fully vaccinated audience and then launched into a rather ignorant monologue about unvaccinated people who were taking "horse goo." His proposal: Start denying medical care to those who are unvaccinated, and he capped it off with a blithe, "Rest in peace, Wheezy."
This is the same Jimmy Kimmel who, not so long ago, was pushing for nationalized medical coverage by saying that healthcare was a right for everyone. Now, he is perfectly comfortable denying that right to those he considers unworthy — little mystery why Greg Gutfeld leads these guys in the ratings.
Don’t worry everyone – Jimmy is alive and well! pic.twitter.com/UqXmhy4BOH
— Jimmy Kimmel Live (@JimmyKimmelLive) September 8, 2021
Glossary Over Things – POLITICO
- This is more desperate than attempting to launch a hashtag.
At Politico, they are attempting to coin a new term to describe those who have a smug joy at the suffering or even death of those people who are unvaccinated – "Vaxenfreude." The outlet states this is something seen on Twitter or in comment sections, especially when an avowed unvaccinated personality falls victim.
- "But vaxenfreude is also a dark spirit. It's the smug finger-pointing and grinning the vaccinated majority sends in the direction of the unvaccinated sick, at least in the very online corners of the public square. The pandemic passed the civilized plain of 'we're all in this together' long ago, and is driving down a highway toward a valley where that feeling of togetherness is shared only by those with vaccines in arms."
There is a certain level of accuracy in this definition, but what Politico elides here is that this is not an activity relegated to Tweets and Facebook posts; the press has been enthusiastically pushing this sentiment. For proof, note all the deathbed confessionals we have been presented, or go look at the reports of radio show hosts who have passed away after speaking against vaccines. This is a media reality.
A brand new @politico Nightly brings you a brand new Covid term: It's the era of Vaxenfreude. Yours truly has more on this trend, and its effects on our pandemic fight. https://t.co/KwSZC3gAuy
— Tyler Weyant (@tweyant) September 8, 2021
News Avoidance Syndrome – CNN
Once again, Dr. Anthony Fauci was trotted out on the CNN airwaves to complain about things he disapproves of in this country, and not only did Jim Sciutto play along, but he prodded the doc to get pissy about things like Governor Ron DeSantis and people going to football games. Sciutto pushed Fauci to get all cantankerous about the college football weekend, complete with a catchy chyron about how displeased all the enjoyment made him.
Completely ignored by Sciutto was Fauci calling for more lockdowns despite his past pleas that a 50% vaccination rate would get us out and then calling to see 75% by the end of this summer – both of which have been achieved. Also, there was the small matter of the major news about the involvement of Fauci and the Wuhan lab, but that was a negligible concern compared to lecturing us about football games.
To all of you people who enjoyed college football this weekend, I hope you realize that you have deeply disappoint Anthony Fauci. pic.twitter.com/yKiJJbABkP
— Brad Slager - Focused On Lasers (@MartiniShark) September 8, 2021
