"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.
10.11.21
As much as we prefer to deliver some variety concerning the mangled methods in the media, this weekend delivered a glut of problems from a lone network and one of their star names in particular. The Fox News 25th Anniversary really seems to have affected CNN, and not in a healthy fashion. We will strive to have more diversity of problems in the following days. Strive to – but we cannot promise...
Pre-Written Field Reports – CNN
At CNN, the reliance upon Fox News to deliver content for them is more than an obsession; it has become a crutch. Oliver Darcy, the Boy Wonder of Brian Stelter, displayed this in a rather inept fashion. In the "Reliable Sources" newsletter, Darcy leaned heavily on Fox for not covering a story in a fashion to his liking and then carped that they showed too much focus on the DOJ possibly targeting parents of school children as terrorists.
Recommended
Ollie was bothered that Fox did not cover the story of the January 6 Commission and the request over particular documents. That is, he claimed they did not cover it. By his own admission, what Darcy undertook was the briefest of searches – he chose a lone word, and his selection was, it can be said, flawed. Fox had, in fact, covered the story – numerous times it has been shown – and the comedy deepened when one search of a CNN story on the documents also had not used Darcy's own selection.
CNN’s Oliver Darcy Commits Journalism Failure in New Critique of Fox News
— RedState (@RedState) October 10, 2021
https://t.co/FQTFaSKtsV
Anti-Social Media – CNN
- Nothing new, just Abuelo reliving his glory days when Trump was in office.
This weekend, Donald Trump held a rally, which meant that Jim Acosta was positively vibrating with excitement. It meant that on his struggling weekend show, "CNN Newsroom," he would get to deliver his trademarked melodramatic readings meant to generate fawning social media clicks from his few viewers. Behold, the result of having a staff that lacks anyone serving as a critical voice – and the result of being incapable of embarrassment.
– And now, with apologies, the Stelter-intensive segment of the column
Low Octane Gas Lighting
- Interesting how he cites as a potential problem the person he sees no problem entertaining on his show.
When not serving as Hall Monitor and complaining about what Fox News is up to, Brian Stelter occasionally plays a dual role as the custodian of the press, attempting to clean up the messes and making excuses when the media are found guilty of the type of behavior he is supposed to be calling them out on as his appointed duty. One of the issues that has stuck in Brian's craw is the regular polls showing dropping trust in the news media. Recently a new poll result was posted, and one Facebook employee noted that 2004 was a notably bad drop in the trust factor.
TIL: there was a ten-point drop in Americans' trust in the media between 2003 and 2004, which was never recovered. https://t.co/4yHT7PQblZ pic.twitter.com/A9NrbRBLxG
— Tom Gara (@tomgara) October 7, 2021
Responding to this, Stelter attempted to ponder what caused this 10-point drop in the public's perception of the news complex.
Rathergate? War? Or both
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) October 7, 2021
Interesting how he cites Dan Rather's famed credibility explosion and dismissal from the news industry. We say interesting because Stelter frequently has on Mr. Rather as a credible guest on his ironically-named program, "Reliable Sources."
Yea, cannot be the media pushing a Russian lie for years, or calling one-half of the country 'racist', 'Nazis', 'sexists', etc. Nope, that darned Dan Rather ruined things!
— Brad Slager - Focused On Lasers (@MartiniShark) October 9, 2021
Of course, this becomes uncomfortable, considering how many times he has been lionized on Reliable Sources. https://t.co/zHwJQzzp7C pic.twitter.com/PoW0nDx8JI
Reporting On The Mirror – CNN
- The ability to be critical of a competitor's behavior while guilty of the same is a real talent.
Speaking of his program, Stelter addressed this drop in media trust and, in his trademarked obliviousness, managed to expose the problem under his own roof by the simple act of not addressing it at all. In what he surely thought was a wisdom-filled monologue, Brian laid out what he saw as the problem; there is a wide gulf between reporting on the news and repeating the news.
CNN's @brianstelter on how to restore trust in the mass media: "If there's a solution to this — and I don't know if there is, because we live in one America and two media worlds. But if there is a solution, it's through reporting, it's through reporting, not repeating." pic.twitter.com/H35re8uVZb
— Reliable Sources (@ReliableSources) October 10, 2021
Initially, it sounds pithy and trenchant, except this wisdom completely dissolves the moment you drop it into a glass of analysis. Take a look at these stories:
- Hospitals are overflowing with patients of Ivermectin poisonings
- Border agents were whipping immigrants on horseback.
- The Justice for January 6 Rally would be a violent uprising in D.C.
All three of these stories were completely fraudulent. All three were sent out by CNN because they simply repeated these stories and did not report on them. And, all three took place just last month. Here is the self-appointed media arbiter who is – once again – overlooking the very activity he is condemning as it plays out on his own network.
Presentation Paradox – CNN
- Um...do you fellas understand what it is you have admitted to?
During another portion of his show, Stelter was concern-trolling over those on the Right, asking about a particular lack of news outlets for conservatives to cleave to, as Fox News is considered an irresponsible and dangerous outlet. Paul Farhi of the Washington Post was praiseworthy of Brian's observation, but I am certain he was not intending to deliver the message that ultimately was sent.
“Why isn’t there a New York Times of the right,” with a large staff of reporters to turn up new facts and information, instead of primarily being commentary and opinion organs, asks @brianstelter on @cnn.
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) October 10, 2021
Intriguing question.
Many responses are needed. For one, there are many outlets that fit that description. Two, when such outlets report on stories, they are frequently met with hostility; one of those outlets, The New York Post, was basically silenced when it broke the Hunter Biden laptop story. And lastly, let us not ignore the heavy implication that, in making his comment, Stelter and Farhi casually admitted to The New York Times being a news outlet of the Left. While this is largely recognized, it is rare to see this tacit confirmation being made.
