"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. (For a VIP discount, drop SLAGER in the signup form.)
11.18.21
Anti-Social Media – NBC NEWS
- A news network is caught in open defiance of court orders.
Our own Julio Rosas has been covering the Rittenhouse trial and detailed early on how the jurors had come under threat of exposure by hostile activists.
Judge Schroeder reveals someone filmed the Kyle Rittenhouse jurors when they were picked up by the bus this morning. Schroeder said deputies made the person delete the video and added more steps will be taken to prevent something like that from happening again.
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) November 9, 2021
Then today, Judge Bruce Schroeder announced that MSNBC would be banned from the courtroom. This is because it had been learned a car was discovered to be following the jurors' bus and ran a red light in the desire to keep up. Once stopped, the driver announced himself to be working for NBC News and had been instructed to tail the jurors.
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Dutifully – as well as pitifully – CNN's media "analyst" Brian Stelter repeated the denial of culpability by the network.
NBC News statement: "Last night, a freelancer received a traffic citation. While the traffic violation took place near the jury van, the freelancer never contacted or intended to contact the jurors during deliberations, and never photographed or intended to photograph them" (1/2)
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 18, 2021
Note his abject lack of any reporting. The individual in question was named by Schroeder – James J. Morrison. He has been confirmed to be an employee of NBC News, as he works for a Chicago affiliate.
UPDATE: Kenosha News reports that the NBC affiliate in Chicago has confirmed that the suspect is an NBC employee. https://t.co/CBedoJ3PLg
— Ed Morrissey (@EdMorrissey) November 18, 2021
Further, the name Morrison gave for who instructed him to follow the jury was Irene Min Joo Byon. She is a New York producer at MSNBC. Since this development, she has deleted her social media.
This is the behavior of the press corps after the judge had made statements this week about the actions seen from the media during the trial, and after there were known threats placed on the jury. These are the same journalists who blanch at the mere mention that they are the "enemy of the people."
Matching Media Memorandum – AGENDA FREE TV
- Saying "We are always scumbags" does not make for excusable actions.
In light of this revelation, Steve Lookner, who operates Agenda Free TV, spoke with a correspondent from Court TV about the actions of NBC, and the explanation is hardly encouraging.
Court TV correspondent says he doesn't want to defend the practice, and acknowledges some people might think it's despicable. Says when a reporter follows a jury bus they're looking for the jurors' license plates so they can get their contact info to contact them after verdict.
— Steve Lookner (@lookner) November 18, 2021
News Avoidance Syndrome – ASSOCIATED PRESS
I think we are starting to grasp why there was so much slanted and flat-out incorrect coverage of the Rittenhouse case. The AP displays in their lengthy thinkpiece on the trial that they're actually surprised at how the defendant was treated during the proceedings.
What makes a fair trial? As Kyle Rittenhouse's trial unfolds, some observers have been struck by the judge's apparent deference to the defendant.https://t.co/Zul1lNMaO6
— The Associated Press (@AP) November 17, 2021
Rather cute the way they went with "some observers" to describe the entirety of the corporate media complex. But what can be said when a piece written by three reporters displays stark surprise that defendants are shown particular deference in a courtroom, which is what our legal system has been built upon.
Low Octane Gas Lighting – WASHINGTON POSTS
Joining in on the idiocy of driving home racism with a sledgehammer in this case, the Washington Post manages to make a sweeping, that is, idiotic statement.
No matter the verdict in Rittenhouse trial, Black residents of Kenosha say justice remains elusive https://t.co/gSZkMSVSXm
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 15, 2021
This means, if a white defendant is found guilty of shooting white attackers, or the white jury finds white prosecutors were hurt when a white judge blocked evidence and the white defendant is not guilty, black residents are somehow affected either way.
Brilliance.
Legalized Press-titution – WASHINGTON POST
Not to imply that Joe Biden is out of touch with the middle-class everyman – we prefer to show it. President Softserve made a visit recently to the GM car plant and got the chance to drive one of their new electric vehicles. This will be the type of automobile Joe would like for the world to drive, as part of his Build Back Better program. Listening to him rave about the truck with a $110,000 sticker price was really something we could all identify with.
Ignoring that however was WaPo's Matt Viser, who could only swoon upon seeing the president behind the wheel. He repeated his feature from this summer, where he gushed about what a motorhead Biden allegedly is said to be – the man whose handlers will not allow him to speak four sentences in a row as they hide the TV remote.
Joe Biden's entire life has been crafted, in many ways, around cars — the affection for automobiles as much a part of him as his Irishness and his love of ice cream. As Biden again gets behind the wheel, reupping a “I’m a car guy” take on Biden: https://t.co/Q7yrH61O5I
— Matt Viser (@mviser) November 17, 2021
Stealth Story Evolution – NBC NEWS NEW YORK
For the upcoming New Years' Eve festivities in Times Square, attendees will be required to show their vaccine passport, along with their photo ID, in order to partake in the annual bacchanalia in Manhattan. Curiously left out of this announcement is any reference to how hateful and exclusionary this requirement is, given that this should unfairly target people of color who cannot possibly obtain these forms of identification.
Or...have we gotten away from that kind of argument when it comes to oppressive government mandates?
According to @NBCNewYork it is acceptable and proper to show your papers in order to go to a party, but if you are asked for ID to prove you are a valid voter that is racism of the highest order. pic.twitter.com/wCCRk5en1c
— Brad Slager - Incontinent On Another Continent (@MartiniShark) November 18, 2021
