"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.
12.14.21
Presentation Paradox – VARIOUS OUTLETS
- Not realizing that their big "Gotcha" moment applies to the mirror.
Across the press landscape last night, excitement was felt. The Capitol Riot Commission released some new evidence late yesterday, and journalists rushed to the airwaves and social media accounts to blare the news – without some needed analysis. Had they paused a moment, they might have realized what was being shown.
Commission member Liz Cheney released a series of text messages from embattled Trump advisor Mark Meadows, and these show major figures contacting him on January 6 – from Donald Trump Jr. to a number of Fox News personalities. Cheney, and most in the press, are operating that this proves they were all in on the attack. In the messages, the figures were telling Meadows that the president needed to take action and say something to halt the attack, and Meadows wrote back to them how he was working with the president at that very time on how he would address the violence.
In response to seeing a Laura Ingraham text, telling Meadows the president needed to tell the people to disperse, Brain Stelter dramatically surmises, "She knew. They all knew. They all knew the truth right away."
At The Bulwark, they said, "They knew that it was a dangerous attack on American democracy. And they knew that Trump was responsible for it. That's why they sent the texts pleading with him, through his staff, to make it stop."
Larry O'Donnell on MSNBC impugned the network for not hyping the texts in the fashion that the press was hyping them. "Fox viewers are being shielded from the Fox hosts urgent texts to Meadows on Jan 6."
What all of these hyperventilating journos are missing here is that these texts completely blow apart the main accusation that the riot on the Capitol was a coordinated attack. Every message they underscore here is calling for action to be taken to stop it, and Trump's advisor asserts that he was actively doing so in his responses. If Cheney, the commission, and the press had proof of active involvement, the texts would be applauding the president and saying things like, "It's working!"
Instead, you see those who recognized the event was problematic, and they worked to get it to end.
New- What was Trump doing during the riot? January 6 committee gets Meadows texts, emails with 'wide range' of people while attack was underway - my report with ?@ZcohenCNN? @cnn https://t.co/BGitBkr5Fh
— Jamie Gangel (@jamiegangel) December 9, 2021
Artisanally-Crafted Narratives – MOTHER JONES
Right on cue with the J-6 Commission text releases, Mother Jones has a lengthy screed about what the press needs to do in the coming year – more of that stuff they have been failing at all year! Writer Monika Bauerlein invokes the tiring phrase of protecting our democracy, and in order to do so, calls for the media to ramp up their coverage of the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
Because…that has paid dividends in the press? For nearly a year now, the press has harped on the attack and The Big Lie as they dubbed the election opposition, and the net result has been a lackluster level of interest in the public. Part of that problem is the entire approach of the press – using the Capitol riot as a cudgel on those on the Right, all while bastardizing the facts along the way.
As an example, Bauerlein refers to 2021 as "a year that began with a televised insurrection." No, Monika, it did not. It was not an insurrection. The FBI has declared there was no organization behind it. There were only a handful of weapons charges among all of those arrested, and of the over 600 in custody from that fateful day, none have been charged with treason or insurrection.
Yet here she is, calling for multiplying the deeply flawed coverage and inaccurate reporting on the episode because it has yet to work to convince the public otherwise.
This year started with an attempted coup. We narrowly avoided it. And the next time, or the time after that, we might not. https://t.co/YLG4P6Joys
— Mother Jones (@MotherJones) December 14, 2021
Glossary Over Things – THE ATLANTIC
Meanwhile, a rather accurate yet desperate coverage of the January 6 Commission was made at The Atlantic. In it, there is a tone of both defeatism at the lack of substantive findings and holding out hope that something will be discovered to implicate Trump in the attacks.
Early in the piece, there is recognition on why the general public has grown bored with the commission – they have found nothing at all of consequence.
- "The Justice Department has yet to announce any breakthroughs in untangling the planning of the attack or unveil any blockbuster charges such as insurrection or 'seditious conspiracy.' In Congress, the select committee has yet to convene any public hearings or announce new discoveries since its inaugural July 2021 hearing."
But then the bulk of the article is little more than wishcasting, with hoped-for discoveries and even referencing the desperate Rolling Stone undetonated bombshell recently made of text messages found from Trump operatives made on Jan.6. (We covered that here, where Rolling Stone had headlines that blared how burner phones were used that day, but then whispered one sentence that admitted they had found zero evidence in the text messages.)
While this piece is essentially admitting the Jan. 6 Commission has been a bust, you get all the feeling of slim hope in it being described as "weirdly static."
"The most important events on January 6 were broadcast and livestreamed as they unfolded, and it’s difficult to imagine what additional facts the committee might uncover that would change the minds of those who watched it at the time," @qjurecic writes:https://t.co/RCrzJqmORF
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) December 12, 2021
Legalized Press-titution – POLITICO
It was just a week ago when it was announced that Symone Sanders, Press Secretary to VP Kamala Harris, was leaving her post, along with other members of her staff. Politico reports that a number of news outlets have reached out to Sanders about joining their lineup, including MSNBC and CNN.
You have to question the interest in a woman who ran a press division for Harris that has been an utter disaster in messaging all year, leading to the VP having notably horrible approval numbers and a laughable public image. You also have to not expect answers that will be cloaked in logic.
Multiple networks have already had discussions with Symone Sanders about a possible post-admin TV gig https://t.co/s6esA67ugN
— Max Tani (@maxwelltani) December 13, 2021
Pre-Written Field Reports – WASHINGTON POST
In the case of the Michigan teen last month who shot and killed four of his classmates, a state prosecutor has leveled involuntary manslaughter charges against the parents of the teenager, a never-before-seen move by authorities. Call it The Rittenhouse Effect; At the Washington Post, they decided that this development could have troubling reverberations for minorities.
In the case of the white teen who shot white classmates, it has led to both of his white parents also being charged with the crime – so this could set a bad precedent for black parents…according to WaPo.
Analysis: A prosecutor charged the Michigan shooter’s parents. That’s likely to be used against Black parents soon. https://t.co/V8INUDObqJ
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) December 10, 2021
