"Riffed from the Headlines" is Townhall's daily VIP feature with coverage of 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.
03.31.22
Gilded Reframe – MSNBC
- "It's important to focus on the negatives, to make us look wiser today."
Ken Burns has another of his documentaries coming out soon, this one focused on Benjamin Franklin. It is a mystery why someone who wants as big of an audience for his historical visions would resort to political opinions and select appearances, but who am I to call into question the methods Burns uses?
Note how he only seems to appear on left-leaning networks, where he was entertained by Stephanie Ruhle, who decided to wade into the subject of history and tell Ken Burns what's what.
- "We do hold our forefathers on this pedestal for what they created together, but are we forgetting that they were, for the most part, similar aged, white male landowners. It is a lot easier for that small group to agree on a set of ideals than the giant, massive, diverse group of stakeholders that we have today. A group of white guys that are all 35 can all fit in one bar."
I'd be curious to ask Ms. Ruhle just how diverse she thought the colonies were back in the day?
Anti-Social Media – CNN
As the rollout of the new streaming platform CNN+ takes place, there are already signs of trouble. It began with the announced subscription plan, where you can lock in a discounted rate for life in the coming month. Offering a 50% discount when your product has not even been rolled out is a possible sign of a lack of interest. This fueled some stories that there are already anticipated layoffs coming in May. Some might be in their customer service division, based on appearances so far.
When Charles Gasparino reported on the possible internal strife, CNN communications director Matt Dornic rode in to defend the new platform. But then, comically, the CNN+Help account recognized Dornic as a customer. (Eventually, they were tipped off and deleted the tweet.)
— Jerry Dunleavy (@JerryDunleavy) March 30, 2022
Reporting on the Mirror – CNN
It is not too difficult to understand why CNN might be struggling to get people to pay for a service when this is the content you are offering as a premium.
if you aren’t signing up for @CNNplus to watch @EvanMcS travel the country and eat burgers, i don’t know what you’re watiing for pic.twitter.com/p35QrlUXUM
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) March 31, 2022
Maybe to help explain, there are dozens of people doing this on YouTube for years. There is a ton of this exact content out there for free, already covering areas. But sure, keep on…
Both Kinds of Standards – TIME MAGAZINE
Time joins the ranks of outlets that have moved from trying to kill the new Florida parental rights bill to repealing the now signed law. One of the reactions is that some parents have drawn up a lawsuit against the state over this law. That is a curious development, considering one of the concerns Time Magazine reported about this legislation.
(...and here come the migraine)
— Brad Slager ???????? - Most Certainly A Biologist! (@MartiniShark) March 31, 2022
As Time puts it, one of the concerns of the new law is that it could lead to parents suing the government.
So in reaction they report...that parents are now suing the government over the law. https://t.co/o1m9iVE9ui pic.twitter.com/X15N6VnjPI
News Avoidance Syndrome – ABC ACTION NEWS 7 – Los Angeles
- Working on behalf of the community organizer Maxine Waters and not the community.
At a gathering in Los Angeles, Maxine Waters appeared when dozen of homeless people were under the impression that Section-8 housing vouchers were being distributed. When a disturbance swelled, the always cogent and wise Waters told the people she wanted them to go home.
To homeless people.
As a result, the media was about to explode, but spokespeople for her office tried to clamp down on the story. The LA Times reported how Waters herself issued a warning to the writer not to do the story, which ended up appearing in the story.
-" 'You'll hurt yourself and the community trying to put this together without background,' the Democrat said. 'I don't want you to start trying to write it, you won't understand it.'"
The local ABC affiliate Channel 7 Action News seems to have played along with the compliance commanded by Waters.
Here's how the local ABC news covered the event where Maxine Waters yelled at homeless constituents to "go home" and exploded at people who were frustrated. And they wonder why we don't trust them. pic.twitter.com/Lbl2FK5gpD
— Jennifer Van Laar (@jenvanlaar) March 31, 2022
This far more rosy report was approved by Waters' staff. When sent a series of questions about what transpired, Blanca Jiminez, the district director for Waters, sent the following video from Channel 7, which was glowing and had nothing to say about Maxine's "Go Home" comment to the crowd.
100s of people were misinformed & lined up thinking housing vouchers were being handed out today. Congresswoman Maxine Waters noticed the crowd and stopped by to give them the real information about the emergency housing vouchers and help out. @RepMaxineWaters @MaxineWaters @ABC7 pic.twitter.com/LYEs5Fq8gO
— Ashley Mackey (@abc7ashley) March 25, 2022
