"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.
04.07.22
Legalized Press-titution – NBC NEWS
- There was hateful racism on display with a delayed vote…we have to guess?
As the confirmation vote was cast today to appoint Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, there was an appalling act of racism and intolerance on display in the chambers. As NBC News covered the vote live, Lester Holt turned to Yamiche Alcindor to have her weigh in on a disturbing development.
HOLT: "Yamiche, you have to start wondering if there is a statement being made here."
ALCINDOR: "That is a key question here. Is this going to be another hurdle – another unusual thing that's happening to Judge Jackson as she's trying to make history. But it is, in some ways, an unsettling development.
It, in some ways, reminds me of the conversations that I've been having with black women, who've said they have had to navigate all sorts of hurdles, all sorts of indignities, to get what they want. Here is another moment where Washington is sort of scratching its head, wondering what in the world is going on?!"
This sounds positively dire! What was it exactly that had Yamiche all flustered and full of intoned commentary about the intolerance on display? Well…Senator Rand Paul was somewhat late getting into the chambers to cast his vote, delaying the confirmation by…a few minutes?
LIVE: NBC News Special Report: Senate votes on whether to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court.
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 7, 2022
If confirmed, Jackson would become first Black woman on the Supreme Court.https://t.co/rSL6Crby5a
This was apparently very racist, considering that the vote was already foregone at that point, and Judge Brown would be confirmed for the SCOTUS seat – that she will not occupy until this summer.
This exchange starts at around the 17:14 mark, and by the time Yamiche finished her melodrama monologue, it took almost 60 seconds exactly for Sen. Paul to cast his vote and the confirmation to become official.
As a result of this grievous offense, I am still literally shaking – my head at the idiocy.
Reporting on the Mirror – CNN
Following last Friday's announcement that Jen Psaki was on the verge of a deal with MSNBC to have her own talk show on the streaming platform, CNN's Oliver Darcy has some behind-the-scenes intel. According to Ollie, there was some discord between the news reporters at NBC over the current White House press secretary and the image it portrays on the news brand at the network.
Darcy gives us some insider leaks that Noah Oppenheim, President of NBC News, held a conference call with the reporters in the Washington, D.C., bureau to assuage some of the concerns. It is both revealing, and it casts Darcy's own network – and his own coverage – in a different light.
Oppenheim's main point is that NBC News is completely segregated from MSNBC Opinion and that the news division has no involvement with the hires at MSNBC "perspective programming," the description used for the opinion and pundit shows. Darcy also notes Psaki had been in talks with a number of outlets, including his own. There are a few items that leap to the front, none of which look good for Darcy's network.
- CNN lost out on signing Psaki, who would have been a big name for their new streaming service. It is made worse that she was a former CNN personality just before joining the Biden team.
- Whatever controversy is seen in her negotiating while serving as the press secretary is not seen by Darcy nor by his mentor, Brian Stelter, both of whom had harsh criticisms when Kayleigh McEnany joined Fox News – after her term in the White House.
- The concept of opinion and news reporting being divorced within the network appears to be completely acceptable to Darcy, as he offers no criticism of the claim. This means he has undermined most of the complaints we get from himself and Stelter about Fox News because Tucker Carlson or other opinion pundits are said to be representative of the stance of the entire network.
New, via ?@oliverdarcy? https://t.co/VGCoYJSX7X
— Kate Bennett (@KateBennett_DC) April 7, 2022
Both Kinds of Standards – WASHINGTON POST
- Meanwhile, another political news signing is generating far more bile.
Also landing a media gig was former Trump Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, getting a contributor's position at CBS News. Many in the press have expressed their dismay at this, but none more unhinged about it than Margaret Sullivan.
She lists a number of items that she claims disqualify Mulvaney and sums things up with her characteristic understated hysteria.
- "Mulvaney has been up to his neck in the very issues that have American democracy teetering on the brink."
The hazards of access journalism when the access is to the likes of Mick Mulvaney. My column: read for free, no paywall here https://t.co/xWWQepfJzB
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) April 3, 2022
News Avoidance Syndrome – CNN
- Once again, the media expert misses out on what his own media company is reporting.
In a scorn-filled clip, Brian Stelter addresses – get ready for this – what Fox News is reporting. I know, I know – I'm equally unshocked. This time it concerns Fox covering the Disney/Florida Law scandal.
"We're seeing a theme of the midterm elections emerging," @brianstelter says. "The theme, the talking point on the right, is about protecting kids from the dangers of... The Walt Disney Company." pic.twitter.com/xmoM4n81Cl
— Reliable Sources (@ReliableSources) April 6, 2022
Brian is filled with condescension here, delivering disdain that Fox would dare to make the charges that the "family company" could be seen as a threat to the safety of children. Where would they get such an idea?! Well, Brian, it possibly originated from your own network. It is amusing to see the media expert appearing to be unaware of what his own media network has been covering about the dangers at Disney.
Note Brian’s smugness over the fact that Fox would DARE imply Disney has a pedophile problem, as the media expert is oblivious to HIS OWN NETWORK reporting on the issue.
— Brad Slager ???????? - Most Certainly A Biologist! (@MartiniShark) April 7, 2022
In 2014
…and 2016
…and 2018
…and 2019 https://t.co/HNMrMe6zYe pic.twitter.com/ezvcWB5Vqp
Pulitzer Prize Nomination – WASHINGTON POST
- It is tough to figure out who is the last to figure this out, the Democrats or WaPo.
The upcoming midterm elections continue to be a migraine-inducing reality for the liberals, as well as the Democrats, since it is all but assured there will be a red Republican wave come November. The journalists and the Dems are struggling to find anything to sandbag their positions, but at least on this topic, it would appear they are rather late to the game.
The party and the press have figured out that gas prices – which have been on the rise for over a year – might be a drain on electoral prospects.
Democrats find themselves on the defensive over gas prices https://t.co/T6j0xuxQpU
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) April 6, 2022
Body-Checking the Fact Checkers – SNOPES
- Honoring the meticulous truth detectors on International Fact-Checkers Day…with a phallic verification…
Thankfully, we have these diligent seekers of only the facts working on our behalf. Here we have SNOPES operating at the apex of their profession by sussing out the truth behind the charge that a gift card featuring the characters of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse features an image of a penis nestled in the graphic.
The Walt Disney Company has been the subject of rumors for decades that claim they are intentionally placing NSFW images or language into their children’s entertainment catalog. https://t.co/49eJk62zWO
— snopes.com (@snopes) April 7, 2022
