"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.
01.09.23
News Avoidance Syndrome – VARIOUS OUTLETS
- It's almost like misinformation is not the dire reality they claim it to be.
We had actually forgotten about Friday being the second anniversary of the January 6 attack on Congress – Capitol Riot 2: Insurrection Boogaloo. The Democrats were, of course, fully energized, if not fully honest. (One member was criticizing Republicans for not showing up to honor the police killed that day, which numbered…um, zero.) The White House naturally joined in on the action, with President Jose Biden giving a speech.
We will need to point out the lack of diligent fact-checkers who saw fit to correct Biden's contention that Officer William Evans was killed by "sick insurrectionists." The facts are that on April 2, 2021, a follower of The Nation of Islam drove his car into a police barricade, killing Evans.
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On January 6th, our democracy was attacked. Two years later, we honor a few heroes – officers and public servants alike – responsible for safeguarding our democracy with absolute courage.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 6, 2023
Today, 14 of them receive the Presidential Citizens Medal. pic.twitter.com/o9oqtToFxA
Artisanally-Crafted Narratives – BLOOMBERG
- The narrative is too good to have facts applied.
Here is a correspondent from a major news outlet playing the role of press Mynah Bird. Akayla Gardner just blithely repeats the lie that Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick lost his life during the riot on January 6. Not only is there a stark refusal to commit an act of journalism and find out the facts, but Gardner also nestles into the role of Democratic Stenographer by simply regurgitating the release from the White House. Job duties complete!
More below, per WH pic.twitter.com/7eb6EVEcqg
— Akayla Gardner (@gardnerakayla) January 6, 2023
Gilded Reframe – WASHINGTON POST
After years of pushing the story of Russia influencing the election and leading to Donald Trump taking the White House, the Washington Post came out with a study showing how there was very little actual influence on the election.
This means that after all this time of hearing about disinformation from Moscow, it was actually the American media complex that delivered far more misinformation the past few years.
After all the time, money, and headline space wasted on the Russian influence on the election, WaPo comes out with this detailed analysis on how it was all basically nothing — 6 years later.https://t.co/JDRxTk3fZd
— Brad Slager: CNN+ Lifetime Subscriber (@MartiniShark) January 9, 2023
Legalized Press-titution – CNN
The January 6 committee has wrapped things up, and it has accomplished very little after more than a year of brash headlines amounting to no real revelations. At least it led to the career immolation of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. As for the latter name, he was charmed on CNN by Dana Bash, who boldly said Kinzinger was leaving Congress after his "patriotic service" of serving on the J-6C. Neither she nor Kinzinger noted he was actually leaving because the Democrats – who he had been courting, as well of the news outlets – gerrymandered his district out of existence.
But do not weep too much for Adam, as he is landing on his hinder; Kinzinger earns a seat at CNN as he has been announced as the new "Senior Political Commentator" at the network.
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) Joins CNN as Senior Political Commentator (CNN) https://t.co/G8pbnLFSXZ pic.twitter.com/cuXtuINbrc
— Management Impact Solutions Consulting (@MiExecSearch) January 5, 2023
Pulitzer Prize Nomination – ASSOCIATED PRESS
The AP details the plight of a woman in Syria who, years earlier, fled the US in order to join ISIS in that country. She is now pleading to return to the States and is willing to serve time in prison. In order to paint the picture of her plight as a naive and oppressed woman, we get told that the woman "ran away from home" in 2014.
She was 20 years old at the time and cashed college tuition checks to fund her trip to the Mid-East.
A woman who ran away from home in Alabama at the age of 20, joined the Islamic State group and had a child with one of its fighters says she still hopes to return to the U.S., serve prison time if necessary, and advocate against the extremists. https://t.co/211ptrbQnp
— The Associated Press (@AP) January 9, 2023
DNC PR Firm – WASHINGTON POST
It's always enjoyable when a crackpot theory appears in a paper and the outlet cannot dismiss it as the lone opinion of a guest columnist because the editorial board delivers the gold. WaPo tries telling the Republican Party that if it ignores Larry Hogan as a presidential nominee in 2024, it does so at its own peril. Of course, the man's track record is not so important of an item to focus upon. The paper even admits the man is something of a disaster, but the fact that he is not a Trump devotee is all that is needed to qualify him as an excellent candidate.
- "Despite Mr. Hogan's mixed record of successes and blunders and his approach to lawmaking that was laissez-faire nearly to the point of indifference, there is no denying his political grit in distancing himself from Mr. Trump."
If Republicans do not consider Larry Hogan, it will be their loss, the Editorial Board writes. https://t.co/qLdit0ADvc
— Washington Post Opinions (@PostOpinions) January 6, 2023
Reporting on the Mirror – CNN
- When the bias eclipses professional awareness.
So how is that CNN makeover coming along, where they were supposed to dispatch their liberal activism on the air? So far, not much in the way of progress, it would seem. In a studio segment, they went to a live field report where Kevin McCarthy gave a speech soon after getting voted in as House Speaker. As he was making his comments, you heard one of the women in the studio on a hot mic say, "Oh for Christ's sake…"
Stay classy, Atlanta.
CNN still struggles with its on-air partisanship shining through.
— Lie-Able Sources (@LieAbleSources) January 9, 2023
As Speaker McCarthy was giving a speech you hear one woman acoustically respond to his comments: pic.twitter.com/TWIFziOJtq
