07.24.23
Prose & Contradiction – National Public Radio
Over on National Subsidized Radio (NPR), there was a discussion between Huo Jingnan and Gene Demby about the concept of making insects a core portion of the global diet. The assessment was basically that suggesting there is a movement to get humans on a bug-based diet is a conservative conspiracy, and it is rooted in racism and anti-Semitism, somehow. The completely warped discussion sees the host and reporter debating the merits while constantly insisting that those suggesting it is being promoted are somehow quacks.
Small problem, gang.
Stephen Miller delivers a nice thread layout on how often eating bugs has been enthusiastically reported as a beneficial practice – on NPR.
Recommended
Does anyone at NPR read or listen to NPR? pic.twitter.com/oOlPUMrT0L
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 24, 2023
Presentation Paradox – MIAMI HERALD
- See, by stating the opposite of what is contained in the article, it saves people the trouble of reading it.
If you are unfamiliar with reporter Mary Ellen Klas, she is the Tallahassee correspondent for the Miami Herald. Mary is rather far departed from being an objective journalist, and her rabid enthusiasm in opposing Governor Ron DeSantis has long been on display here in Florida. Her latest is to reference a New York Times article that takes a look back on the Covid response in Florida and has a largely negative view of the performance of the governor.
“Floridians died at a higher rate, adjusted for age, than residents of almost any other state during the Delta wave, according to the Times analysis,” via @NYTimes https://t.co/Ea2MLh8uYj
— Mary Ellen Klas (@MaryEllenKlas) July 23, 2023
Mary's point here, and much of the article itself, is unwoven by a pull quote from the piece she linked to. It seems most of the critique is centered on a one month stretch in 2021 when there was a spike in cases nationwide, and Florida saw an increase in deaths. We need to ignore that in the months prior and after, the state trended below the national average, and – for Mary's sake – we also need to ignore the passage declaring Florida to be among the better-performing states in death rates overall.
Imagine lamenting the "decline in journalism" in your pinned tweet, then posting this and completely missing the irony 🙄 pic.twitter.com/2qOixpX9UW
— CarolinaConservative3 (@1776Carolina3) July 23, 2023
Low Octane Gas Lighting (About gaslighting, no less) – WASHINGTON POST
We do not think that there is much more that needs to be said about the Washington Post, of all outlets, delivering a screed about the devious nature of gaslighting. It is rather brazen for this paper to dole out advice to people about families practicing gas lighting. On the upside, though, we did have the news come out recently that fewer people are willing to be gas-lit from this paper these days.
Gaslighting is also a form of media abuse.
— Brad Slager: CNN+ Lifetime Subscriber (@MartiniShark) July 23, 2023
Why would people subscribe to a news outlet that tries to undermine our reality on a daily basis? https://t.co/9o9i63xdG2 pic.twitter.com/BGQW9StinU
First Amendment Strike Force – MSNBC
- Anyone suggesting that the government should be the arbiter of the truth is…someone who deserves to be on MSNBC.
On Sunday, Jen Psaki had on as a guest the neutered firebrand representative from the Virgin Islands, Stacey Plaskett. Fresh off another embarrassing display in the censorship hearings this week, Plaskett was on to promote the idea that the government is not involved in censorship but simply in the practice of delivering the actual facts. Uh-huh. Tell us more:
Well, you know, first of all, they wanna talk about censorship — that anytime you point out untruths, you’re censoring, you’re stopping people from speaking. It’s not that we’re not stopping people from speaking; people can speak, but we’re also going to give the American people the truth so that they can have science and facts and history against wild, outlandish claims that the Republicans are trying to get.
The lack of corrective pushback from hostess Psaki says it all. It is farcical enough to suggest that the government will give us the truth, but in the course of this claim, Plaskett is lying, as she states the government is not stopping anyone from speaking. They have been shutting down accounts for years on social media, and a judge recently ordered the government to stop compelling the platforms to block content and suspend users over narrative challenges. Those censorship tactics were the very reason for the hearings, but Jen was content to allow Plaskett to filibuster.
"I think what's more insidious is what they're doing is giving individuals like RFK a platform to desensitize Americans and to also make the Biden administration, social media platforms, hesitant about stopping untruths..."@StaceyPlaskett on RFK Jr. testimony to Congress. pic.twitter.com/GOpVs2519z
— Inside with Jen Psaki (@InsideWithPsaki) July 23, 2023
DNC PR Firm – NBC NEWS
President Biden has been denying the existence of his seventh grandchild, one fathered by his recidivist son Hunter, and NBC News is sad that people are talking about it. They blame the Republicans solely for this, despite mentioning it was also a topic in a New York Times article as well as a Maureen Dowd column.
Adding to the distemper is this defensive article declaring Biden's family story to be one of his strong suits but completely ignoring the fact that Biden has woven so many stories about himself and his family that no one knows what is actually his family story.
The question is - WHICH story are you referring to???
— Brad Slager: CNN+ Lifetime Subscriber (@MartiniShark) July 23, 2023
When he said he grew up with Polish neighbors, was raised as a Puerto Rican, attended Jewish services, was born where his grandfather died 2 weeks earlier, that it rained oil when he was a kid, that his home burned down... https://t.co/qUVM1sKc69 pic.twitter.com/guHt1fJSbO
Pathological Media Amnesia – KTLA-5 LOS ANGELES
- Pretending this is novel while forgetting his own past.
It is one of our favorite call-backs anytime reflexive defenses are put up on behalf of the Bidens; we always enjoy noting the way we get told to excuse serious criminal behavior in this administration while reminding the press how they lost their composure when Ivanka Trump held a can of beans in a photo on social media.
Exemplifying this dichotomy perfectly is Los Angeles TV journalist and energetic leftist David Lazarus. He saw that NBC News report and decided to lecture people in a condescending fashion, telling us that anyone attacking the Biden family was a scoundrel. While we here at RFTH are not afraid to wear that label, we also have to point out how Lazarus was more than happy to attack the Trump family not so long ago. And, scoundrel that he is, David even lashed out at the entire Trump family, over…that infamous can of beans.
The magnificence of journalists who cannot keep their own narratives straight. pic.twitter.com/b0vReL5eKG
— Lie-Able Sources (@LieAbleSources) July 24, 2023
Pulitzer Prize Nomination – WASHINGTON POST
With nothing else of import taking place in the news these days – multiple hearings on Capitol Hill, Biden melting down in Europe, the border getting worse, and other trivial concerns – the Washington Post delivered some vital reporting.
This weekend, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez played a video game online.
As they say, Democracy Dies In the Comments Section.
A lifelong gamer, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will play “Pico Park” on Saturday, three years after her massively popular “Among Us” stream. https://t.co/my6IIYhjBS
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) July 22, 2023
"Riffed from the Headlines" is Townhall's daily VIP feature with coverage of the deeply flawed aspects of journalism in the nation, where Brad Slager looks to bring accountability to the mishaps, malaprops, misdeeds, manipulations, malpractice, and manufactured narratives in mainstream media.
