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The Jeff Zucker Tale Continues to Evolve

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Feb 03, 2022
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"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.

02.03.22

Reporting on (or avoiding) the Mirror – CNN

  • This will explain the permissiveness of Chris behaving as he did.

The Jeff Zucker tale continues to evolve. Yesterday at RedState, I commented how one of the problems all along has been that Chris Cuomo had been permitted to remain on the air after a number of journalistic missteps. I had said that this appears to have been the result of a high level of permissiveness.

- "Allison Gollust, while a longtime associate of Zucker, was also something else. She had been a communications director for – Andrew Cuomo. This could go far to explain how brother Chris not only burnished Andrew's public image but why – when he was seen to have been a player in Andrew's defense of multiple sexual assault charges – he was allowed to remain in the anchor chair. More than it being a case of nepotism-fed defense by their pundit, the network executives had an entrenched relationship with the governor."

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Today, the New York Post confirms that there was, in fact, that very thing at play. It has been learned that the Zucker-Gollust team had worked to get Andy on the air, coached him for press briefings, and bolstered his image on the air. 

- "CNN boss Jeff Zucker and his paramour Allison Gollust had an inappropriately close friendship with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo — personally calling him to do news segments with his brother Chris Cuomo and even coaching him on what to say during his infamous COVID briefings, The Post has learned. Gollust and Zucker — the latter of whom dramatically quit CNN Wednesday after their affair was exposed — also gave Andrew Cuomo endless positive coverage because of their relationship, sources said."

Prose & Contradiction – THE WRAP

A poll has been released by Neilsen MRI Fusion that is likely to rankle most media outlets. A measurement of audiences reveals that the viewing audience of Fox News is not exactly as homogenized as most would promote.

It turns out Tucker Carlson does not appeal strictly to white supremacists and drooling Q-Anon devotees. He also beats the other networks in drawing attention from their core audience.

- "In October, the most recent month for which data is available, Carlson's 9 p.m. ET program was the top cable news show among Democrats in the advertiser-coveted age range of 25-54. More surprising are the stats about Carlson and Fox News' pull with self-proclaimed Democrats. Of those demo-aged viewers surveyed who identified as Democrats, 39% chose Fox News, 31% chose MSNBC and 30% chose CNN for programming from 8 p.m. ET to 11 p.m. ET. In total-day viewership, Fox News grabbed 42% of Democrats aged 25-54, CNN nabbed 33% and MSNBC got 25%."

So Stelter & Co. are targeting Fox all the time not just because they are #1 – they want to get their own viewers back.

Both Kinds of Standards – MSNBC

  • "That's despicable behavior when they do it."

On MSNBC's soon-to-expand morning show, hostess Mika Brzezinski was a bit testy (unlike…well, exactly like every episode.) This time she was unhappy with the treatment of Whoopi Goldberg over her comments, which led to a suspension. 

And yes, as you might guess, this emotional outburst is in direct contradiction to a previous emotional outburst. The show spent a lengthy segment detailing why it was the proper thing to do to take down Joe Rogan's podcast from Spotify.

Matching Media Memorandum – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • Paying for uncritical coverage of your product.

It could seem as if the collected news outlets are all in unison with their support of vaccines, almost as if they are all working in tandem to act as the PR divisions of a pharmaceutical corporation.

That is a far-fetched, tinfoil-hat theory only conspiracy nuts would believe. Now, please continue reading this column, brought to you by – Pfizer. 

Pulitzer Prize Nomination – CNN

Just considering all of the issues we are facing right now as a nation, this report has to rank…well, to be honest, on that list, I am not sure it would rank at all. But CNN is on the case of explaining to their audience the pertinent details behind why CVS store receipts can be so long.

Part of the claim is that they use it for marketing to buyers, using targeted algorithms to deliver offers that encourage return shopping. I rarely go into these stores, and the last time I did in a pressing matter for beer, I was given coupons for tampons. Hard to argue against this strategy.