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Obama Lackey Wants Censorship, Norah O'Donnell's Pay Cut, and MSNBC Ratings Crater

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Jun 08, 2022
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"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.

06.08.22

First Amendment Strike Force – MSNBC

  • When presenting multiple viewpoints is a "threat to our democracy."

Former Obama administration fixture and host of "Pod Save America," Dan Pfeiffer, is currently selling a book. You get all the reasons not to buy his tome based on his current media tour, where instead of encouraging you with reasons to buy it, he is lashing out at conservatives who have a voice in the media.

Pfeiffer was on "Morning Joe," decrying that conservatives like Ben Shapiro and Dan Bongino were becoming more popular on social media than CNN and other news accounts. 

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Bonus points to Scarborough for kicking off the segment by describing how he talks with his "Republican" friends, and they whine. We sound like Democrats now. 

Presentation Paradox – WASHINGTON POST

  • Sooo…he can heal a divided nation, but not his own divided newsroom…

As the Washington Post continues to go through their hysterical middle school-level melodrama over Dave Weigel retweeting a joke last week (yes, they are on Day 6 of this insanity), a bit of a trone deaf announcement was made by WaPo journalist Michael Scherer.

Over the weekend, one of the participants in the gripe-fest was Jose Del Real, who attempted to calm the outrage of Felicia Sonmez and asked for calm and respect. This got him accused of attacking Sonmez, leading to him locking his account and blocking her, as she raged for days in an attempt to get him punished.

This is why it rings just slightly hollow when Scherer points out that Del Real recently won an award for his writing on how to heal a country gripped in conflict. Considering the way he was incapable of talking sense with someone at his own office, I'm dubious on the merits of his national plan for healing. 

Anti-Social Media – BUSINESS INSIDER

In keeping with the tradition of tracking down those damned citizens who disrupt the media narrative – such as Joe The Plumber, Nick Sandmann, and the Trump-CNN wrestling GIF creator – the latest effort at blunting an organic political message is in effect.

At Business Insider, reporter Nina Burleigh went on a quest. She was determined to pinpoint who was responsible for the "onslaught of weaponized merch" that was created by those on the right, engaging in "its semi-deranged campaign to blame Biden."

Yes, Nina sets out to get to the bottom of the mystery of just who is responsible for starting that nefarious trend of posting "I Did That" stickers on gas pumps across the country. 

 News Avoidance Syndrome – MSNBC

The recent ratings for May on cable have come in, and the results are something not widely touted by the cable news channels – for valid reasons. The internal metrics and the year-over-year numbers are looking dismal for MSNBC. The departure of Rachel Maddow from her regular rotation has not only taken strong numbers from the network but has also not fed into other programming.

In May, MSNBC experienced the lowest numbers in the key demographic since 1999. Dismissing this as an industry trend will not wash, as comparisons to May 2021 show the network dropping -24% in the demo and CNN losing -19%, but Fox News grew by 23% over the year. 

Adding to the flight of leftist viewers during the Biden era, earlier in the month, Newsmax was able to announce they scored their first prime time third-place finish, coming in ahead of CNN. While bolstered by their coverage of a Donald Trump rally that night, it is significant in that Newsmax is included in 20 million fewer homes than CNN. 

Reporting on the Mirror – CBS NEWS

For some time, there has been minor intrigue surrounding the prospects of CBS News network hostess Norah O'Donnell. It had been reported that the network was undercutting her job security by actively shopping for a replacement. (At one point, Brian Williams was courted to take her seat.) 

The New York Post reported that O'Donnell re-signed on the network at a severe salary cut. Her contract was reportedly for $3.8 million a year, cutting by more than half her prior contract at $8 million annually. It was expected that the network intentionally low-balled the anchor, expecting her to turn it down, opening the door for a new host. 

When she accepted the offer, it is said CBS was surprised and basically trapped. The network denied the report in The Post. 

- "While there are huge prime time openings elsewhere in the News industry, CBS News has the No. 1 news broadcasts and finished the season with multiple shows including morning and evenings in their most competitive position ever. Apparently, the more false stories the NY Post writes, the better things go for CBS News." 

Those claims of being #1 are not supported by ratings, and the CBS spokesperson never addressed the salary figures. 

Pulitzer Prize Nomination – THE ATLANTIC

It is not readily apparent how many people are looking to The Atlantic for advice and updates on getting into shape, but the outlet is here for their guidance. 

The current focus is on sit-ups. It turns out, like a fashion trend, the exercise employed for generations has become passé and has fallen out of fitness fashion.

Yes, the sit-up has been canceled.