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The Media Threaten Democracy

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Jul 05, 2023
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07.05.23

Matching Media Memorandum – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • The industry concerned with threats to democracy displays its animosity for democracy.

It is now an annual tradition that the press has a need to feature columns and opinions from politicians who display disdain for the foundation of the country. The Associated Press got in on the practice, telling us how the word “patriotic” is now a problematic label. (Do not ask us how. We had no inspiration to indulge in such idiocy.)

Meanwhile, over at the Washington Post, they are commanding us to rethink the National Anthem, all because Francis Scott Key has a complicated history with slavery:

Many Americans may not know that their nation’s anthem invokes slavery. Key was an enslaver and prosecuted abolitionists as District Attorney for Washington, D.C. And yet, he also volunteered his legal services to free those unjustly enslaved. Arguing more than 100 such cases (several all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court), Key’s efforts resulted in the freedom of at least 189 people. Key is a conflicted figure, but one who had much in common with the U.S. Constitution in this era. His very soul was compromised by a regime in which the owning of human beings was supported by law.

News Avoidance Syndrome – VARIOUS OUTLETS

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  • The list of things normally blamed for a mass shooting is completely disregarded.

The press has a bit of cover regarding the shooting in Philadelphia that killed five people. It taking place right in the heart of a holiday weekend, and thus, a slower news cycle means it can be buried and forgotten quickly. Wait – the press is NOT covering a shooting?!

Consider the usual narratives we are not hearing trotted out right now; gun laws, the NRA, conservative politicians, Trump pushing intolerance, white supremacy – all are dispatched now, along with the usual sweeping coverage of a mass shooting. Why?

Oh…the shooter is a black individual who is trans-identifying. Yeah, this story will evaporate faster than 100-proof vodka at high noon in July.

Note how in this coverage from Washington Post, you see nothing of the shooter’s identity, as the race and transgender aspects are completely avoided.

Democrat Custodial Services – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • We are just trying to imagine the level of interest and investigation had this taken place just one administration earlier.

The curious case of the cocaine discovered in the White House has led to the press displaying a rather incurious approach to this story. They seem content to run with explanations fed from the White House, with very low-level investigations and follow-ups taking place. 

Initial reports had a white powder found in the White House to be a mostly medicinal derivative of cocaine until tests came back definitively that it was, in fact, the recreational drug. You see, problems begin to emerge as the official stance of the White House is constantly shifting. It was said that the location in the library is frequented by Hunter Biden, but every possible deflection is offered up, such as White House tours pass through there daily. Except it was found on Sunday, when no tours take place, and visitors are not permitted inside the actual library location.

Consider that if illicit substances are found in the Presidential Residence that a full-scale investigation should normally be granted a full court press. Instead, we only get gauzy explanations that almost sound like a verbal shrug.

Mostly we are already getting the sense that something of this magnitude is instead something that clearly the White House and the press want to just go away.

First Amendment Strike Force – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • These courts blocking censorship are unconstitutional, it seems.

While no longer surprising, it remains a mystifying reality that the press is actually actively promoting the squelching of voices. A high court judge sided with attorneys general from Missouri and Louisiana against Biden in a case about the administration and state agencies working with social media to silence people spreading what they deemed to be dangerous information. The press, when facing a decision that respects the First Amendment, is noticeably upset.

In the most reasoned response, The Washington Post saw this call to cease censorship this way: “The Trump-appointed judge’s move could upend years of efforts to enhance coordination between the government and social media companies.” Others were less subtle.

At MSNBC, they had the stones to have “First Amendment Fight” posted on screen as they boldly declared that, if anything, government agencies needed to take on a MORE militant stance on social media posts.

The best indication of whose side the press comes to rest with are those decrying that this ruling means the administration has had its freedom of expression curtailed.

Legalized Press-titution – THE NEW YORK TIMES

In a blast of news that we have to ask, “Who is this for…?!”, The Times announces for our detriment that former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and his wife are separating – sort of. The couple will still live together; they are just now dating others.

We can only expect that very soon there will be a column in the Lifestyle Section with the heading – “Swinging Announcements.”

"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.