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Rachel Maddow's Fairy Tales

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Oct 16, 2023
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.

10.16.23

Anti-Social Media – CNN

  • He has zero leverage to do that thing that…uh…he is actually getting done.

You just have to enjoy when the pompous and impotent pundits get exposed as the know-nothings they are, and better when it happens in just a matter of hours.

Adam Kinzinger is the perfect man to be a Senior Political Commentator on CNN because he personifies the expert who does not know his subject matter. Case in point:

Last Thursday, Governor Ron DeSantis announced he was signing an executive order to provide flights from Israel to help evacuate Floridians. Kinzinger felt a need to lambaste the governor, for no known reason.

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Making this pettiness all the better was just days later, DeSantis made good on his pledge, as hundreds of people were successfully flown out and brought to Florida. No further word from Adam, who bravely shut off his comments.

Democratic Custodial Services – THE NEW YORK TIMES

The eroding quality of Joe Biden’s condition continues to be apparent, and the administration and the press are doing their best to gloss over this reality. So much so that at The New York Times, an attempt is made in an editorial to sell us on the concept that Biden’s old age is a sign of him possessing enormous wisdom. Even if people believed this, his inability to deliver this vaunted knowledge is an issue:

But in a moment like this, age, experience and a willingness to speak uncomfortable truths are vital strengths, both practically and politically. Biden is a wise old man who has seen a lot of things. He can and does speak plainly, even when it would be narrowly more politic not to.

This probably would have been a bit more of an impactful op-ed if we had not just witnessed President Joe giving a meandering speech on Saturday, being rescued by his wife to guide him off stage, and then in a "60 Minutes" interview where he was so bad he needed to bailed out by host Scott Pelley.

Both Kinds of Standards – WASHINGTON POST

  • Disapproval over those doing what they themselves do.

As the violence between Israel and Hamas ramps up, the reality of the Fog Of War is not surprising and fully expected – unless you work for the Washington Post. The paper complains about misinformation circulating, but this complaint carries some issues. First, they decry the misinformation on social media, when it, as a supposedly legitimate news organization, should be beating that back with genuine information as a genuine news source.

But they have already compromised themselves as there has been a displayed tendency to just repeat what is put forth by Hamas authorities. 

Presentation Paradox – ASSOCIATED PRESS

As the high melodrama of the selection of a new House Speaker continues, it is growing apparent that Jim Jordan is emerging as the likely choice. The AP looked at the probability and decided it needed to issue a cautionary report of what just might happen were he to ascend to the podium. This is what it looks like when you are incapable of setting your bias aside when attempting to commit journalism:

Should Jordan succeed, it would help cement the far right’s takeover of the Republican Party and trigger fresh conflict with Democrats over the size and scope of government. But a Jordan speakership would also come with baggage that could present a challenge to Republicans as they labor to hold their House majority in next year’s election.

You see this blindspot where a journalist approaches things as automatically dire that they default that those Republicans would hate a conservative fighter who wants to trim down the size of government. At the same time, just try to imagine the AP leveling a dire warning in the Nancy Pelosi years that she was being too left-wing and hurting Democrats with her agenda.

Blue-anon – NBC NEWS

Another outlet too close to the government to not understand its affection is the problem is NBC News. In what has to be an attempt at lecturing the Republicans with a toe-tapping measure, the network looked at the as-yet unfilled House Speaker position and decided to illustrate the issue by having a timer running to show how long it has been with the position vacated. 

What exactly this is supposed to convey is a mystery, given that things are still operating under a Speaker Pro Tem, and that any interference to the government operating and inflicting us with more legislation should be considered a good thing.

Reporting on the Mirror – TODAY SHOW

  • Al, you said that as if it were a compliment.

On the NBC News morning show, they welcomed Rachel Maddow, and Al Roker was just effusive in singing her praises. He detailed how when he speaks to journalism school students he instructs them to listen to Maddow. A couple of things:

  1. Why are J-school students taking lessons from a weatherman?
  2. His saying Maddow is a story-teller is not a compliment.

While he says what she does is storytelling – which we agree with, as she weaves fables on the regular – that is a far cry from committing journalism. We are left to wonder if he said this intentionally, but he did say it accurately.

"Riffed from the Headlines" is Townhall's daily VIP feature with coverage on 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.