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Outlets Claim Innocence With Embedded Journos

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Nov 09, 2023
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11.09.23

Presentation Paradox – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • Taking action while claiming there is no need to do so.

As we covered yesterday, there were some disturbing revelations that a number of the photojournalists capturing images of the October 7 carnage executed in Israel appear to have been either embedded with the Hamas terrorists or, at the very least, tipped off to the surprise attacks. As bad as this could be, a broader concern was how the Western news outlets were not forthcoming about some of the images coming from those with questionable originations. Also, how much communication from those on-site witnessing the brutality and war crimes is a mystery.

What we are seeing today are reactions from the sources while, at the same time, they try to disavow any culpability. It is a lame attempt to say there is no guilt while taking corrective action.

  • The Associated Press declared no staffers were present, and none crossed the Israeli border that day, but they are no longer working with the freelancer Hassan Eslaiah, who took photos they used, which have since been taken down.
  • At CNN, it says there was no issue whatsoever with the same journo, whose content they also used. But they have severed ties with him nonetheless.
  • The New York Times used the tired trope that criticizing them or a journalist puts lives at risk. Then, while stating Yousef Masoud has "done important work for us."
  • At Reuters, they, too, disavowed that "staffers" were on site, and it played semantics games with the timeline to try distancing from responsibility. "The photographs published by Reuters were taken two hours after Hamas fired rockets across southern Israel and more than 45 minutes after Israel said gunmen had crossed the border." This makes little difference, as the rocket attacks differ from the ground assaults, and the attacks on Israeli areas took place across many locations and played out over a matter of hours.

Note that each outlet has to claim that it did not have "staff" on site. This gives them a cutout option, as they were employing freelancers. Even though they may not have had prior knowledge, there are ethical concerns about these journalists making it on-site as the surprise attacks took place and how little notice they gave to any authorities as atrocities were playing out.

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Low Octane Gas Lighting – PBS NEWS HOUR

In covering the ongoing water crisis in Gaza, the geniuses at PBS were sure to invoke the name of Israel repeatedly. That nation has "walled off" some access, as well as a blockade preventing others, and while it has supplied some water to Gaza, Israel has also been known to shut it off at times. Those cads!

Not mentioned at all is why the Hamas leadership chose to attack the nation that was giving them water. Also not explored is why Hamas has not done more to get water supplied to its people. This would bring the network to the brink of being critical of the misplaced priorities shown by that group. So PBS resorts to calling the situation "complicated," like this is a Facebook relationship status where a user is embarrassed to have the truth getting out.

Blue-anon – YAHOO NEWS

Another sign of our society going down a backward slope is how it has been a regular occurrence that YouTube personality Mr. Beast can do some wonderful, magnanimous work for others and come under harsh criticism for his efforts. The latest comes after he went to Africa and funded efforts to build wells for drinking water, providing potable supplies for about half a million citizens.

As Yahoo News reported on this, there was controversy behind his work because, ultimately, it ended up making the leadership of Kenya look ineffectual. The lesson here: While it may sound nice to help desperate people gain access to needed water, making a government look bad is a far greater sin!

Body Checking the Fact-Checkers – NBC NEWS

  • Well, he did not actually FLY the planes, so this is not accurate!

During the GOP debate last night, news outlets were in their usual fact-check overdrive (something they are far less energetic about in Democratic Party debates) and one in particular was laughable. When Florida Governor Ron DeSantis brought up the flights out of Israel that he commissioned to bring American citizens back from the danger of a war zone, NBC News was there to tell us that it was not fully accurate for the governor to say.

So, while it admits he signed the executive order, and his office funded the trips as they organized the flights, and that, yes, 700 people were flown out, another group actually did the flying of the planes, therefore, this claim by DeSantis is HALF TRUE.

Anti-Social Media – DISNEY STUDIOS

  • The movie is tanking – RELEASE THE BOTS!

Recently, the actress Gina Carano commented about how Disney uses an army of artificial social media accounts to promote its upcoming releases and target those outlets or accounts that might have negative things to say about their content.

It is funny to see it on display, as this weekend, the new superhero comic book adaptation release "The Marvels" debuts, and the prospects for the film have been consistently diminishing. 

Best thing to do at this stage is to attempt to generate fake excitement, as apparently, a wave of artificial raves with identical posts is sweeping through social media.

"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.