OPINION
Premium

Deadspin Writer Targets a Child, CNN's Anti-Elon Crusade, Stelter's Fox Book Tanks in Sales

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  Nov 28, 2023
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.

11.28.23

Race to the Bottom – DEADSPIN

At the rejuvenated Deadspin, things appear to be right back at the low levels that caused the site to implode a few years back. Writer Carron J. Phillips (that's pronounced the same as "Karen," to give you an idea) was on the warpath, demanding the National Football League address what he declared to be a severe case of racism; he saw a young boy at a Kansas City Chiefs game in blackface!

Now, a rational, calm-thinking individual who is not predisposed to see hate and racism in all things in our society might take a moment and wonder just why a young pre-teen would be out in public in racist blackface. Sure enough, there was more to the story. In fact, there was more to this young boy's face. Specifically – more color. Turns out he was painted up in the team's colors, and Carron was either getting hysterical over a still image, or he was outright lying about the details in order to gin up a non-controversy. We know which option we here at RFTH are selecting.

Anti-Social Media – CNN

Recommended

Kamala's Attempt to Look Like a Crisis Manager Just Imploded Matt Vespa
Donald Trump and Elon Musk Are Improbable Working-Class Class Heroes Kurt Schlichter
  • The need to bring down disapproved outlets continues unabated.

It will never fail to amuse us that when people on social media see a source or account they do not like, it is not enough to walk away and avoid said source; no, that source needs to be eradicated. Recall all the time spent telling conservatives years back if they did not like Twitter, that they should build their own platform. Well, they did, and then the cranks on the left had to go out and see that Parler was shut down.

The latest sees a controversy arising between Elon Musk and Media Matters, and his lawsuit against the outlet has many in the press outraged, saying he has the temerity to try silencing a news outlet! In leveling such a charge, of course, they have to ignore that MMFA was attempting to chase off advertisers from Xitter, effectively threatening Musk's freedom of expression.

Displaying this blindspot is Oliver Darcy of CNN (who is no stranger to attempting to close down news outlets). Darcy has been pushing hard in recent weeks to get media companies to pull ads from Xitter, and now, in his latest, he is highlighting the big brands that also remain on the social media platform. This is not journalism; this is activism – as well as a direct threat to the freedom of expression he so often claims to cherish.

Reporting on the Mirror – SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

At the site Futurism, they detected some curious looking – and reading – entries at Sports Illustrated. It was seen that, in some sections of the sports portal, they had entries written by authors with no social media presence and nothing in the way of a work history. The named individuals had stilted appearances in their very generic bios, and the content was rather ungainly at times:

Writing often sounds like it was written by an alien; one Ortiz article, for instance, warns that volleyball "can be a little tricky to get into, especially without an actual ball to practice with."

It was apparent SI was using AI for content in sections of its portal. When contacted, there were some denials, but then the content disappeared, and only after the initial article was published – with quotes from insiders attesting that they had been putting up AI content – the ownership of the magazine came back to say they had discovered that a third-party contractor had been responsible for the content and that the writers had chosen to remain anonymous using pen names. Basically, the excuses were about as creative as the AI-generated reviews had been.

Legalized Press-titution – BRIAN STELTER

  • He is savvy with the media, just not publishing.

If you watch any news outlets to any degree, there is a good chance you encountered Brian Stelter recently. The man has been on an almost whirlwind book tour, pimping his latest anti-Fox News screed, "Network Of Lies." Brian has plenty of contacts across the news spectrum, so he has been appearing pretty much everywhere on cable news (save for one network), as well as sitting in a variety of podcasts. And his book is appearing in bookstores now. It is just not leaving those stores.

In its first week of release, the sales flopped, selling below 4,000 units. It cannot be found on any of the Publishers Weekly charts and is tough to find on Amazon's sales lists. Perhaps the biggest indicator is that even his old stomping grounds are not recognizing it; he will not be seen on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Pathological Media Amnesia – WASHINGTON POST

  • This is a complete mystery to the reporter exhibiting zero curiosity.

Ashley Parker has a serious question: She would like to be made aware of why there is a paucity of Uber drivers in the Washington, D.C., area?!

Her question is a serious one, but Parker shows she is not a serious person. Most people have at least a passing familiarity with a story or two about the violence in D.C. and how this has seriously involved drivers in recent years. Most people, but not Ms. Parker. This is a journalist without a modicum of true interest, with an arrested ability to look into a matter, but willing to go on social media and display her chosen ignorance.

Artisanally-Crafted Narratives – THE GRIO

  • Making a grandstanding moment out of a non-question is quite typical of Ms. Ryan.

In a dose of audacious amazement, you must see this question posed in the White House briefing room by April Ryan. It is a lengthy and meandering monologue that ultimately has a question mark at the end to be posed as a question, but is really just a self-centered spotlight grab that says only two things:

  • "I am friends with Stevie Wonder."
  • "Why won't President Biden speak to my friend Stevie Wonder about the subjects I want him to address?"

She actually said that – Stevie Wonder is "looking" at the issue. Just…marvelous stuff right there.

"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.