Riffed from the Headlines is VIP Townhall’s daily program that discusses the deeply flawed aspects of journalism in this country. We will seek to hold you accountable for blunders, inappropriate actions, bad deeds, manipulation, abuse and fabricated narratives in the mainstream media.
For reasons that remain unclear, multiple elite newspapers and pundits shared with Salon the story about Florida Governor Ron DeSantis requiring university faculty and students to register their political affiliations with the state.
ICYMI: Ron DeSantis signs bill requiring Florida students and professors to register their political views with the state https://t.co/cWzHyhhmIw
— Jon Cooper (@joncoopertweets) July 5, 2022
A few issues, the first of which was reported by Salon. Secondly, didn’t anyone notice that the date in the article was June 2021, so how can you call it “news”? But most importantly, fact-checkers quite quickly debunked the story as false. Where are the media hall observers and other aggressive scribes who are always bleating over misinformation?! How is it possible that so many journalists spreading false information are not suddenly a threat to our democracy when they don’t… oh wait. I said that “journalists” spread disinformation. Never mind, there’s nothing to see here.
Hol-lee – NONSENSE!!
“Expert” Max Boot is spreading this bullshit story that is not only false, but was completely debunked OVER A YEAR AGO.
I swear this disorder has poisoned so many people’s rationality, but it’s still fun to watch.https://t.co/HXuEnTBVO5 https://t.co/7DQcPgZlSI pic.twitter.com/4QONqzJgEd—Brad Slager ????????? Lifetime subscriber to CNN+ (@MartiniShark) July 6, 2022
Fraud and change – USA TODAY
- Completely confusing a story from a year ago is always the creator’s fault.
USA Today is one of the news sources influenced by police on social media. In other words, they are experts in a given field. That’s why it’s beyond revealing – but downright hilarious – to see one of their authors not only fall for DeSantis’ debunked story, but then blame Salon for his mistake. After praising the article, Josh Meyer tweeted correcting the error, but then blamed his journalistic laziness on the original post.
I didn’t know this was debunked (or from a year ago), otherwise I wouldn’t be suggesting the need for further reporting on this topic, folks. But thanks for the fan mail! Maybe you should write this down @Salon for not correcting or clarifying if it is actually wrong! https://t.co/OjHTBzO6ji
— Josh Meyer (@JoshMeyerDC) July 6, 2022
Only problem, Josh – after calling other journalists to cover this article, it became obvious that you never actually read the article you originally linked to. Otherwise, things like the 2021 date will be published UPDATE, and the announced headline change should have alerted you that something was wrong with this song.
Gilded frame – NEW YORK TIME
- Suddenly, there is no longer any question of violating the voting rights of minorities, and praising the POC candidates is no longer fashionable.
The election of Mayra Flores continues to cause sores on the left and the media. Think back to a moment ago; any advancement of Latinos to elected office was celebrated, Trump and Republicans were hatefully racist towards minorities, and Texas attempted to violate POC voting rights. Now? Practically overnight, the narrative has a completely up-to-date script. Many Latinos who won elections have stopped discussing voting and we no longer cheer when they win elections because they are on the GOP ticket, so there needs to be a thorough investigation into their policies.
Take a look at the viewpoints the NY Times labels “far right.”
– “But what is most striking is that Ms. Flores won by eschewing moderates, embracing the far right and wearing her support of Donald J. Trump on her sleeve – more Marjorie Taylor Greene than Kay Bailey Hutchison. Her campaign slogan – “God, Family, Country” – was intended to appeal to what she calls the “traditional values” of her predominantly Hispanic neighborhood in the border town of Brownsville.
Contrast this critical approach with years of favorable coverage of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the fact that neither she nor any other Democratic Latino politician has ever been described as “far left.”
Because her own oath coincided with the Jan. 6 hearings, Ms. Flores largely dismissed the proceedings.
“Honestly, my district doesn’t care,” she said. “My district is struggling to pay its bills.”
MAGA Latina goes to Congress. https://t.co/gORkxzrrTs
— Jennifer Medina (@jennymedina) July 6, 2022
Both types of standards – TWITTER
- Our sin is unforgivable if it is “their sin.”
For reasons that defy our understanding, a wave of controversy has recently erupted over the prospect of Hollywood athlete Elliot Page. The former actress recently underwent a transformation, changing her name from Ellen. Jordan Peterson has made a high-profile exit after being banned from Twitter for refusing to employ the word “Elliot” to refer to Page.
Then, for stupider reasons, Dave Rubin was banned from Twitter for simply forwarding the screenshot Peterson’s mention of “Ellen” instead of “Elliot.” All the while Twitter was controlling accounts through hacks, “Ellen Page” was prominently displayed on its own platform in its TRENDS column. To date, Twitter has not banned itself for this deadly sedate intolerance.
Elliot Page’s dead name has emerged as a trending topic on Twitter, violating the site’s policy against hateful conduct.
In a statement to BuzzFeed News, a Twitter spokesperson said it was an error and has since been removed.https://t.co/0oewTJS27u
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) July 5, 2022
Glossary of things – WKYC, OHIO 3 NEWS
- Somehow, shooting a gun is considered different than shooting people.
In the case of the police shooting of Jaylen Walker following a gunfight and high-speed car chase, local investigative reporter Phil Trexler discovered what he considers a major flaw in the police execution of the episode.
According to the intrepid reporter, the shootings that Trexler admits to committing can in no way be considered evidence that he attempted to shoot any police officer.
The “shot” narrative is nuanced, but no one at APD is saying that #JaylenWalker he shot “at” the officers. The officers recorded in the dispatcher’s recordings the information “shot fired”… the shot can be seen and heard on the video recording. There is no evidence yet that Walker took aim and fired. The difference matters. https://t.co/BmorAOa2sr
— PHIL TREXLER (@PhilTrexler) July 4, 2022
DNC PR company – POLICY
- It’s always helpful when the White House lets you know who its preferred journalists are, even indirectly.
Today’s announcement by White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield was allegedly broken by Politico. Alex Thompson details how they contacted WH for comment and were asked to hold off on preparing the comment. Just 15 minutes later, the Wall Street Journal published an official comment.
I called the White House at 2:53 p.m. for comment and told them we were on the case.
They asked for more time to check in with people.
I gave it to them.
WSJ published Klain’s statement at 3:11 p.m.— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) July 6, 2022
