The media has had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad month. At a time where truth is more important than ever, mainstream outlets are determined to twist and shake narratives to reclaim their relevance and push politically charged agendas. Let’s break down a few of these.
The Covington Catholics
America’s current culture war kicked off strong in 2019 when the media systematically attacked young teenage boys at a Right To Life rally in Washington, DC. Start small, I guess. A 90-second clip circulated around social media that appeared to show a young Catholic boy from Covington School invade the personal space of an elderly Native American.
What’s worse, the young boy was wearing a MAGA hat. Bad optics, indeed.
The media took no time in condemning the damning actions of the boy, the group, the whole school, and the entire white male population. The internet was filled with hot, woke takes that would present the boys as ‘literally Hitler’ and clearly prove that the future of America was doomed.
Although, this wasn’t the case.
It only took around 12 hours until a longer, uncut, video started countering the initial clip. Nathan Phillips, a proven liar and fraud, had approached the boys and refused to move. He then went on CNN and continued to spread the untruth that he was trapped and intimidated. No journalist thought of correcting him.
Media outlets such as the Washington Post started using terms like ‘conservatives pounce’ to describe how people online were clearly debunking the footage the media had previously promoted. Meanwhile, journalists and celebrities had no problem calling for their deaths. No apology was given to the boys.
Today, Catholic student Nick Sandmann is suing the Washington Post for $250 million.
The Collapse of Virginia
Next up came the seemingly unstoppable collapse of the State of Virginia. Its Governor, Ralph Northam, has not had the easiest of weeks. A yearbook from 1985 has resurfaced showing a picture next to his name with two gentlemen - each dressed in blackface and a KKK outfit.
Unfortunately for Ralph, he can’t remember which one he is.
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam contemplates doing the moonwalk during a press conference.
The mainstream media and late-night chat shows would, for the most part, stay away from this story. After all, how can they criticize a Democrat for doing the exact thing they have done themselves?
This writer is old enough to remember when conservative television host Megyn Kelly was fired from NBC for suggesting that donning blackface at Halloween was acceptable. Two months later, her former colleague Jimmy Fallon still has a job despite doing it on TV.
Was Kelly’s termination an act of sexism, or was it an attack on conservatives? We wonder how the media would have reported the blackface scandal had they been conservatives in government and television.
The Media Dumps #MeToo
The state of the State of Virginia was about to get even worse. Its Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax was next to garner unwanted attention with two credible accusations of sexual assault. He allegedly screamed ‘f*ck this b*tch’ in a meeting when hearing of Vanessa Tyson’s claim.
You can’t buy class, Mr. Fairfax.
I’m old enough to remember September 2018, when Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh was met with an onslaught of Democrat and media scrutiny for alleged claims of sexual assault from the 1980s.
The media was quick to highlight the accusations on Kavanaugh - where are they now?
Congress members, such as freshman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, demanded his immediate withdrawal from the nomination process despite six different FBI investigations finding no evidence that anything happened.
When it comes to Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, her silence on the matter was deafening. She said ‘more time was needed’ to collect the necessary information.
The media has hardly made a peep on the ongoing investigation, nor have they confronted Ocasio-Cortez on her blatant double standards. She has even gone on record stating that ‘being morally right’ is more important than ‘being factually correct’. Not a single journalist thought to highlight how dangerous it is for a congresswoman to say this.
Stop The Games
People are losing faith and trust in America’s mainstream media for their seemingly incapable ability to remain balanced, nuanced, or fair. While the media attacks on Kavanaugh and Nick Sandmann were ghastly and unjustified, citizens across the country can’t help but spot the one-sided trend of attacking one side while defending the other.
Get your act together, media. With platforms like Twitter now providing a means for everyday people to debunk and investigate their own information, your act is looking more like a desperate cling to relevancy and power.
NOTE: This story originally appeared on Editor Choice
Well, three years later, and Nick Sandmann got justice while Virginia's new governor was just sworn in. The answer to your question remains, "No, we can't trust the media". I have lost even more faith in them since you wrote this.
I found my way here from your Twitter post about the AP's unfortunate decision to share office space with terrorists in Gaza. It was a good response in context.
I'm curious: Are you one of the five children of Rabbi Ken Spiro? I checked for your names online, but only found references to the rabbi's current work, and his bar mitzvah in the midwest a long time ago. And of course your recent tech journalism! This is my favorite…
The Fourth Estate is now the First Estate and it is a law unto itself.