Alternative fact-checking from the self-appointed self-annointed truth-tellers of the MSM
Even before Trump delivered his short speech Tuesday night, the MSM had decided on its theme/meme of the evening: Trump will lie and we will tell you about his lies and correct them. I discussed the situation prior to the president’s speech here, and shortly after the speech the fact-checkers went to town and did their thing:
The Democrats’ theme for the evening was “facts, not fear.” Many major media also adopted the same theme. The coordinated talking point began hours if not days before the speech even aired, with CNN’s Alisyn Camerota saying yesterday morning, “Fact-checkers are eating their Wheaties and getting extra rest since they will be working overtime tonight to separate fact from fiction on this border situation.”
As soon as the speech ended, White House press corps mascot Jim Acosta recited his rather groan-inducing rehearsed line that Trump’s address “should have come with a Surgeon General’s warning that it was hazardous to the truth.”
But when it came time to back up this talking point about factual inaccuracies, the media whiffed. Most of the alleged “fact” “checks” were instead critiques of opinions. Many critiqued things not included in Trump’s speech. And sometimes the “fact” “checks” dinged Trump for saying completely true things.
Please read the whole thing (also see this and this).
Some of the fact-checking was inadvertently funny in a sad sort of way, such as when “CBS “Fact-Check” Finds That Trump’s Claim About Women Migrants Being Raped Wasn’t Exaggerated But Was Understated, But Then Deletes Its Own Fact-Check as Insufficiently Helpful to the Cause.”
But it all revealed once again—not that we needed any more evidence—that the MSM is now the mouthpiece of the Resistance, and proud of it.
It will be interesting, in a worrisome sort of way, to see if Trump can prevail with so much of the Establishment opposed. Not only the Democrats and the Media, but a lot of the GOP which is responding to its globalist donors.
The only people who support Trump are voters and those who side with voters. Of course, there are Democrat voters, but I wonder if there is seepage from the left as the economy responds to his policies ?
#1., for generations we’ve had witticisms along the lines of, “Believe half of what you see, and none of what you read”.
Why did Benjamin Franklin never follow through in some way with his beloved early pamphleteering experience? Because too much of the Press was intellectual & ethical trash from the outset. “Yellow Journalism” they called it in that instance … but once printing equipment and paper became cheap, the Mainstream application of it became manipulative – Fake – in a myriad of ways & levels. It was always thus.
#2. Some months, part of a year before Trump’s famous announcement speech, I saw a report of a research paper investigating rapes of illegal female entrants. The study was performed by leftie interests. The idea was, special considerations would be asked for these folks, based on the abuse they had recieved. (The study became difficult to find.) Doctors were known to be prescribing long-term birth-control to women setting for the border.
#3. Mexico, Central America, Latin America in general, have a bad problem with how they treat women (apart of criminal coyotes & cartels). There is an expression that not long ago circulated freely in Mexico: “In the villages, rape can be part of courtship”.
It is difficult to get the police and courts to pay proper attention to sexual offenses, south of the border. They are trying these days, but progress is very grudging.
None of this is any real secret. Used to be (rather recently), it was waved & run up a flag-pole (by the left), trying to attract negative attention to it. But as of a certain day in late June, 2015 … the ethical weakness of the Press led them to paint themselves into a corner on the matter, which DJT has assiduously assisted & encouraged.
Such a change from how the media treated Obama aka The Messiah, The Chosen One, The Special One, The Cool One.
Old way of news : Fake but accurate. (Dan Rather)
New way : Accurate but fake. (‘Fact checkers’)
Quite so.
Might want to add…
Progressive way: Factually flabby but morally fabulous.