John,
The Washington Post and CNN again show the danger of the media’s obsession with covering politics in a “both sides” frame.
On Wednesday, Kamala Harris cited a statistic about the decline in manufacturing jobs under Donald Trump. Earlier in Pittsburgh, she cited the same statistic, using more precise language.
Here are the two statements side-by-side so you can see for yourself.
MSNBC interview: “Even before the pandemic, he lost manufacturing jobs, by most people’s estimates at least 200,000.”
Pittsburgh speech: “All told, almost 200,000 manufacturing jobs were lost during his presidency, starting before the pandemic hit, making Trump one of the biggest losers ever on manufacturing.”
The “mistake” here is barely perceptible, but Harris’ point is irrefutably true in both statements: Trump’s manufacturing record isn’t as strong as he says it is – he’s lying.
In response to Harris’ error, both CNN and The Washington Post went into full-blown, sirens blaring fact-check mode on Wednesday:
While they were running big headlines about Harris’ mistake, Trump was ranting and raving about buying furniture to a confused rally crowd in North Carolina. It looked so bad, even Fox News cut him off mid-ramble in their live coverage of the event.
The perils of buying furniture, immigrants eating pets in Springfield, giant faucets in California, Hannibal Lector, Trump’s insecurity about Harris’ bigger crowds, his hatred for Taylor Swift and Oprah – we could go on and on but here’s the point:
At this point, Donald Trump misstating a statistic on his jobs record would be a massive upgrade compared to his incoherent, unhinged, and self-indulgent campaign.
But legacy media like CNN and WaPo are afraid to say that too often and too loudly for fear of being accused of a left-wing bias that could hurt their profits.
By attempting to “balance out” the negative coverage between “both sides,” the legacy media only further legitimizes Trump and his anti-democratic candidacy. It’s partly why Trump was elected in 2016, and it could get him elected again in 2024.
Here at COURIER, we’re not afraid to call out the media. We’re also not afraid to tell the truth about Donald Trump and his threat to American Democracy.
We publish our fearless, factual reporting in eleven battleground states to counter the right-wing narratives that dominate the airwaves.
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COURIER