Too stupid to fact check?
President Trump says a lot of preposterous things, but a comment made during an interview on Laura Ingraham’s show this week was among his most preposterous. Well, this week anyway. He said Joe Biden’s campaign is being run by people you’ve never heard of from the “dark shadows” who are “controlling the streets.” Even Ingraham asked what that meant, saying it sounded like a conspiracy theory.
“It’s almost too stupid to fact check,” CNN’s Daniel Dale said on air. “I mean, when you have Fox’s Laura Ingraham telling you it sounds like a conspiracy theory, it’s probably a conspiracy theory. … This is another dishonest attempt by Trump to try to foment fear about a candidate who has been in the public eye for many years.”
Dale added, “This president is a conspiracy theorist.”
Ingraham’s disgusting remark

A 2016 file photo of Laura Ingraham. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Following her interview with President Trump, Laura Ingraham seemingly defended Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old charged with shooting three protesters and killing two in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last week. Mediaite notes that while speaking on Brian Kilmeade’s radio show after her Trump interview, Ingraham said Rittenhouse was defending himself and exercising his Second Amendment rights.
She said, “I am gonna say we can’t arrive at a place in our country where law-abiding Americans who are trying to protect themselves and their property are made into villains. If that’s the case, we are going to be in for a really, really long and protracted period of complete chaos and destruction which I don’t think the American people want.”
Law-abiding citizen? Rittenhouse drove from Illinois to Wisconsin and went into the protests carrying a military-style semi-automatic weapon and then shot three people.
Ingraham’s defense came only hours after Trump seemed to suggest Rittenhouse was defending himself and days after Fox News’ Tucker Carlson also appeared to condone Rittenhouse’s actions by saying, “Are we really surprised that looting and arson accelerated to murder? How shocked are we that 17-year-olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would?"
Larry Flynt’s final farewell to the Falwells

In this Jan. 10, 1997 file photo, the Rev. Jerry Falwell, right, makes a point while appearing with Hustler publisher Larry Flynt on CNN's Larry King show in New York. (AP Photo/Todd Plitt)
For those not familiar, there was a landmark First Amendment case in the early 1980s involving Hustler publisher Larry Flynt and pastor Jerry Falwell Sr., head of the Moral Majority — a political organization associated with the Republican Party and the Christian right. Falwell sued Flynt over a parody advertisement that satirized Falwell. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, where Flynt prevailed in a unanimous decision. This story was a major part of the 1996 film, “The People vs. Larry Flynt” starring Woody Harrelson as Flynt.
What’s not known by many is that Flynt and Falwell went on to become friends. That is something Flynt revealed in an article published Tuesday by The Daily Beast. While Flynt grew to become friends and respectful of Falwell Sr., he does not have the same affection for Jerry Falwell Jr., who recently resigned as president of Liberty University following accusations about his wife’s relationship with a pool boy.
Flynt not only calls out the hypocrisy of Falwell Jr., but blames Falwell Jr. for helping Trump get “over the hump” in 2016 by calming the fears of many conservative Christians who might have otherwise been uncomfortable with Trump. It’s a really well written and entertaining column.
Flynt writes, “It’s possible Jerry Falwell Jr. will find forgiveness from his flock, but even if he doesn’t, the $10 million severance payout from Liberty University will surely ease his pain. As for the rest of the country, I repeat the sentiment that has guided me for decades: If there were ever to be a Second Coming of Jesus Christ, I have no doubt that his first order of business would be picking up a whip and banishing forever all the hucksters and false prophets who have perverted his message.”
More farewells
For this item, I turned it over to Poynter media business analyst Rick Edmonds.
The transfer of McClatchy and its 30 papers to new owner hedge fund Chatham Asset Management is scheduled for Friday. For the occasion, both board chairman Kevin McClatchy and CEO Craig Forman published farewell columns Sunday in the company’s flagship Sacramento Bee and others.
McClatchy’s revisits family lore dating back to the gold rush days when Irish immigrant James McClatchy, who had worked for a New York newspaper, made his way west and launched the company. Forman’s is more an analysis of the state of the industry pegged to his four years running the company — with editorial successes and a shift to digital balanced against great financial strain.
Neither treats except in passing what drove McClatchy to seek federal bankruptcy reorganization early this year (heavy debt and an inability to make a required pension plan payment for 2020). However, Forman makes the point that once relieved of those debts, the company’s papers and sites can operate profitably on a cash basis and invest more in business model development.
Whether Chatham will pursue that strategy — or institute big cuts — remains to be seen. Like other hedge funds, it is close-mouthed about most everything. Look for some hints of where McClatchy goes next as soon as Friday or in the weeks and months ahead.
The rating game
Two major TV ratings notes to point out today. In August, Fox News was the most-watched TV network in all of primetime. Not just cable news, mind you, but all of television. The primetime lineup of Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham averaged 3.63 million total viewers.
Meanwhile, CNN had its most-watched August in 40 years, averaging 1.020 million viewers in total day programming. It also had its most-watched August primetime viewership with 1.712 average viewers.
Now, I feel as if I need to write this every time I write about cable news ratings. Fox News and its viewers like to point out how they crush the competition, but it should be pointed out that if you add up viewership of CNN and MSNBC, it’s about equal to that of Fox News.
For example, in August, if you add up CNN (1.71 million) and MSNBC (2.19 million) primetime total viewers, you get 3.9 million viewers, compared to Fox News’ 3.63 million.
Media tidbits
- Look for the moderators for the presidential and vice presidential debates to be announced this week. Trump and Biden are scheduled to debate on Sept. 29, Oct. 15 and Oct. 22. Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris are scheduled to debate on Oct. 7.
- NBC News is reviving MSNBC films in an effort to bolster documentary filmmaking. Variety’s Brian Steinberg has the details.
Hot type
Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected].
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