Fake News

CNN Doesn’t Buy Conspiracy Theories

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Article in Mediaite by Michael Luciano, 7/28/25

Headline: “Jake Tapper Dumbfounded by Trump’s Epstein Files Claim: ‘One of the Most Bizarre Conspiracy Theories I’ve Ever Heard’ “

“CNN’s Jake Tapper isn’t remotely buying President Donald Trump’s claim that files relating to Jeffrey Epstein were doctored in an attempt to implicate Trump, a former friend of the deceased sex trafficker.

“Trump’s Department of Justice is declining to release additional files regarding Epstein after the president was told he was in them. The president denies wrongdoing.

“On Monday’s edition of The Lead, Tapper spoke with former Preet Bharara, a former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and asked if Bharara’s office fielded any accusations against Epstein.

“Not across my desk, no,” Bharara replied before noting the firing of former federal prosecutor Maurene Comey, who worked on the federal case against Epstein in New York. Attorney General Pam Bondi terminated Comey this month for unspecified reasons shortly after Bondi claimed that Epstein did not have the long-rumored client list she once alleged he had. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediaite.com/media/tv/jake-tapper-dumbfounded-by-trumps-epstein-files-claim-one-of-the-most-bizarre-conspiracy-theories-ive-ever-heard/

Immigrant Plight Ignored

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Article in Media Matters by Gideon Taaffe & Torri Lonergan

Headline:  “Right-wing media claimed the ‘worst of the worst’ would be housed at Florida’s new immigrant detention center. Hundreds of detainees have no criminal record.”

“Right-wing media have heralded the Trump administration’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ as a detention center for ‘pedophiles’ and ‘drug traffickers,’ but new reporting shows over 250 detainees have no criminal charges.

“Contrary to right-wing media’s narrative about the detention center, detainees include asylum-seekers and people who have been held over minor infractions like traffic violations — despite insistence from right-wing media figures that the harsh camp would be reserved for ‘the worst of the worst’ and the ‘baddest of the bad hombres,’ with one calling the detainees ‘subhuman’ . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/immigration/right-wing-media-claimed-worst-worst-would-be-housed-floridas-new-immigrant-detention

Objectivity or Propaganda?

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Julie Gerstein & MArgaret Sullivan, 7/10/25

Headline:  “Is Objectivity Still Worth Pursuing?”

Subhead:  “A generation of journalists is challenging traditional standards.”

“Objectivity hasn’t always been a cornerstone of journalism. American publishers first turned to objectivity in the early twentieth century, in response to the freewheeling ‘yellow journalism’ common at the time. Readers embraced it, grateful for a withdrawal from sensationalism and opinionated coverage.

“American journalist Walter Lippmann, one of the early champions of objectivity, saw the dangers posed by propaganda masquerading as news and argued in 1920 that the ‘sensible procedure in matters affecting the liberty of opinion would be to ensure as impartial an investigation of the facts as is humanly possible.’ . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/analysis/is-objectivity-in-journalism-still-worth-pursuing.php

Epstein in Media Again

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Article in Media Matters by Matt Gertz, 7/7/25

Headline:  “MAGA media eat their own after Trump administration denies their Epstein conspiracy theories”

“. . .The White House brought 15 MAGA influencers in to meet with Bondi in February, sending them home with glossy binders labeled ‘The Epstein Files: Phase 1.’ When those binders did not satisfy the MAGA faithful, the attorney general reportedly tasked ‘hundreds of FBI employees’ with reviewing Epstein investigation documents for release. In May, Patel and Bongino were sent to Fox to make the case, with the fervor of the converted, that Epstein had actually killed himself. And now the FBI and DOJ have produced a memo detailing their findings and released footage taken from outside Epstein’s cell in the hours surrounding his suicide.

“The final result left Trump’s most zealous online allies with two options: They could finally acknowledge that they had been peddling nonsense for years — or they could insinuate that the Trump administration itself is part of the cover-up. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/maga-media-eat-their-own-after-trump-administration-denies-their-epstein-conspiracy

Media Hoodwinked?

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Article in Daily Kos by Bison 6/17/25

Headline:  “Let’s Not Be Hoodwinked Again by the Media on Trump’s G7 Debacle”

Subhead:  “The Media’s Silence on Trump’s G7 Embarrassment”

“I’m up far too early, listening to the news—and once again, the media is dancing around the truth. Donald Trump was laughed out of the G7. Full stop. He showed up with nothing—no substance, no strategy—just the same tired campaign slogans and his worn-out call to let Russia back into the G7, all of which fell flat with world leaders who’ve grown weary of the act. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/6/17/2328510/-Let-s-Not-Be-Hoodwinked-Again-by-the-Media-on-Trump-s-G7-Debacle

Rightist Propaganda Blames Commies

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Article in Daily Kos by Bill Berkowitz, 6/15/25

Headline:  “During Run-Up to ‘No Kings,’ Right-Wing Media Called It an Orchestrated Marxist Elite-Driven Event”

“During the run-up to ‘No Kings,’ Donald Trump’s Christian Right supporters and media outlets, armed with just about every tired trope in their hate-filled arsenal, unloaded on the upcoming demonstrations. ‘USA Today Network Goes Full Commie-Promotes Marxist Riots,’ was the headline at Richard Viguerie’s Conservative HQ. The media outlet described ‘No Kings’ as a coordinated effort by ‘Marxist’ organizations, paid for by George Soros, to attack the Trump administration.

“Phil Hotsenpiller, who founded American Faith after Trump was defeated in the 2020 election, warned of the ‘disturbing agenda’ of the No Kings rallies: ‘to crush Donald Trump’s influence, undermine constitutional authority, and destabilize American sovereignty’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/6/16/2328395/-During-Run-Up-to-No-Kings-Right-Wing-Media-Called-It-an-Orchestrated-Marxist-Elite-Driven-Event?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web

Should Media Lie for a President?

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Article in Media Matters by Matt Gertz, 6/11/25

Headline:  “Fox’s bizarre lies shield viewers from the fact that Trump was wrong about Newsom call”

“A Fox News anchor, the network’s White House correspondent, and two of its prime-time hosts all apparently decided to lie to their audiences on Tuesday about a dispute over when Donald Trump last spoke to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, with each dissembling over what Trump or Newsom said rather than admitting that the president was wrong. And Trump’s own furious response to an inaccurate Fox chyron apparently set off that Orwellian chain of events. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/foxs-bizarre-lies-shield-viewers-fact-trump-was-wrong-about-newsom-call

Planted Media Falsehoods on Fire?

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Article in Media Matters by Jane Lee & Isabella Corrao, 5/28/25

Headline:  “An intelligence report debunked MAGA media claims about Tren de Aragua and Venezuela. A Trump official is now under fire for reportedly ordering the report be redone.”

“The New York Times reported that Trump intel official Joe Kent ordered the assessment to be edited to protect Donald Trump and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard”

“Intelligence community assessments rejected the Trump administration’s claim that the Venezuela-based gang Tren de Aragua is being directed by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s administration to infiltrate the United States.

“In response, the Trump administration dismissed the head of the National Intelligence Council and his deputy, making claims about the pair that an observer noted are ‘extremely difficult to believe’ given that they served the country ‘faithfully’ for decades. Administration official Joe Kent — a former fixture in far-right media and currently top aide to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard — also ordered analysts to revise the intelligence assessment, reportedly in order to protect President Donald Trump and Gabbard. . .”

Read the full story here:

https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/intelligence-report-debunked-maga-media-claims-about-tren-de-aragua-and-venezuela-trump

Journalism Requires Evidence?

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Article in Daily Kos by Bison, 5/26/25

Headline:  “On anonymous sources, aging presidents, and the media’s eternal craving for redemption from Damnation”

“Yes, the recent book Original Sin introduces new reporting that escalates concerns about President Biden’s mental and physical decline to near-scandalous levels. But that’s precisely the problem. Much of the content is based on anonymous sources. This approach might hold in journalism but fails the standard of evidence required in history and political science, where claims must be transparent and verifiable. Instead of offering clarity, the book ends up echoing a long-standing, distorted narrative promoted by right-wing media: that Biden is a hollowed-out figure, mentally absent and manipulated by shadowy figures. At that point, it veers into propaganda—not journalism. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/5/26/2324415/-The-Gospel-According-to-Whispers-How-Original-Sin-Became-Scripture-for-Media-Reckoning?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web

Rt. Wing Media Missing Truth

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Article in Media Matters by John Knefel, 5/22/25

Headline:  “Contrary to right-wing media claims, the GOP’s Medicaid cuts are for far more than ‘able-bodied men’ “

Subhead:  “While right-wing media yell about ‘able-bodied men,’ in truth Medicaid work requirements would hit caregivers the most — and they are disproportionately women”

“Right-wing media figures are telling their audiences that proposed work requirements for Medicaid will be targeted at men who are unwilling to look for a job, when the actual population most likely to be affected is poor, rural women who are taking care of elderly parents or adult children.

“The discussion comes as congressional Republicans negotiate a budget bill that is widely predicted to deliver massive tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations while gutting social safety net programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/health-care/contrary-right-wing-media-claims-gops-medicaid-cuts-are-far-more-able-bodied-men