Media Misinformation

Strait-Jacketed News?

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Article in Media Matters by Matt Gertz, 3/13/26

Headline:  “Dire Strait: Trump’s Fox Cabinet ignored Hormuz in the month before the U.S. attacked Iran”

“It’s little wonder that President Donald Trump didn’t seem to worry about the Strait of Hormuz in planning his war of choice against Iran: His Fox News advisers utterly ignored the possibility that Iran could respond by closing that critical shipping lane as they urged the president to launch the attack last month.

“Roughly 20% of global crude oil and liquified natural gas, along with a ‘dominant’ share of global fertilizers, reach world markets by flowing from the Persian Gulf through the narrow strait between Iran and Oman and into the Indian Ocean. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/dire-strait-trumps-fox-cabinet-ignored-hormuz-month-us-attacked-iran

Media Projecting War on Someone Else?

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Article in FAIR by Julie Hollar, 3/4/26

Headline: ” ‘What Do Americans Think?’—and by ‘Americans,’ We Mean Right-Wing Texans”

Subhead:  “Media are still trying to turn Trump’s decision into a problem for the party that didn’t launch the unpopular war rather than for the one that did.”

“Polling before and immediately after President Donald Trump’s Iran attacks has shown clear public opposition to war with Iran. . .”

“While public opposition to the war since it began has received fairly widespread coverage, at the New York Times, public opinion was framed in an entirely different way: The paper spotlighted six right-wing Texans in a piece (3/2/26) purporting to illustrate the question . . .”

“It’s one of the most egregious examples yet of the Times‘ ongoing series we like to call ‘Trump Supporters Support Trump’ (e.g., FAIR.org, 2/15/17, 7/24/19, 2/4/26). Frankly, it’s hard to come up with any explanation for this wildly skewed framing, other than offering a sop to right-wing critics of the paper. . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/what-do-americans-think-and-by-americans-we-mean-right-wing-texans/

CNN and MAGA Mouthpiece

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Article in Daily Beast by Ewan Palmer, 3/3/26

Headline:  “CNN Staff Furious After MAGA Pundit Boosts Trump War Propaganda”

Subhead:  “The complaints about Scott Jennings were so severe that senior leaders at the network were called in.”

“CNN’s MAGA mouthpiece Scott Jennings left journalists at the network furious after he shared Iran war propaganda from Donald Trump that contradicted their own reporting.

Several staff complaints were made against Jennings, a firebrand figure who is often rude and dismissive during his CNN appearances, after he claimed he received intel about why the president had launched an attack on Iran, according to Status. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/cnn-staff-furious-after-maga-pundit-scott-jennings-boosts-donald-trump-iran-war-propaganda/

Fox News Wags the Trump?

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Article in Media Matters by Matt Gertz, 3/3/26

Headline: “In Iran, the most consequential test of the Fox-Trump feedback loop yet”

“President Donald Trump, across both of his terms, has regularly shaped federal policy in response to the propaganda he hears from his sycophants at Fox News. But his decision over the weekend to launch a war of choice against Iran without a clear goal may prove to be the most consequential example of this feedback loop to date.

“Trump is deeply immersed in the Fox universe. He famously consumes the network’s content; highlights particular segments that strike his fancy on social media; hires its employees to run his administration; consults its personalities for advice on domestic and foreign policy; and doles out contracts and pardons alike based on what he sees on its airwaves. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/iran-most-consequential-test-fox-trump-feedback-loop-yet

What Should MAGA Media Do Now. . .?

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Article in The Guardian by J Oliver Conroy, 3/2/26

Headline:  ” ‘Open betrayal’ or ‘just and imperative’? Trump’s Iran strikes divide conservative media”

Subhead:  “Trump’s decision to join Israel in attacking Iran has divided the American right – from Murdoch’s cheerleaders to Maga isolationists”

“As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump repeatedly pledged to get the US out of ‘endless wars’, put ‘America first’ and focus on domestic policy. . .”

“Now the Trump administration’s decision to join Israel in attacking Iran has shocked the US and the world. It has also divided conservative media in the US – with many journalists and pundits on the right celebrating Trump’s decision to confront a longtime American foe, but others expressing dismay or confusion at the revival of a Bush-style interventionism . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/02/trump-iran-strikes-right-wing-conservative-media

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Article in Media Matters by Noah Dowe, Zachary Pleat & Gideon Taaffe, 3/2/26

Headline: “MAGA media feud erupts over Trump’s war against Iran: ‘We’re not supposed to be running around doing this anymore.’ “

Subhead:  ” ‘An illegitimate regime’ vs. ‘Pimps for the enemy’ “

“Media figures in right-leaning spaces are bickering about President Donald Trump’s war on Iran. The strikes so far have reportedly killed multiple Iranian leaders and many civilians; three American service members have reportedly been killed in action, more seriously wounded, and Trump said that there likely will be more casualties.

“Many prominent right-wing figures spoke out in praise of the war.. .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/maga-media-feud-erupts-over-trumps-war-against-iran-were-not-supposed-be-running

Don’t Call Me Shirley!

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Article in Media Matters by John Knefel, 2/27/26

Headline:  “MAGA media provocateur Nick Shirley boosted an antisemitic video. It was only a matter of time.”

Subhead:  “Shirley, who helped spur the federal crackdown in Minneapolis, promoted and defended a video from Tyler Oliveira titled ‘I Exposed New Jersey’s Jewish Invasion…’ ”

“One of the most important developments in right-wing media in the last few years is the rise of a class of provocateurs who create on-the-ground, documentary-style videos targeting communities based on their religion, ethnicity, or political beliefs. . .”

“On February 25, Shirley promoted and defended an antisemitic video made by fellow YouTuber Tyler Oliveira titled ‘I Exposed New Jersey’s Jewish Invasion… .’ The video runs more than an hour long, and it seeks to transform pedestrian, local issues about land use into something sinister by relying on longstanding antisemitic tropes about Jews controlling the financial system. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/antisemitism/maga-media-provocateur-nick-shirley-boosted-antisemitic-video-it-was-only-matter-time

CNN Now Discovering Evidence?

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Article in Mediaite by Tommy Christopher, 2/26/26

Headline: “CNN Anchors Make Major Change To Trump-Epstein Sex Crimes Disclaimer Amid Bombshell Revelations”

“. . .For months, CNN anchors and reporters have frequently followed their discussions of Trump and Epstein by saying, for example: “We should point out there is no evidence of wrongdoing against President Trump related to Epstein.’ That verbiage has been used as recently as this past week. . . .’

“On Wednesday night’s edition of CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360, host Anderson Cooper reported on the new development with a new disclaimer, telling viewers “we should point out here the President has consistently denied any wrongdoing in connection with Jeffrey Epstein” . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/cnn-anchors-make-major-change-to-trump-epstein-sex-crimes-disclaimer-amid-bombshell-revelations/

Corporate Media & Labor

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Photo by Brontë Wittpenn via Getty Images

Article in FAIR by Silas Gaughran Bedell, 2/26/26

Headline:  “Corporate Media Mock Chicago Teachers for Trying to Help Their Community”

“The Washington Post editorial ‘The Chicago Teachers Union’s New Year’s Resolution: More Mediocrity (1/10/26)’  is the latest in a string of opinion pieces from both the Post and Wall Street Journal attacking the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), amid historic victories for teachers and school staff. The opinion pages of these billionaire-owned media outlets have consistently relied on cherry-picked test scores to obscure union successes. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/corporate-media-mock-chicago-teachers-for-trying-to-help-their-community/

Media Ignore Victims?

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Article in FAIR by Raina Lipsitz, 2/24/26

Headline:  “Media Focus on Epstein’s Powerful Friends Erases Their Victims”

“Much has been written about sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, whose numerous social and business ties to members of the global elite are still being untangled. . .”

“Yet most elite media coverage has focused not on Epstein’s victims, the criminal justice system’s failure to protect them, or the ways in which powerful government officials have colluded to shield Epstein and his high-powered associates from accountability. Rather, the spotlight has been on the lifestyles of Epstein and his rich and famous friends—and the supposed lack of evidence that anyone other than the late Epstein and the incarcerated Maxwell sexually abused or facilitated the abuse of minors. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/media-focus-on-epsteins-powerful-friends-erases-their-victims/

CNN Anchor Points Out . . .

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Article in Comic Sands by Alan Herrera, 2/23/26

Headline: “CNN Anchor Calls Out The Brutal Truth About The Countries That Joined Trump’s ‘Board Of Peace’ “

“CNN anchor Abby Phillip pointed out the brutal truth about the countries that joined President Donald Trump’s ‘Board of Peace,’ noting that citizens of half the countries that have joined the initiative . . . can’t even get a visa to the U.S. . .”

Phillip said, “The point is we have found those countries to be so unreliable and so risky and perhaps even nexuses of danger and terrorism that we won’t even let their citizens get a visa, but they’re on a ‘board of Peace’?. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.comicsands.com/phillip-board-peace-visas