Looking for news buried in 'woke' media. Plus: CNN presents opinion as news. Chauvin on trial.
By Gary Abernathy
Weeding through ‘woke’ propaganda to find news
There are some days when it’s nearly impossible to find something in the news of the day that isn’t completely driven by a focus on political correctness, whether it’s in the realm of crime, business, politics, entertainment or sports.
Scanning our major media outlets for subject matter that addresses facts and news in a direct and detached manner finds a reader instead wading through countless stories that are focused on the media’s take on what’s fair or not fair - from its far-left “woke” perspective, of course. Most of our major news media outlets have morphed into political action organizations or “social justice” crusaders – fine work for nonprofit organizations, but not the purpose of the news media, outside of opinion pieces.
CNN offers perfect example of opinion as news
In addition to the concerns stated above, another problem of longer standing is opinion bias in straight news stories. A CNN story today about House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy offers a perfect example of how news organizations no longer separate opinion from straight reporting.
In a news article – not an opinion piece or even an analysis – CNN writes the following: “House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tried to rewrite history on Thursday by claiming that he was not involved in former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the election in a heated exchange during a news briefing… McCarthy's explanation flies in the face of reality.”
That last line is not attributed to anyone. It comes straight from reporters Annie Grayer and Caroline Kelly, whose bylines are on the piece, and who are both described as “reporters” on their bios. The headline on the piece is also one that belongs strictly on the opinion page: “McCarthy tries to rewrite history by saying he didn’t back Trump’s efforts to overturn election.” You might agree with that. No matter. The “tries to rewrite history” part is an opinion that doesn’t belong in the headline of a news story.
Nowhere is the story labeled “opinion” or “analysis” or “perspective” or anything other than a straight news piece. Including the line “McCarthy's explanation flies in the face of reality” in a straight news story would once be flagged and eliminated by any decent editor, who would instruct reporters, “If you want that point made, find someone to say it and quote them saying it.” Not today.
Yes, Derek Chauvin trial is still in progress
In case you’re wondering, not only is the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin still going on, it’s still in its beginning phase. Chauvin is the officer standing trial in the death of George Floyd.
In the latest development, USA Today reports that jurors “will be allowed to hear evidence related to George Floyd's arrest in 2019, a year before the fatal encounter with police, the presiding judge ruled Friday.”
This trial will move at the pace of an iceberg. Check in every few weeks and you won’t have much catching up to do.
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