Chuck Todd used his Meet the Press program Sunday on NBC to attack “fake news” — and blamed Russian disinformation, rather than shoddy journalism, for convincing Americans not to trust the mainstream media.
His show, featuring guests whom he described “top players in journalism, diplomacy and technology,” claimed that “Russian tactics” of “truth manipulation” have migrated right here to the United States.”
Todd’s primary culprit: the Trump administration, which he noted on day one pushed “an easily disprovable lie about his inaugural crowd size.”
He ignored the other “day one” lie: that Trump was colluding with Russia, a lie the media pushed relentlessly.
Todd’s first guest was New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet, who admitted earlier this year that his newsroom had been built around the Russia story for two years.
Todd did not ask Banquet about that: instead, he asked Baquet about whether “the truth itself is on trial,” an idea with which Baquet enthusiastically agreed.
Tyler Robinson preliminary hearing: Judge orders redactions to ex-lover’s video testimony
Social media influencer and model, 22, killed in violent highway crash
Trump threatens troop withdrawals if ‘very good deal’ on Greenland isn’t struck
House Dem back in the spotlight as brother faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted
Platner drops out of crucial Senate race after bombshell rape allegation torpedoes campaign
Franklin Graham Gives McDonald’s ‘Free Advice’ on How to ‘Bring Happy Customers Back’
Mike Rowe Sues Discovery for $2 Million in ‘Deadliest Catch’ Dispute
Erika’s Heartbreaking Reaction to a Woman She Saw in the Courtroom Crying Over Charlie’s Murder
Former Wisconsin Judge Who Was Convicted of Helping an Illegal Alien Evade ICE Gets Light Sentence
Bernie-backed socialist who allied with Platner could supplant him on ballot
WATCH: Dana White drops 2028 hints while raving about his favorite Trump cabinet secretary
Donald Trump sparks intrigue by ditching new Qatari jet for old Air Force One
Trump contemplates assassinating more Iranian leaders, warns he ‘may be gone too’ after topping Tehran’s ‘kill list’
Alleged Jan. 6 pipe bomber Brian Cole Jr.’s trial set for February
Three-time deported illegal immigrant charged with killing North Carolina girl, 6, after running stop sign
Next, Todd turned to Martin Baron, the executive editor of the Washington Post — another paper that pushed the Russia collusion hoax, and which also led the way in trying to debunk Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA)’s effort, recently vindicated, to expose the truth about the FBI’s abuse of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) courts.
Baron complained: “We live in an environment where people are able to spread crazy conspiracy theories and absolute falsehoods and lies.” He blamed social media — not the conspiracy theories validated by his own paper.
Baron also griped that Americans had become “numb” to the supposedly “15,000 false or misleading claims” by the president that his paper has been tracking. Not only are many of those supposedly false “claims” actually true, or defensible differences of opinion, but the Post is seemingly numb to the major anti-Trump lies it has pushed.
Todd asked Baquet if journalists would have to “market” the idea that they are there to tell the truth — in the course of continuing to push the idea that Russian propaganda, not media malpractice, is to blame to public mistrust.
Baquet said that he and Baron needed to continue “very aggressively defending our institutions, defending the truth and defending our important role in democracy.”
Again, no mention of the corrosive effect that the Russia hoax has had on our democracy — or the role that the media has played in the ongoing impeachment debacle over Ukraine, including the Post‘s own misreporting of leaked testimony from closed-door hearings in the House Intelligence Committee.
Todd would not admit that the media’s leading institutions had failed by their own standards — only that they might be “culturally” out of touch with the rest of America.
Tyler Robinson preliminary hearing: Judge orders redactions to ex-lover’s video testimony
Social media influencer and model, 22, killed in violent highway crash
Trump threatens troop withdrawals if ‘very good deal’ on Greenland isn’t struck
House Dem back in the spotlight as brother faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted
Platner drops out of crucial Senate race after bombshell rape allegation torpedoes campaign
Franklin Graham Gives McDonald’s ‘Free Advice’ on How to ‘Bring Happy Customers Back’
Mike Rowe Sues Discovery for $2 Million in ‘Deadliest Catch’ Dispute
Erika’s Heartbreaking Reaction to a Woman She Saw in the Courtroom Crying Over Charlie’s Murder
Former Wisconsin Judge Who Was Convicted of Helping an Illegal Alien Evade ICE Gets Light Sentence
Bernie-backed socialist who allied with Platner could supplant him on ballot
WATCH: Dana White drops 2028 hints while raving about his favorite Trump cabinet secretary
Donald Trump sparks intrigue by ditching new Qatari jet for old Air Force One
Trump contemplates assassinating more Iranian leaders, warns he ‘may be gone too’ after topping Tehran’s ‘kill list’
Alleged Jan. 6 pipe bomber Brian Cole Jr.’s trial set for February
Three-time deported illegal immigrant charged with killing North Carolina girl, 6, after running stop sign
“I think we cannot dismiss everybody who supported Donald Trump,” Baquet offered, somewhat generously.
The rest of the program was devoted to the idea that Russian disinformation, and distrust of the media spread by Trump and the Republicans, was to blame for declining public confidence in journalism.
Not once did Todd look at the media’s role in pushing conspiracy theories in a barely-disguised effort to take down the president.
Story cited here.
