BuzzFeed

Trump Rants About Media Having ‘Lost its Credibility,’ But Americans Trust the Media More than Trump

Posted by on January 19, 2019 at 11:52 am. 3 Comments :

There has not been a White House press briefing in over a month. But what is becoming the new normal for Donald Trump is holding impromptu avails on the lawn when he’s leaving town. And on Saturday morning he did just that to deliver another mostly incoherent tirade on whatever atrocity against him that he just watched on Fox News.

Donald Trump

The brief interaction with what Trump routinely calls “the enemy of the people” covered a variety of subjects (video below). He spoke about the imaginary “caravans” that are coming up from Mexico, saying that have been stopped by the walls we have at the border. If that’s true, then why is he holding the country hostage and shutting down the government for another $5.6 billion? He cited San Antonio as an example of where the border walls are working. But San Antonio is not on the border and it doesn’t have a wall.

Trump’s tantrum also included some swipes at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He said “I hope that Speaker Pelosi can come along and realize what everybody knows – no matter who it is – they know that walls work and we need walls. […] She’s being controlled by the radical left.” Of course, when Trump says that everybody knows something, he’s referring only to himself and his Deplorable Cult followers. In reality, most experts say that walls are ineffective because they can be defeated in so many ways. Plus, they don’t address the actual problem which is mainly at legal points of entry. But he’ll take any opportunity to smear Pelosi with wild claims of radical lefties controlling her.

Trump concluded his bitch session with some comments about the Buzzfeed story that alleged that he ordered his lawyer, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress. A vague statement from the special counsel’s office has created some controversy over the article, although it doesn’t refute the main points. But that didn’t stop Trump from tarring all of the media for what he said is a phony story and a disgrace to journalism. Never mind that his own press shill couldn’t deny the story when he appeared on Fox News. Nevertheless, Trump appreciates the statement by Robert Mueller’s office, which he has previously said is a corrupt and totally untrustworthy band of angry Democrats conducting a “Witch Hunt.”

Before Trump wound up the gaggle, he made sure to bash the press some more. But this harangue was especially notable for its epic derangement:

“I think that the Buzzfeed piece was a disgrace to our country. A disgrace to journalism. And I think also that the coverage by the mainstream media was disgraceful. And I think it’s gonna take a long time for the mainstream media to recover its credibility. It’s lost tremendous credibility. And believe me, that hurts me when I see that. I’m the president of this country. Media can pull this country together. It hurts me to say it, but mainstream media has truly lost its credibility.”

There’s a lot to unpack there. Let’s start with Trump pretending that he cares about the state of the media. He has spent at least the last three years maligning them in the most destructive and dishonest manner. It’s downright hysterical to hear him say that it hurts him to say nasty things about the press. He lives for that. What’s more, his remarks about the media pulling the country together just drip with hypocrisy. He’s the most divisive national leader this country has ever seen.

Finally, to hear Trump disingenuously whine about the media losing credibility is another demonstration of his separation from reality. Every poll on the subject shows that the American people trust the media far more than they do him. A recent poll by Quinnipiac asked “Who do you trust more to tell you the truth about important issues: President Trump or the news media?” A majority of fifty-four percent chose the media. Only thirty percent chose Trump. That’s a twenty-four point margin of difference. And that’s representative of a slew of other polls that reveal the nation’s same preference for the press over the lyingest President in history.

Trump can and does try to gaslight the country as to his delusional popularity. He tweeted Saturday morning that he is “your favorite President.” He’s not. He’s not even in the top forty. His favorite pollster, the exceedingly biased Rasmussen, currently has him at his lowest rating for nearly a year (55% disapproval). So he’s not only less popular than the media, he’s generally despised by most Americans. Which is a good call on their part.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

WH Dep Press Secretary on Fox News Refuses to Deny Buzzfeed Story that Trump Told Cohen to Lie

Posted by on January 18, 2019 at 12:23 pm. 2 Comments :

Thursday night saw the release of one of the most devastating stories about Donald Trump to date. Buzzfeed reported that Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, was directed by the President to lie to Congress about plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. If confirmed, that would be an airtight case against Trump for suborning perjury and obstructing justice – both impeachable offenses.

Donald Trump

So on Friday morning Trump dispatched his Deputy Press Secretary, Hogan Gidley, to what he surely assumed was the friendly territory of Fox News. However, his interview went skidding of the rails when the Fox co-hosts uncharacteristically asked him some probing questions. In the process, Gidley conspicuously avoided answering those questions and refused to even deny the allegations in the Buzzfeed report. This exchange is going to leave some visible bruises on Trump – and perhaps on Gidley as well after Trump sees it (video below):

Sandra Smith: The story coming from Buzzfeed on the President ordering Michael Cohen to lie…sources two law enforcement officials. This is the headline. Breaking: President Trump personally orders his longtime attorney, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress about negotiations to build a Trump Tower in Moscow in order to obscure his involvement. How is the President responding to that report this morning?
Gidley: This is absolutely ludicrous that we are giving any type of credence or credibility to a news outlet like BuzzFeed. They are responsible, totally and completely, for the release of a discredited, disproven, false dossier. And now the author of the piece that you’re talking about went on air this morning and said he couldn’t corroborate any of his own evidence. He ran it anyway. This is quite frankly the problem with the press and why the President continues to call them ‘fake news’ repeatedly. There is nothing in that piece that can be corroborated.

First of all, notice that this reply was not a denial. Also, Gidley is incorrect that Buzzfeed was responsible for the infamous Steele Dossier. They simply published it after it had already circulated through the White House and the Department of Justice. And he’s lying as to the dossier being disproved. Nothing in the Dossier has been proven false, while much of it has been confirmed.

Furthermore, the Buzzfeed author didn’t say that he couldn’t corroborate his story. He only said that he didn’t see the corroborating documents, a point that Fox’s Bill Hemmer made saying that “I think the way it was characterized – the reporter did not see specifically see the evidence, but relied on one or two sources that they had trusted to this.” Gidley fumbled in an attempt to form a coherent reply and settled for just saying that “That’s not news,” and resorting to Trump’s catch phrase about “the fake Witch Hunt Russia investigation.” So Hemmer pressed him to give a more direct response to the original question about whether Trump ordered Cohen to lie:

Hemmer: You’re saying the President did not tell Michael Cohen to do that?
Gidley: I’m telling you right now this is exactly why the President refuses to give any credence or credibility to news outlets. Because they have no ability to corroborate anything they’re putting out there. Instead they’re just using innuendo and shady sources.
Hemmer: That was not a denial of my question.
Gidley: No. But the premise is ridiculous.

Once again, Gidley evaded the question. And even after Hemmer called him out on it explicitly, Gidley outright admitted that he was not offering a denial. Then he segued to a strategy of smearing his accuser, saying that Cohen is a liar and a felon. That’s true, but what Gidley isn’t saying (or denying) is that Cohen lied under orders from Trump. And then he is given one more opportunity to defend the President and deny the allegations against him:

Smith: But the headline in that report is the President personally directed his longtime attorney Michael Cohen to lie to Congress about negotiations involving that Trump Tower. Is that true or false?
Gidley: Right. But the President’s attorney has also addressed this. I’m not gonna give any credence or credibility to Michael Cohen who’s a convicted felon and an admitted liar.

So Gidley’s response to whether the Buzzfeed story is true or false is “Right.” Really? When the President’s own spokesperson resorts to dodges like “I’m not gonna give any credence,” to charges that the President suborned perjury and obstructed justice, there’s a good reason. And it’s usually because the story is true. But let’s not be too hard on Gidley. After all, his boss couldn’t even deny the allegations in his response on Twitter:

For as long as Trump has been under investigation for what he calls “this Russia thing,” he has behaved exactly the way you would expect a guilty person to act. The same is true for his defenders in the White House and the media. So there’s no reason to expect them to act any differently now. And judging by this pathetic performance by Gidley, they aren’t. With each passing day, and with each new revelation, it becomes increasingly clear that Trump is headed for prosecution and impeachment. And it can’t come too soon.

UPDATE: The Special Counsel’s office has issued a statement saying that “BuzzFeed’s description of specific statements to the Special Counsel’s Office, and characterization of documents and testimony obtained by this office regarding Michael Cohen’s Congressional testimony, are not accurate.” This statement doesn’t identify what precisely they are disputing, but it does say that it is specific, rather than applying broadly to the article’s main points. And Buzzfeed’s authors and editor-in-chief stand by their reporting.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Here’s Why Trump’s ‘Fixer’ Michael Cohen Ran Away From the BuzzFeed/Steele Dossier Lawsuit

Posted by on April 19, 2018 at 12:41 pm. 1 Comments :

The news emanating from Donald Trump’s Circque Du Collusion continues to break with rapid fire reliability. Much of it this week has been centered on Trump’s “lawyer” Michael Cohen, whose prospects for remaining a free man are getting more remote by the hour.


In just the space of a few days Cohen’s home and office were raided by New York prosecutors, he was forced to reveal that Sean Hannity of Fox News was his “secret” client (which Hannity denied), and a fellow attorney who is close to Trump told the President that Cohen was likely to flip and testify against him.

The latest embarrassing development to emerge is the announcement that Cohen is dropping a lawsuit that he filed against BuzzFeed News. The suit was in response to BuzzFeed publishing the infamous “Steele Dossier” that contained allegations of Trump’s unsavory connections to Russia, along with some salacious tales of engaging in “water sports” with Russian prostitutes.

Cohen’s objections, however, were the references to his alleged travels to Prague on Trump’s behalf to meet with Russian operatives and hackers. He adamantly denied having ever been to Prague in his life and insisted that he could prove it. He portrayed the dossier as outright lies that he would expose to save his reputation, and that of his primary client, Donald Trump.

Well, that’s all over now. Cohen has decided to forego his reputation rescue and let the matter slide. He says that he’s too busy now with other legal entanglements, most notably involving porn star Stormy Daniels. And, of course, his ordeal with the recent raid that is seeking information concerning possible bank and wire fraud. While those are indeed serious concerns, they don’t actually interfere with his proceeding with the BuzzFeed suit if he were really convinced that he would prevail.

And therein lies his problem. The likelihood of succeeding against BuzzFeed has decline in recent days. McClatchy News reported that special counsel Robert Mueller has evidence that Cohen did, in fact, go to Prague. And Cohen has failed to produce any of his alleged proof that he didn’t. Consequently, proceeding with the lawsuit presents more risks than benefits.

Should Cohen persist in this litigation he would be required to sit for a deposition with lawyers from BuzzFeed. They would surely ask him about his travels and the supposed proof that he was never in Prague. His answers would be under oath. What’s more, the discovery process would require him to hand over any and all documents (letters, itineraries, receipts, phone calls, emails, etc.) pertaining to his whereabouts during the time in question.

By backing out of this lawsuit that he was so confidant of winning, Cohen is sending the message that he is more worried about coming clean than he had previously let on. He is signaling that the evidence might actually prove that he was in Prague. And the depth of the discovery could even verify who he was meeting with when he was there. In other words, continuing with the suit could wind up getting him in even deeper legal trouble.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

It should also be noted that Cohen’s legal bills are being paid by the Trump campaign. More than $200,000 of Trump’s donor’s money has already been paid to Cohen’s attorneys. However, the Trump campaign cannot bankroll the BuzzFeed litigation. It’s unknown whether that had any impact on the decision to drop the suit. Cohen presumably could pay for his own legal representation. After all, by his account he had the wherewithal to pay Stormy Daniels $130,000 in hush money out of his own pocket. So it’s more likely that his reluctance to proceed with the suit was due to legal jeopardy than financing. And he still isn’t out of hot water. Stay tuned.

Trump Likens CNN To Nazis But Shepard Smith Of Fox News Isn’t Having It

Posted by on January 12, 2017 at 8:20 am. 1 Comments :

This is how bad it’s getting for Donald Trump. An anchor on Fox News chastised him Wednesday for doing something he has been doing for months: Attacking the media.

Shepard Smith Fox News

Shepard Smith responded to comments Trump made at his first press conference in seven months. The Donald was very upset over reports that Russia might have compromising information about him. Trump was informed of this during one of the few national security briefings he bothered to attend. However, his response was not to direct anger at the Russians asserting salacious behavior and financial impropriety on Trump’s part. Nope, he was angry with BuzzFeed and CNN for doing their job and informing the public.

TRUMP: I think it was disgraceful, disgraceful that the intelligence agencies allowed any information that turned out to so false, and fake, out. I think it’s a disgrace. And I say that. And that’s something Nazi Germany would have done and did do.

First of all, Trump implying that he’s a victim of Nazi tactics is not only false, it’s nauseating. He is trivializing the real horrors that took the lives of millions. Jewish groups have condemned his remarks and called for him to apologize.

Back to the main topic: Trump called BuzzFeed a “failing pile of garbage” who would “suffer the consequences.” Then turned to CNN, who he blamed for “building it up.” When CNN’s White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, attempted to ask a question, Trump repeatedly refused to recognize him. He told Acosta to be quiet and to stop being rude. Then, as an explanation for why Acosta was being shunned, Trump said that “You are fake news.”

Shepard Smith addressed this exchange on his afternoon broadcast. He began by distinguishing CNN’s reporting from that of BuzzFeed, who merely published the source documents from the intelligence briefing that everyone was already talking about. Then he mounted a full-throated defense of CNN:

SMITH: “Though we at Fox News cannot confirm CNN’s report, it is our observation that its correspondents followed journalistic standards. Neither they, nor any other journalists, should be subjected to belittling and delegitimizing by the President-Elect of the United States.”

Coming from Fox News, that’s a strong vote of confidence for the network that Trump so fiercely despises. What’s more, it’s important symbolically for other news organizations to rally behind CNN, or any network, whose First Amendment rights are threatened. Trump has a long history of resorting to blacklisting news enterprises that he perceives as insufficiently adoring. And it goes beyond simply calling them names. He has revoked their credentials and prohibited them from covering his events. Now he has taken to calling any news he doesn’t like “fake news.”

This makes Trump’s “Nazi” rhetoric all the more curious and disturbing. He is literally engaging in the sort of suppression of the press that was common in Germany in the 1930’s and 1940’s. His attacks on CNN, and other media he dislikes, is intended to damage their reputation and even destroy their business viability. That is clear in his post-press conference tweet falsely maligning CNN’s ratings and credibility. Trump is on a mission to silence his critics and friendly media. In fact, shortly after brushing back Acosta, Trump called on Breitbart News, an actual, documented source for fake news.

However, Trump’s assertion that he is the victim of Nazi tactics is ludicrous on its face. When did Nazi-run media ever release intelligence data intended to hurt the German leader? Trump is casting himself in the role of Hitler and asserting that his own spies are out to get him. The absurdity of that is glaringly apparent. In the Nazi era it would have been suicide for the media to publish anything critical of the Fuhrer. And aside from being historically inaccurate, it’s a precarious analogy to apply to oneself. Never mind the temptingly appropriate parallels. Furthermore, Trump has been asked about comparisons to Hitler in the past, and in a chillingly ominous response he said that it doesn’t bother him. That response should bother every other American.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Getting Rid Of Fake News? Start With Fox News!

Posted by on November 20, 2016 at 12:34 pm. NO Comments :

For the past few days there has been a big furor over the spread of fake news online. Much of the criticism hinges on what impact it might have had on the election. A BuzzFeed analysis revealed that fake news stories “generated more engagement than the top stories from major news outlets” such as the New York Times, NBC News, etc. What’s more, the study shows that Trump supporters were far more likely to be taken in by fake news than others:

“Of the 20 top-performing false election stories identified in the analysis, all but three were overtly pro-Donald Trump or anti-Hillary Clinton.” [and that] The research turned up only one viral false election story from a hyperpartisan left-wing site…The other false viral election stories from hyperpartisan sites came from right-wing publishers, according to the analysis.

Social media sites are taking steps to mitigate the problem. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg announced plans to address it saying that “we take this responsibility seriously.” However, if that’s true there is one very prominent producer of fake news that would have to be included in any purge.

Fox News has been creating a veritable cornucopia of disinformation for most of its twenty year existence. The volume of demonstrably false stories that it publishes dwarfs any of the fake sites that BuzzFeed studied.

Fox News Lies

So this might be a good time to provide some examples of why Fox News is the unchallenged leader in bullshit. These are all real headlines from Fox News:

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Each and every one of those stories are patently false. They are not merely differences of opinion, but verifiably untrue. The question is, could any of this type of fiction have swayed the election? Who knows? But it certainly doesn’t help. And the fact that the gullibility of news consumers is slanted so heavily to the right is an alarming revelation. These types of stories may not move average voters, but Donald Trump’s voters are prime targets for such deception. Obviously they aren’t interested in truth or they wouldn’t be Trump voters (see the Trump Bullshitopedia).

Even President Obama took notice of this “breakdown” in the media:

“If we are not serious about facts and what’s true and what’s not, and particularly in an age of social media where so many people are getting their information in sound bites and snippets off their phones, if we can’t discriminate between serious arguments and propaganda, then we have problems. Then democracy will break down.”