Why Hasn’t the Mainstream Media Pilloried 60 Minutes for Spreading Misinformation?

“…Earlier this week, 60 Minutes dropped a bombshell: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, had granted Publix a vaccination contract as a kickback for a $100,000 campaign donation, according to a report by journalist Sharyn Alfonsi.

Then the story swiftly fell apart. Publix was neither the first nor the only vaccine distributor in Florida; the idea to use a grocery chain with more than 800 locations across the state was a good one, and did not originate with the governor; moreover, DeSantis explained all of this to Alfonsi, but his quotes were edited in a misleading way for the version that appeared in the 60 Minutes segment.

Bafflingly, CBS News is standing by this atrocious hit job. “For over 50 years, the facts reported by 60 Minutes have often stirred debate and prompted strong reactions,” said the network in a statement released Tuesday. “Our story Sunday night speaks for itself.”

This story should be a source of deep embarrassment for the network: Alfonsi made incendiary claims that she utterly failed to prove, and the report actively concealed from viewers the more plausible explanation offered by countless government leaders involved in the decision, including DeSantis himself. (Florida’s director of emergency management, as well as the mayor of Palm Beach County—both of them Democrats—have subsequently released statements blasting CBS’s distortions.)

It should have also drawn a thorough debunking, as well as outright condemnation, from other corners of the mainstream media. An accusation of corruption leveled by a major television network against a likely 2024 contender is a big story. It’s perhaps an even bigger story when it turns out the network got it completely wrong. Media critics at The New York Times, The Washington Post, and elsewhere should be all over this.

The Times has published 10 articles that reference DeSantis in the last week, but not a single one of them concerns the 60 Minutes story. The Post linked to the story in its Monday email but has had nothing to say about its collapse.

Axios, on the other hand, published an article about the “clash” between DeSantis and 60 Minutes that was overly favorable to the latter. Axios made it sound like it was still an open question whether the Publix contract was a kickback and did not go into detail about the unfair editing of DeSantis’ explanation.

Astonishingly, Axios then published a second, significantly worse article that accused DeSantis of milking his “spat” with 60 Minutes. “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Trump ally with his eyes on the White House, is dialing up a dispute with 60 Minutes—seizing on a juicy chance to ingratiate himself with the GOP base by bashing the media,” wrote Axios, as if the media-bashing was not well-deserved in this case…”

‘GEORGIA IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS,’ declares Governor Brian Kemp, as his executive order removing most statewide COVID restrictions takes effect today.

Too much risk aversion is too risky

Michael Barone:

“…“This is not politics,” Joe Biden said last week. “Reinstate the mandate if you let it down.” Give him credit for consistency: When Gov. Greg Abbott ended Texas’s mask mandate last month, Biden called it “Neanderthal thinking.”

But maybe the Neanderthals got it right. COVID-19 deaths in Texas plunged in March, and as National Review’s Philip Klein points out, there’s no relationship between mask mandates and coronavirus levels.

Biden is clearly wrong on another point. This is not “not about politics.” America’s constitutional federal system, and the latitude both the Trump and Biden administrations have given to state governments, has produced distinctly different Democratic and Republican coronavirus policies.

Democrats have tended to impose mask mandates, to order the closing of restaurants and retail businesses, and to require distancing rules. Republicans have tended to push for full-time instruction in schools and to allow open-air gatherings in playgrounds and beaches.

Yes, there are exceptions here and there. But what’s most striking is the prevalence of partisan patterns. Look at the maps of school closings, mask mandates, and mask usage, and the partisan patterns are obvious.

The economic results are obvious, too. With more restrictions, Democratic states have seen higher unemployment and less economic growth than Republican states.

Why the partisan correlation? The answer is that different responses to a pandemic reflect different degrees of risk aversion, and political differences often reflect differences in risk aversion, as well. As economist Allison Schrager argues, welfare state protections have appealed to risk-averse traditional Democrats, while deregulated free markets have appealed to more risk-taking Republicans.

Women tend to be more risk-averse for obvious evolutionary reasons (they’re needed for species survival) and more Democratic and dovish; men, more willing to take risks, are more Republican and hawkish. There’s a reason every society protecting itself against attack has always depended on strong, aggressive, and utterly non-risk-averse young men.

One oddity of COVID-19 responses in the United States has been the one-dimensional perspective of liberal decision-makers. They claim to be following “the science,” but with a narrow focus.

To prevent the spread of a virus that is often asymptomatic and less lethal than influenza to people under age 65, they have imposed restrictions that have reduced lifesaving medical screenings and produced mental illness and stunted development among children and adolescents…”

California forces Christian college employees to undergo gender identity training at odds with faith

New York legislature passes COVID relief measure to give $15,600 payment to illegal immigrants

You Tube removes recent DeSantis public health roundtable advising against COVID lockdowns

Google Removes Entire State Of Georgia From Google Maps

“…MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA—Tech giant Google announced today that they are removing the entire state of Georgia from their Google Maps platform, effective immediately. This comes in response to the state’s recent voter law that many are calling racist.

“We cannot allow these racist laws to stand,” said a spokesman from the Google Office of Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism, Climate Change, Immigration Reform, and LGBTQ Affairs. “That’s why we must act quickly to get states like Georgia off the map, both literally and figuratively.”

Starting today, the state of Georgia will be replaced with a blue body of water labeled “Sea of Racism” on all Google Maps platforms. Driving directions given by the site will be altered. For example, directions from South Carolina to Florida via I-95 will state: “continue south through the stupid Sea of Racism without stopping for 112 miles.”

Google will also be updating searches for locations inside the state. A search for directions to Atlanta, GA now returns the following message. “Location not found. Would you like to travel to a Google-approved destination such as Seattle, Minneapolis, or Beijing?”

The spokesman went on to clarify that Google hasn’t completely abandoned the state. “Google will still provide one-way driving directions out of the state for anyone who currently resides in Georgia,” he noted. “Also, we will still provide directions to any out-of-state celebrities or businesses who want to donate money to the Georgia Democratic Party.”…”

CBS faces bipartisan backlash after ’60 Minutes’ aired selectively edited footage of DeSantis

CDC tells businesses to ‘end hygiene theater’ because risk of being infected with COVID through surfaces is ‘low’

• • CDC officials have updated guidance to advise against disinfecting surfaces regularly
  • The agency deemed the risk of contracting COVID-19 from surfaces ‘low’
  • CDC still advises using detergent, soap and water in households and business, but disinfectants are only necessary if there has been a suspected Covid case

With Ninth Accuser, Andrew Cuomo Vaults Past the Al Franken Standard of Sexual Harassment

Dr. Fauci Dumbfounded as Texas COVID Cases Drop Despite His Own Dire Prediction

“…Last month, when Texas Governor Greg Abbott axed the state’s mask mandate and other COVID-related restrictions on businesses and people, Dr. Anthony Fauci called it “risky” and “potentially dangerous.”

“When you pull back on all mitigation methods on all public health guidelines, that’s when you get into trouble and history has proven that,” Fauci told Chris Wallace of Fox News. “This isn’t just some kind of a theoretical, a point that I’m trying to make. It’s not theoretical. It actually happens.”

But, there’s been no surge. In fact, cases have continued to decline.

And Fauci, proven wrong, struggled to explain how Texas has defied his own predictions during an appearance on MSNBC on Tuesday, and tried to suggest that there might be a “lag.”

“It can be confusing because you may see a lag and a delay because often you have to wait a few weeks before you see the effect of what you’re doing right now,” Dr. Fauci claimed.

According to the CDC, COVID “symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.” It’s been 26 days since Texas reopened, which means that Fauci’s “lag” excuse doesn’t hold up…”

Texas reopened 26 days ago, and cases have continued to decline. pic.twitter.com/OKWa0yJKFH

— Matt Margolis (@mattmargolis) April 6, 2021

Reject the Fauci Fetish Perma-Pandemic Panic Porn

“…It’s springtime, a season of hope, renewal, and generally good times. A time to be with friends, family, and a frosty alcoholic beverage or three.

Unless, of course, you worship at the altar of Dr. Anthony “Shut It, Peasants” Fauci. The nation’s chief panic porn sourpuss has turned his fifteen minutes of fame into fourteen months of tyrannical infamy and it doesn’t look like he wants to let up anytime soon…

…Fauci’s shaming shtick has been wearing thin for a while. He really likes doing his bureaucratic bully thing during holidays or big events, like the Super Bowl. As I noted in that post, it’s nigh on impossible to count how many times Fauci has been wrong about pandemic-related things. He is revered by most on the Left as being wisest voice of reason in government regarding this stupid plague. In reality, he shoots from the lip with personal opinions that aren’t grounded in SCIENCE, all the while insisting that they are.

What really makes me dislike the guy, however, is the fact that he obviously doesn’t want anybody to feel better, at least emotionally. I wrote in mid-February that Fauci and Co. were going to start using “variants” as an excuse to keep us cowering and miserable, despite the fact that more and more of us are getting vaccinated.

Fauci is sticking with his heavy-handed scolding approach and oh, by the way, he’s still wrong about everything:

Last month, when Texas Governor Greg Abbott axed the state’s mask mandate and other COVID-related restrictions on businesses and people, Dr. Anthony Fauci called it “risky” and “potentially dangerous.”

“When you pull back on all mitigation methods on all public health guidelines, that’s when you get into trouble and history has proven that,” Fauci told Chris Wallace of Fox News. “This isn’t just some kind of a theoretical, a point that I’m trying to make. It’s not theoretical. It actually happens.”

But, there’s been no surge. In fact, cases have continued to decline.

And Fauci, proven wrong, struggled to explain how Texas has defied his own predictions during an appearance on MSNBC on Tuesday, and tried to suggest that there might be a “lag.”…”

Ron DeSantis Has All The Right Enemies

“…So long as Donald Trump doesn’t seek the presidency for a third time, it would seem that Ron DeSantis will enter the 2024 Republican primary as a, if not the, front-runner. CPAC’s straw poll pegged him as the favorite in that scenario. As another Republican governor of Florida learned the hard way back in 2016, entering the primaries as a front-runner doesn’t count for quite as much as it once did, but it still counts for something. Moreover, the reasons for DeSantis’s status as a favorite suggest that optimism for his prospective run is more warranted now than it was for Jeb Bush’s run five years ago. What are those reasons? Chief among them is that “DeathSantis” is now trending on Twitter. Sunday evening saw a new, narrative-driven hit on DeSantis drop on 60 Minutes. Already, the segment has been exposed as a fraud…”

Kristi Noem seemed to self-destruct on the Transgender men in women sports issue. I don’t think she could beat DeSantis.

BLM leader threatens Democrats cities ‘will burn’ if Chauvin found not guilty

They are aided and abetted by our fetid media and the Democrat party that sees political advantage in separating and classifying people by skin color.

“…Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told department employees he may restart border wall construction to plug what he called “gaps” in the current barrier…”

More Vindication for Trump as Biden Admin Considers Resuming Border Wall Construction

Related:

Border crossers get 1 year ‘renewable’ Social Security card

Related:

Biden has 18,000 kids in cages right now… Trump’s peak number was just 2,600

Related:

2 Yemeni men on the FBI’s terrorism watch list were caught after illegally entering the U.S. via the Mexican border

CEOs condemn Georgia voter ID law, while their own companies require valid photo ID

Related:

Blackwell calls companies ‘immoral’ for opposing Georgia legislation while doing business with China

Justice Thomas argues for making Facebook, Twitter and Google utilities

“…Thomas argues that some digital platforms are “sufficiently akin” to common carriers like telephone companies…

…Thomas argues that some digital platforms are “sufficiently akin” to common carriers like telephone companies. “A traditional telephone company laid physical wires to create a network connecting people,” Thomas writes. “Digital platforms lay information infrastructure that can be controlled in much the same way.”

Thomas argues that while private companies aren’t subject to the First Amendment, common carriers are unique to other private businesses in that they do not have the “right to exclude.” Thomas suggests that large tech platforms with substantial market power should be bound by the same restrictions. “If the analogy between common carriers and digital platforms is correct, then an answer may arise for dissatisfied platform users who would appreciate not being blocked: laws that restrict the platform’s right to exclude,” Thomas writes.

Such a restriction would substantially curb tech giants’ ability to moderate content, a proposal that both tech giants and those on the left who want to see more aggressive content moderation online would almost certainly reject.

Thomas goes on to describe the sheer scope of Facebook and Google’s market power, citing Facebook’s roughly 3 billion users and Google’s 90% market share in search. “It changes nothing that these platforms are not the sole means for distributing speech or information. A person always could choose to avoid the toll bridge or train and instead swim the Charles River or hike the Oregon Trail,” Thomas writes. “But in assessing whether a company exercises substantial market power, what matters is whether the alternatives are comparable. For many of today’s digital platforms, nothing is.”

Thomas states that in order for an account like @realdonaldtrump to be truly classified as government controlled, “the power of a platform to unilaterally remove a government account” would have to be “reduced.”

Thomas acknowledges that it would be up to “a legislature” to impose such a restriction and that the Twitter blocking case before the court didn’t offer an opportunity to grapple with those questions. But, he writes, “We will soon have no choice but to address how our legal doctrines apply to highly concentrated, privately owned information infrastructure such as digital platforms.”…”