The hysteria over “fake news” is completely overblown. When liberals complain about the spread of fake news, what they’re really complaining about is news that doesn’t regurgitate their narratives. Sensing a threat to their monopoly on the spread of information, the mainstream media has joined the attack against this imaginary danger.
Of course, it’s well documented that the largest purveyor of so-called fake news is the mainstream media. Their bias against conservatives, especially Donald Trump’s candidacy for the White House, is nothing short of mind numbing. If anyone is to blame for the rise of alternative media, it’s large cable news networks and newspapers. Their own actions have resulted in mass media being one of the least trusted institutions in the entire country!
Yet, this crusade against fake news won’t die. In fact, it may have taken an even more ironic twist than ever, when MSNBC anchor Brian Williams decided to weigh in. From The Hill:
MSNBC anchor Brian Williams, who lost his job with NBC’s nightly news for exaggerating details of his time reporting in Iraq, slammed President-elect Donald Trump and members of his transition team for spreading fake news throughout the election.
“Fake news played a role in this election and continues to find a wide audience,” Williams said on MSNBC Wednesday night.
In 2015, Williams was suspended without pay and eventually removed as NBC’s anchor when he admitted he exaggerated a story he often told about coming under enemy fire while riding a helicopter in Iraq. Lester Holt replaced Williams as anchor and has filled the position since. After several months, Williams was made MSNBC’s chief breaking news anchor.Evidently, we are supposed to take the word of a man who was fired for reporting fake news seriously when it comes to fake news. If you think something stinks, it’s probably the smell of hypocrisy that drips from MSNBC’s studio.
The fact that Brian Williams still has a job reporting the news tells you everything you need to know about the media. Lying to the public is okay, so long as you continue to toe the liberal line. Reporting slanted narratives is fine, as long as it forwards your righteous agenda.
Even more ironically, the media remains flabbergasted as to why President-elect Trump chooses to use social media to reach the American people instead of going through them. Who knows? It could be because they still allow anchors like Brian Williams to have a platform. Tough to say.
Don’t expect the main stream media to get the memo any time soon, they will continue their outrage over an imaginary problem well into the next election cycle. Meanwhile, the public will keep losing trust in them during the process.
[Note: This post was authored by Michael Lee. Follow him on Twitter @UAMichaelLee]
