White Lies & Fake News

Putting an end to the fake news narrative

by Judah Friedman

What is fake news and what is real news? Who the heck really knows anymore? When we were children, we were all taught, or should have been taught, about a white lie, otherwise known as the lie of omission: “I never said ‘I didn’t fail,’ I never said ‘I didn’t do that,’ I NEVER SAID.” Most of us learned that lesson, and saw firsthand the harm that white lies can cause. Apparently, those who didn’t, if they were uneducated, became “entertainers,” and those who were educated, became the “media.”

Of course, the Michael Flynn situation is news, that should be reported by all. That’s not the problem that people, on the right, have with the news “story.” The problem that people, on the right, have is with the “never said” part. For years, all Republicans have asked for is that the media be honest referees — a simple, and just, request. Would the NFL, or any sports league, knowingly allow an official who roots for a certain team to officiate that team’s games? Of course not. It would devalue everything. It would cause chaos and distrust. Numbers would plummet. Does that sound familiar, “mainstream media”? But, that’s the world we live in, where we can trust our sports leagues to be more intellectually honest than our “media leagues,” barely.

You guys created this problem. All that people on the right were asking for was a fifty-fifty spilt; I know, a crazy notion. Heck, we might have settled on 75-25. But, like little children, who want to get away with everything, you just couldn’t stop yourselves. Could you? You wanted to have the whole cake, and, now, here we are. Imagine, what would have happened, had you investigated Obama’s ties to Reverend Wright, and to Bill Ayers, with 15 percent of the zeal you use to go after our current President.

Imagine if you had investigated Benghazi. Imagine if you had investigated the Clinton Foundation, or Bill Clinton on a plane with Loretta Lynch. Or the story of stories, how the mainstream media went from roughly 50/50 in 1953 to 95/5 in 2017. The list just goes on and on. Heck, forget about “investigation,” we would have settled on “lightly mentioned.” Yes, that’s what you had relegated us to, maybe getting an invite to the ceremony, but never to the reception.

You are point shavers. You’re no different than the mob, controlling the spread, picking, and deciding who wins and who loses, and telling us to enjoy and trust the game. Since your parents never taught you what a white lie is, here is an example. Have you given all the details of the Flynn story, or have you omitted a “small part” of the story? Show me one CNN headline about illegal wire-tapping. Show us one headline about the illegal leaks. Heck, we’ve given up on an “investigation,” but we’ll settle for a “headline.” Oh, I did see one headline on CNN about the leaks.

It was on the fact that Fox News chose to take that angle.

Children, American children are being murdered and slaughtered in our “Aleppo,” otherwise known as the “city of Chicago.” For years, you have omitted this story, and continue to. Why, because of its narrative: “blacks being slaughtered” under Democrat regimes does not fit your story? It also goes without saying that if it were Republican controlled, we would get a few headlines. A child is murdered on Facebook live. How is this not wall to wall coverage? We wish we could say that we do not know, but we do. When you omit a story, you are omitting the devaluing of the people, in the story. You aren’t just saying “black lives don’t matter,” you are saying that they have no value. I get it. It’s way more cool and chique to go into a war zone, and do your reporting. How about, one of these weekends, you go into the “war zone” known as Chicago?

You want to stop the fake news narrative? The ball’s in your court. When we see stories covering the sources funding the protests; when we see investigations into national security leaks; or investigations into the Obama administration’s past and present regime, trying to systematically undermine the current administration, we’ll know that you’re ready to give us our 25 percent.

President Trump stood up, not just for himself, in his news conference, but he stood up for those who voted for him, and for those who didn’t. He answered almost every question, and was extremely transparent. Hell of a concept. To you, a president, a Republican president, who stands up for his electorate. One who will not be bullied, or shamed, one who will tell you: “enough with your ‘white lies.’” Yet, this won’t be the story you report, we know that. Your story will be “wild press conference,” or Jake Tapper’s “Trump was unhinged.” Odd, Jake, what you call unhinged we call the truth. That’s why what you call “news” we call “fake,” or a “white lie.”

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Nailed it!

/gun