CNN’s live television coverage of a Broadway play — reportedly the first time that has ever happened — was a transparent hit job on the Trump administration. Their attempted demonstration of the need for fearless, truth-to-power journalism couldn’t have been more poorly timed or more obviously tone deaf.
The play was “Good Night and Good Luck,” based on George Clooney’s movie of the same title from 20 years ago. This time, instead of playing Edward R. Murrow’s producer/partner Fred Friendly, as he did in the 2005 movie, Clooney played Edward R. Murrow in the story about his and CBS’s showdown with Sen. Joseph McCarthy, during the so-called red scare and communist witch hunt of the 1950s.
But Clooney and the commentators at CNN made no attempt to hide the fact that this was meant as a warning to America and an attack on President Donald Trump.
GEORGE CLOONEY: What’s fun about the play is, although McCarthyism was bad, it wasn’t anywhere near as pervasive as it is right now. The kind of fear that you see kind of stretching through law firms and universities.
ANDERSON COOPER: You think it’s worse now than McCarthy’s time?
CLOONEY: I do think it is worse now.
The most talked about book and story in the news this past month was undoubtedly Jake Tapper’s “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,” (co-written by Alex Thompson). The book is an indictment and confession that the legacy media, and specifically CNN, were in the tank for the Democrats and Joe Biden at the expense of the truth and truth-to-power.
The Tapper position is basically that, yes, they knew that Joe had lost a step or two, but they were shocked to find out that there was a whole group of aides who were acting as the puppet masters, and even prepared, if reelected, to have him do his second term in a wheelchair. But it all came unglued during the June 27 debate with Trump, where Biden struggled to speak and said, at one point, “I killed Medicare,” along with a whole series of incoherent gaffes, statements and gestures, both during the debate and in post-debate interviews, to the extent that there was no more possibility of claiming he wasn’t in serious decline.
Most of these “truth-to-power,” morally superior journalists and commentators who participated in CNN’s theatrical propaganda exercise are guilty of participating in the massive scandal that goes way beyond covering up the fact that Joe Biden was not in the role, other than titular, of Commander in Chief. Whether it was Jill or Hunter Biden, Barack Obama or the so-called Politburo of Ron Klain, Anita Dunn, Steve Ricchetti, Bruce Reed and Michael Donilon, we’ll have to wait at least for former White House press secretary and former Democrat Karine Jean-Pierre’s tell-all to find out who was really pulling those strings.
But the focus should be much greater than just the cover-up of Biden’s cognitive decline and the fact that unelected aides were managing the Autopen Presidency. That would let the media off the hook for a much broader pattern of lies, misrepresentations, selective coverage, and outright suppression of inconvenient truths.
What Else Did the Media Get Wrong?
If the press could so thoroughly obscure the reality of Biden’s condition, then many of the other narratives they have been pushing need to be re-examined as well. In fact, they have, by many journalists and commentators. Here are just a few such topics:
- Weaponization of Federal Agencies: The Biden administration clearly politicized and weaponized the DOJ, FBI, and other agencies to target political opponents, namely Donald Trump and a number of his allies. Allegations of selective prosecution and the use of federal power for partisan ends have been met with either skepticism or silence in much of the mainstream press. Examples include the Russia collusion hoax, two impeachments, and the various criminal and civil cases of pure and simple lawfare brought against Trump by Fani Willis, Jack Smith, Alvin Bragg, and Letitia James. These days, lawfare comes in the form of district judges blocking Trump from carrying out policies and employment decisions that clearly fall within his Article 2 Executive Branch authority.
- Foreign Grants and NGO Funding: Congressional investigations have exposed controversial USAID and State Department grants under Biden, including funding for projects abroad that align with radical social agendas. These revelations have received scant attention outside conservative media. The federal government should completely get out of the business of funding NGOs and universities. Their donors already get tax deductions.
- Border Policy and Immigration: Reports of late-night flights carrying unvetted migrants, distribution of Social Security cards to migrants, and cash vouchers at the border have surfaced, but mainstream outlets have often downplayed or ignored these stories, framing border issues through a narrow lens.
- January 6th: Coverage of January 6, 2021, remains sharply divided along partisan lines, with left-leaning outlets focusing on Trump’s alleged culpability in what they label an insurrection, while right-leaning outlets highlight FBI and DOJ participation and overreach, and the question of who was responsible for the shortage of security that day. The media’s selective presentation of facts has deepened public distrust and polarized the national conversation.
- Crime and Public Safety: The narrative of rising crime and lax enforcement, often in sanctuary cities and states, is often minimized, with media coverage focusing instead on police reform and social justice, leaving many Americans feeling their concerns are dismissed.
- Foreign Policy and China: The Biden administration’s approach to China—including ending the China Initiative, the spy balloon incident, and easing sanctions—has raised questions about U.S.-China relations, and specifically, how the Biden family profited to the tune of tens of millions of dollars directly paid by people connected to the Chinese Communist Party. Yet, critical scrutiny has been limited, especially regarding potential conflicts of interest or collusion. The evidence in this case of corruption and betrayal is overwhelming.
The media’s failure to hold their allies on the left accountable is not limited to the Biden health cover-up. It is a systemic issue that undermines democracy and erodes public trust. The public deserves honest reporting, rigorous oversight, and a press willing to challenge all those in power—not just when it’s politically convenient.
They act like it takes great courage to criticize Trump, when just the opposite is true. The fact is, if you’re not Scott Jennings on CNN, you are hard pressed to find anyone on MSNBC, CNN, NBC, ABC or CBS who would say something positive, or even neutral about Trump.
Following the airing of the play last weekend, CNN had a couple hours more of panel discussions and interviews about the point of the show and the moment in history. Bret Stephens, now a columnist with the New York Times, was the only one of about 10 panelists to challenge the group on whether they are defenders of free speech, truth and facts, or defenders of Democrats and other leftists because, as they see it, Trump is such a once-in-a-lifetime threat to America and democracy that that is the only legitimate position to take.
One more thing. Within just minutes of the start of the play and its airing on CNN on June 7, the third leg of horse racing’s triple crown, the Belmont Stakes, took place. In the race, Sovereignty defeated Journalism, which came in second. Make of it what you will.
The views expressed in CCNS member articles are not necessarily the views or positions of the entire CCNS. They are the views of the authors, who are members of the CCNS.
