NEW ARTICLE: Jack Cashill And The Wrong Side of History
Topic: WorldNetDaily
The WorldNetDaily columnist seems to enjoy defending the worst people -- like insurrectionists, racist congressmen, charlatan filmmakers and killer cops. Read more >>

MRC Defends Aaron Rodgers For Not Getting Vaccinated
Topic: Media Research Center

The Media Research Center was already giving love to pro football quarterback Aaron Rodgers in an Oct. 20 post, when the mysterious Jay Maxson gushed over how Rodgers "became the latest celebrity to speak out against cancel culture. A blight on the nation, cancel culture is part of a soft society that attempts to shrink and silence people, the Packers’ quarterback observed on the Pat McAfee Show," adding how "The quarterback said American society is “soft” and intolerant of people’s right to disagree. He criticized how people can’t have “back and forths” disagreements without somebody feeling offended."

In retrospect, one wonders if Rodgers was trying to buy himself a little right-wing inoculation against an upcoming scandal -- which broke a couple weeks later when itwas revealed that Rodgers lied to his Green Bay Packers team about being vaccinated against COVID (his insistence that he didn't notwithstanding), falsely claiming he was "immunized" when actually he was taking dubious medications like ivermectin. He then tested positive for COVID. Of couirse, the MRC -- whose sports bloggers have been pushing anti-vaxxer arguments for a while now -- launched a full-throated defense of Rodgers.

Matt Philbin devoted a Nov. 5 post to Rodgers saying all the conservatively correct things in defending his selfishness:

Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers has suddenly become one of the great villains in pro sports. He caught the covid this week and it turns out he never got vaccinated. Thus, sneering sports mandarins like Nancy Armour cast him out into the darkness as “anti-science.”

It won’t help that Rodgers isn’t contrite. In fact, he’s fighting back. Appearing on the Pat McAfee Show, the sidelined (for the week) superstar said, “I realize I’m in the crosshairs of the woke mob right now,” and he wanted to address some of the issues about him and the vaccine, “before my final nail gets put in my cancel culture casket.”

Sounds like a guy who knows exactly what’s going on. He called the hysteria around athletes’ reluctance to get vaccinated “a witch hunt..” He also pointed out that "Every member of the left" was anti-vaccine until Joe Biden took office. And he’s right. There are plenty of examples of lefties expressing reluctance to take any drug developed during the Trump Administration.

Actually, he's wrong. As we documented when Philbin's fellow MRC workers pushed this right-wing narrative, Trump was cynically using the promise of a vaccine as a re-election ploy and thus couldn't be trusted about the vaccines' efficacy (not to mention his being a congenital liar), and top Democrats including Joe Biden and Katherine Harris said they would trust credible medical officials.

Philbin went on to uncritically quote Rodgers insisting that "I'm not an anti-vax, flat-earther,” and that he had allergies to two of the available shots, though he didn't demand evidence from Rodgers to back that up or explain why Rodgers should be taken at his word.

But the MRC is blindly loyal to anyone who spouts their agenda, and Rodgers is their new champion. Maxson used a Nov. 9 post to defend Rodgers from criticism by NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:

When athletes like Rodgers say something stupid, “the public trust in athletes lowers and sponsors might consider avoiding players in favor of actors, pop stars, or social media influencers.” Woke athletes like Stephen Curry and LeBron James don’t have to worry about that (by parroting left-wing narratives), but young, rising stars might be denied lucrative advertising deals.

The NBA’s all-time leading scorer went through a whole litany of statistics in defending vaccinations, calling Rodgers ignorant for not doing likewise and taking the jab. He said it’s a lie that Rodgers is passionate about people’s health.

The hardcore lefty never questioned his pal James’ veracity when the current Lakers’ star said blacks are hunted by police and that racist remarks were spray-painted on his L.A. mansion. It's the outrageous social justice and race-baiting like that which has crushed the NBA's favorability ratings.

Maxson went on to sneer that Abdul-Jabbar "has often been judged by the weak content of his character," but linked only to his (or her) own posts as evidence of that "judging."

The defensive whining continued:

• A Nov. 9 post by Kristine Marsh cheered that "Rodgers pushed back against the “woke mob” for pushing for his cancellation from sponsorships and the excessive media criticism of him" and bashed "The View" co-host Sunny Hostin for criticizing him, huffing that "'Tolerant' leftists want to punish anyone who mocks their totalitarian impulses."
• Maxson returned to play whataboutism that the Packers "were subjected to a massive fine over COVID-19 protocol violations, while Henry Ruggs III and Deshaun Watson, who allegedly committed far greater offenses, have not been fined a penny." He (or she) then tried to soft-pedal Rodgers' lie to his team: "It was learned that in preseason he was immunized, but not vaccinated. He then engaged unsuccessfully with the NFL in an attempt to get the league to approve of the immunization. He’s been accused of intentionally lying about being vaccinated."
• The next day, Maxson played whataboutism on Abdul-Jabbar for criticizing Rodgers while his son "received a ridiculously light sentence for stabbing a man to within an inch of his life."
• Maxson served up even more whataboutism on a sportswriter who critricized Rodgers while also being a defender of Colin Kaepernick, whom Maxson obsessively hates: "There is no real comparing Rodgers’ refusal to take shots or wear a mask in public with a malcontent who led countless athletes astray and a deepening of the American divide.

Maxson whined on Nov. 15 about vaccinated NFL players who contracted COVID being treated differently than Rodgers:

Vaccinations are not fool-proof preventers of COVID-19. They are, however, “vaccinations” against objective reporting by out-and-out dishonest sports media. The stories of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Minnesota Vikings guard Dakota Dozier and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers are living proof.

As most people know by now, the media went berserk over Rodgers, who said he had been “immunized” before catching COVID-19 and sitting out last week’s game. Dozier and Roethlisberger were vaccinated and still caught the coronavirus, but they both got treated with kid gloves by woke media hypocrites.

Maxson didn't mention that one big reason for the disparate treatment is that those players didn't lie about being vaccinated, like Rodgers did.

In a Nov. 18 post, John Simmons cheered that the NFL "hilariously outsmarted by Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on their vaccine policy," whic his a funny way of describing how Rodgers lied to his team and embraced dubious treatments instead of actually getting vaccinated. He went on to grumble that "The overreaching, nonsensical, and fear-based protocols the NFL has implemented throughout the year have ignored science, disregarded personal choice, and divided the league between the good (vaccinated) and bad (unvaccinated) people.

On Nov. 28, Maxson sympathetically reframed Rodgers being a jerk into him merely telling a joke that people who aren't his fans didn't get:

The Wall Street Journal didn’t get the joke. After Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers confirmed he has a broken toe last week, he humorously called it “COVID toe.” That remark was in reference to massive media coverage of him previously catching the coronavirus after not having been vaccinated. The WSJ took the joke as truth – hook, line and sinker – and ran a story on it.

[...]

Nonetheless, a day later, the WSJ’s Andrew Beaton reported that Rodgers is dealing with “a mysterious and painful toe injury.” He reported “COVID toe” is a real ailment related to people with the coronavirus and sore toes.

Maxson offered no evidence that Rodgers was, in fact, telling a joke beyond uncritically quoting Rodgers complaining about the coverage of his statement.

Simmons was still defending Rodgers in a Dec. 17 post, this time against Presdient Biden:

Let’s get one thing straight: President Joe Biden has proven in his tenure in the White House that he is not an expert in … well, pretty much anything, and certainly not in how individuals should handle their own health.

That is why one cannot help but laugh at Biden’s latest quip on what he thinks Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers should do regarding the COVID vaccine.

While visiting communities in Kentucky that were devasted by tornadoes this past weekend, Biden had an interaction with a woman wearing a winter hat with the Packers logo in which he told the people that Rodgers should get the vaccine. The people laughed at his quip, and Biden continued to inspect the devastation.

But the truth is, Rodgers should not get vaccinated just because someone else wants him to or because outside voices are pressuring him – not even when it’s the President of the United States.

You know who else isn't a health expert? Aaron Rodgers. It's clearhe did not confirm with his own team's health experts before lying to them about being vaccinated. But Simmons is more than happy to give him a pass on that lie by insisting his claim of being "immunized" actually means something (and because he's now a right-wing hero):

Rodgers stated before the beginning of the season that he was “immunized” against COVID, but was crucified when the media found out that he was not vaccinated. Everyone from sports reporters to talk show hosts painted him as a dangerous, anti-science attention seeker when it was further discovered that he consulted Joe Rogan on what medications he should take to keep himself healthy.

But those same people are perfectly fine when governments, businesses, and even some people’s family and friends demand that we take the vaccine because they think it is the only way to salvation from COVID-19. Furthermore, it’s always funny how our government leaders think that they hold the monopoly on all the effective treatments to fight sicknesses. Our bodies and other methods have helped us do just fine for thousands of years before vaccines came on the medical scene.

So, even if the most powerful man in the free world thinks that you should get the vaccine, neither you, nor Rodgers, nor anyone should feel like they have to. Make your own choices, and do not apologize to anyone once you do.

It should also be noted that Simmons has offered no health expertise either -- he's just spouting right-wing anti-vaxxer rhetoric.

CNS Catholic Priest Columnist Pushes More Anti-Vaxxer Attitudes
Topic: CNSNews.com

We've documented how Rev. Michael P. Orsi uses his CNSNews.com columns to sound much more like a right-wing activist than thet Catholic priest he's supposed to be. He has continued to place activism above religion in his CNS columns. He served up a dangerously contradictory message -- and perpetuated his previously expressed anti-vaxxer notions -- in his Oct. 21 column, praising medical professionals who have worked through the COVID pandemic, then fearmongering about COVID vaccines and cheering doctors and nurses who refuse to get vaccinated:

“Following the science” has also brought us to an ironic situation where we’re under extreme pressure to accept vaccines whose effectiveness is highly questionable, and for which evidence is accumulating that they can be harmful.

This is unprecedented. In the past, when some new vaccine or medication was seen to cause harm, it would be pulled from the market immediately.

[...]

Among those who are most hesitant about the vaccines — and most vocal in their skepticism — are medical professionals themselves. Numerous doctors are sacrificing hospital privileges over their refusals to be inoculated. Nurses are quitting their staff positions. We face an actual healthcare crisis because of it.

Many of these folks have gone on record with public statements, social media posts, and online videos warning about the vaccines. They’re making their case with frightening accounts of negative reactions, including heart damage, blood clotting, loss of physical capacities, and deaths, even among the young and otherwise healthy.

Suddenly, those who recently were hailed as heroes find themselves criticized and shunned, even mocked and belittled, by health agencies, hospitals, government officials, and the news media.

Perhaps worst of all, the general public — we who so often find ourselves as patients dependent on medical expertise — have been thrown into a state of utter confusion. The credibility of the entire healthcare profession has been seriously undermined.

Whose advise are we to trust, when there’s a multiplicity of conflicting claims and theories, when the recommendations and guidelines and official pronouncements of our purported authorities keep changing from day to day?

To whom can we turn when we need help and healing?

Orsi then lamented the "profoundly negative effect on the social and moral fabric of our country, on our sense of community, driving wedges between people, alienating friends and family members"-- but he qiuickly went conspiratorial, declaring that "it all feels highly contrived. It could very well be intentional — an element in some plan of those who seek to weaken our nation and diminish American influence in the world. And you can be sure there are plenty of such people, who are willing to do the devil’s work, who won’t “let a crisis go to waste,” as it’s been said. In fact, Satan is having a field day right now." It appears never to have occurred to Orsi that the people spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines are the ones doing the "devil's work" here.

Orsi concluded this column by serving up another contradictory message:

Make no mistake, this virus is real. It’s brought genuine tragedy. Colin Powell is only the latest high-profile example of the many folks who’ve died of COVID and its complications. I’ve known plenty of others.

Though I have received the vaccine myself, I take no personal position on its efficacy or safety. I’m not a doctor or a scientist, so the feelings I express are based only on what I hear and read. I can’t offer definitive proof of my own, one way or the other.

I simply don’t know.

It does seem to me, however, that this pandemic is being exploited to achieve objectives that have very little to do with protecting public health — and much more to do with socialist-inspired ideological dreams.

Doctors, nurses, and others who are resisting the mad vaccine rush are doing an inestimable service in raising critical questions at this critical time. They’re forcing us to take a closer look at an increasingly desperate situation.

Once again they are proving themselves to be real heroes.

Orsi is trying to have it both ways -- admitting that "the virus is real" and that he got vaccinated while trying to take "no personal position on its efficacy or safety" and praising doctors and nurses who have fallen for conspiracy theories and endangering others and themselves by not getting vaccinated. But if Orsi is vaccinated, he has, in fact, taken a "personal position" on the issue, and he's acting irresponsibly and hypocritically by encouraging anti-vaxxer attitudes. He's trying to make "heroes" out of people who aren't heroes at all.

By remaining deliberately obtuse about the vaccines' safety and efficacy, Orsi is contributing to the exploitation of the pandemic -- not by "socialist-inspired ideological dreams" but by radical right-wing reactionaries who care even less about public health. That's a place no Catholic priest should choose to be, but that's exactly where Orsi is.

Orsi echoed this attitude in his Nov. 9 column, in which he huffed: "What we’ve always assumed to be basic rights have been seriously eroded. The issue of vaccine mandates is only the most visible area in which the assault on personal autonomy is taking place. At any time we could be called upon to defend ourselves, our families, or our beliefs."

Orsi is again sounding like a right-wing activist, not a Catholic priest, pretending that public health doesn't matter and individual freedom trumps everything.

Does MRC's Promotion Of Bozell's New Book Violate Nonprofit Rules?
Topic: Media Research Center

For the past few months, the Media Research Center has been giving aggressive promotion to chief Brent Bozell's new memoir, "Stops Along The Way," mainly in the form of numerous emails to the MRC's mailing list. One email, for example, has the usual conservative talking heads serving up blurbs for the book, though it didn't correct Pat Boone calling the MRC the "Media Research Council." The MRC's various websites have also run prominent ads promoting the book.

It's unclear, though, how this effort to soften Bozell's image meshes with the guy who's best known for calling President Obama a "skinny ghetto crackhead."

Those emails, though, usually state that they are "a product of MRC." But is that even legal? It's clear that Bozell's book is a personal memoir that's not tied to the MRC's mission -- which means the MRC could be violating IRS nonprofit tax law by allowing its assets, such as mailing lists, to be used for the personal use of another. We also don't know if Bozell has compensated the MRC for use of its mailing list for personal use or for the website ads. We asked the MRC about this in a message, but it hasn't gotten back to us.

Meanwhile, the MRC's NewsBusters has been shilling for Bozell's book in ostensible "news" items -- another use of a nonprofit's resources for personal use. An anonymously written Dec. 10 post linked to a 20-minute-long segment devoted to Bozell and his book by right-wing radio host and MRC buddy Mark Levin (with whom the MRC may or may not have a cross-promotion deal with), which got this mushy introduction:

“I thought now would be a perfect time to bring back one of the great American patriots on this program, one of the people who each and every day – mostly behind the scenes but publicly when he’s called upon – is fighting for your liberty,” Levin declared in his gracious introduction of Bozell. Levin added: “And in doing so, he is taking on the American media, because he knows that they’ve turned into a propaganda and tyrannical organization pushing an agenda and an ideology, but he knew it before most of us.”

The rest of the interview was just as softball. Funny, we thought the MRC hated softball interviews.

Another anonymously written post, on Dec. 14, touted Bozell's book-shilling appearance on Newsmax with host Greg Kelly, with more promotional mush:

“There is Brent Bozell, he is the President and founder of the Media Research Center, and he is also the author of the new book, Stops Along The Way: A Catholic Soul, A Conservative Heart, An Irish Temper, And A Love of Life,” host Greg Kelly introduced at the top of the segment. He then cited this “gem” form the book: “If a conservative is a liberal who’s been mugged, then a right-wing nut job is a liberal who just survived a communist machete attack.”

[...]

Kelly read another line: “It is that unflinching knowledge of both sides of any issue that makes a conservative out of a liberal. And it is the reason why conservatives always outscore liberals on political knowledge tests.” He remarked: “Number one, I did not know that about the political knowledge.”

Bozell might want to get right with the IRS -- or explain to us why he already is -- before he uses his MRC again to shill for his personal purposes.

Biden Derangement Syndrome, Mychal Massie Division
Topic: WorldNetDaily

This brings me to the point I wish to address. I saw an Associated Press headline this morning that read, "After unrelenting summer, Biden looks to get agenda on track." Exactly what agenda is it that Biden must get back on track?

His goal is the transmogrification of America into a government-controlled and government-dependent dystopia, where the life force is used to support a despiteous plexus of self-interested necromancers lording control over the necropolis that was once an admired nation. Exactly what part of that agenda is not on track?

[...]

Why do you think there's been no effort on the part of the GOP to remove Biden from office? Biden is the poster person for the legal phrase non compos mentis, i.e., not capable mentally and not of a sound mind.

What else must Biden do to prove his mental deficiency? Does he have to collapse at the podium during a press conference? Oh! Wait! He's already done that. Maybe if he decided to publicly micturate during an interview. Oh! Wait! He does the equivalent of that every time he opens his mouth. In fact he added the voluntary act of encopresis on the military and their families when he, like Obama, before him abandoned American military to be murdered by the sub-humans only marginally less palatable than himself.

Republicans won't lift a finger to have Biden removed from office because he is cash cow for their fundraising. They're using Biden to raise literally hundreds upon hundreds of millions of dollars that will never be used to the benefit of America and/or the public they claim to represent.

-- Mychal Massie, Sept. 6 WorldNetDaily column

Biden's cognitively impaired to the point of needing sticky pictures to find and use the bathroom, but that's his problem. There's no way on this earth that I will surrender my right to protect my body and my life against his death-dealing overreach regarding the jab.

[...]

If, as Biden claims, this China flu is of great concern, I say prove it by providing the same freedom to determine what's best for me as with the murder of babies. Make ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine as available as late-term baby-killing. Biden and his kind will undoubtedly argue there's a difference between baby-killing and "my body my choice," and what he is demanding I must allow myself to be poisoned with.

But, how many people have dropped dead moments after being infected with the deadly injections Biden is demanding we submit to? How many women have experienced miscarriages within days/weeks of being injected with this experimental drug Biden's panhandling? Of the millions of people who have been taking ivermectin for decades and/or the great number of people taking hydroxychloroquine, how many have developed life-altering permanent maladies in comparison to the number of who have after being infected with Biden's drugs?

-- Mychal Massie, Sept. 13 WND column

Biden may be a diaper-wearing molester with dementia, but he's cashed in on a criminal enterprise that would make Al Capone proud. Biden, his son Hunter and reportedly Biden's brother have cashed in to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars because of Biden holding political office.

-- Mychal Massie, Sept. 27 WND column

All things considered, it doesn't take a fortune-teller or palm reader to predict Joe Biden isn't long for this earth. At least he isn't long for this earth in a bipedal position.

It's not just delusional and an outright lie to argue Biden is competent to execute the most basic functions associated with the office his minions stole; it is a sign of psychological impairment. Biden is a shuffling, mumbling, disaster of a human being who, as I have oft said, needs sticky notes with pictures on them posted in bathrooms to show him how to pull down his zipper.

He is the semi-ambulatory textbook definition of non compos mentis, which is a legal phrase for "not of sound mind or not mentally competent to conduct one's affairs." The same was the case with Barack Obama in December of 2010, when there were "allegedly" unconfirmed whisperings that Obama was unstable and being heavily medicated.

[...]

The point I want to make is that whatever productive years Biden had remaining are now squarely in the rearview mirror of his failed life. Harris' ability to do to voters what she did to married men is not a skill set worthy of office. And Pelosi is in the same condition as Biden when it comes to lucidity.

-- Mychal Massie, Oct. 18 WND column

Once again Jimmy Carter can breathe easier as another layer of worthless, ineffectual, bigoted, racist flesh now separates him from being the worse president in the history of America. Obama earned that title on steroids; but records are made to be broken, and that brings me to "Dementia Joe Biden."

Carter was and is a racist anti-civil rights crusader who loved to tell how his mama took care of their "nigras." Obama is a racist contradiction in terms and values whose wife redefines uncouth. He embraces Islam, but publicly admits to having a ravenous sexual appetite for white men. The Obama woman is alleged to have a voracious appetite for vodka and men.

But this isn't about previous failures; it's about Biden. He's a ghost of a man who needs note cards to count to five even when his fingers are available. Looking into his eyes is like looking at a sign that says "vacancy." His eyes are dead and lifeless. You can literally watch the difficulty he has in putting words into sentence form. His is truly the sad end result of a wasted life.

It's no secret that Biden has always been a drunken, womanizing, open-his-mouth-and-anything-comes-out simpleton. Colleagues on Capitol Hill who like him publicly concede with little or no prompting that he is a mean-spirited yet sometimes likable guy who isn't very smart.

The dolorous facial expression he exhibits reminds the public of a person staring at a digital clock, unable to tell the time. What does that say about the people trying to convince We the Public that Biden is capable of lifting a glass to his mouth without pouring the liquid on his chest?

[...]

Biden came from essentially nothing. He was a drunken blowhard in Scranton before hitching his wagon to the erstwhile villainy of Delaware by obtaining a political career that has been beneficial to the unsavory of the moneyed class in that state.

Allegations abound that he stole his friend's wife. His drug-addicted, sex-obsessed son is reported by reputable sources to have been sexually involved with a prepubescent family member – so why should it be a surprise that Biden is mistreating and betraying We the People?

[...]

I'd conclude with "Let's go, Brandon!" Your poll numbers should prove the truth of my words. I'd also remind him that with his health failing rapidly, it might make sense to think about eternity. Because, in my faith, homosexuality, advocating for murdering children, lies, adultery and sexual molestation are not pendants to wave on one's deathbed – even if you're a Biden.

-- Mychal Massie, Nov. 8 WND column

We the People should not be discussing the outcome of Mr. Rittenhouse's trial; we should be outraged that Joe Biden hasn't been charged and removed from office (along with all members of his Cabinet and staff), because of the ineptitude of a mentally diminished sot who epitomizes non compos mentis. Add to that the fact the supposed leader of this nation betrayed and abandoned American military men/women and allies in one of the deadliest places on earth.

Biden has been openly disinterested in the fact that significant numbers of religious missionaries are facing death every day they remain in the chamber pot of cultural devolvement. His betrayal of the church is not surprising; after all, in his mind "the church" is a brothel where the idea of communion is commensurate with rape, adultery, molestation, familial child molestation, baby-killing and the most grotesque forms of hebephrenia and psychological breakdowns acted out as sexual normalcy.

As the supposed commander in chief, he should impeached with prejudice. Being commander in chief is more than playing dress-up and getting your jollies by returning the salutes of those he and his kind openly despise.

-- Mychal Massie, Nov. 22 WND column

MRC Continues To Falsely Cry 'Censorship' Over YouTube Videos
Topic: Media Research Center

The Media Research Center just loves to cry "censorship" over thing that are not, in fact, actual censorship. Catherine Salgado complained in a Dec. 7 post:

Apparently history is too dangerous to teach children. YouTube has censored a Young America’s Foundation (YAF) video about “Victims of Socialism,” restricting the video on the grounds that it is not “suitable” for kids.

YAF said it was notified by YouTube that the “Victims of Socialism” lecture video “may not be suitable for viewers under the age of 18.” The lecture or talk by retired Unitek Information Services, Inc. Chief Financial Officer George Harbison is now age-restricted and bears a warning that “This video may be inappropriate for some users.”

Harbison warned in the talk about the rise of socialism’s popularity in America, speaking on socialism’s many tragic victims, “slain innocents,” to explain why Americans should be alarmed by the trend.

Harbison’s presentation included images of victims of socialist regimes, including children. YAF tweeted a purported screenshot of YouTube’s censorship, saying, “Meanwhile, content featuring drag queens and transgenderism is available on-demand to viewers of any age.”

First: Neither Salgado nor YAF provide any evidence that Harbison has any sort of special expertise on "the victims of socialism" -- he worked in finance, after all.Has Harbison's presentation been vetted by actual historians, or is it just a right-wing rant from a right-wing group? We don't know.

Second: Putting an age restriction on a video is not "censorship." We don't recall the MRC ever claiming that keeping children from viewing materials that are insufficiently hateful of LGBT people was "censorship." Nevertheless, Salgado went on to complain:

YouTube has a history of putting age restrictions on videos it dislikes. The preview for Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s documentary series “Patriot Purge” about the events of Jan. 6 recently received age restrictions and a warning that the content “may be inappropriate for some users.” Former ABC reporter John Stossel’s anti-socialism video was age-restricted in 2018 by YouTube.

As with the YAF video, Salgado didn't explain why we should treat the work of a right-wing "reporter" like Stossel at face value. She also failed to prove her contention that YouTube adds age restrictions only on "videos it dislikes" -- which, in Salgado's biased telling, involves only right-wing videos; she cited only a couple of cherry-picked examples. Indeed, we didn't have to look far to find that a video referencing World AIDS Day had an age restriction placed on it, something we don't recall Salgado or anyone else at the MRC complaining about.

The MRC is more and more crying wolf by continuing to cry "censorship" when no censorship is actually happening.

Chuck Norris Abuses His WND Column Again By Shilling For His Gold-Selling Employer
Topic: WorldNetDaily

Chuck Norris just loves to abuse the privilege (such as it is) of writing a column for WorldNetDaily by using it to shill for the gold-selling company he's a spokesman for. (WND doesn't have a problem with it, though, which tells you all you need to know about its editorial standards.) Norris' Nov. 8 column is his most blatant column ad ever, mostly because he's selling a silver coin with his likeness on it -- with a healthy dose of right-wing fearmongering and shilling for his employer:

I am so happy and honored to introduce to you the very first ever Chuck Norris Limited Edition Silver Coin from GOLDCO, a leader in the precious metals industry for whom I am honored to be a spokesman. Making the coin available is my way to show my appreciation to all of you who have supported me throughout my life. I want you to reap the benefits of silver to build long term wealth and protect your family's financial future, too.

Today, in our unstable economy and jobs that offer little to no long-term security, you never know when what you have can be totally lost or taken away. I don't have to remind you that America has lost her way and is in chaos on so many fronts. The proof is all around us. Goods are being held offshore. A massive and growing shortage of truck drivers to deliver those goods paralyzes commerce. Shelves in stores are already empty and projected to be wastelands for the holidays. With millions losing their jobs over refusals to be vaccinated, Biden's mandate mania is driving hundreds of thousands of more companies and local businesses to the brink of bankruptcy. As if lockdowns didn't do enough needless damage?

And let's not forget inflation is at a 30-year high, crazy high government spending is out of control, already leaving us with a gargantuan federal debt that will surpass $30 trillion by the end of the year. And to add insult to injury, the White House and Democratic Congress just passed another spending bill that will add another $2 trillion to the national credit card! Is Washington government run amok or what?

That is why there has never been a better time to diversify and invest in precious metals. Whatever minor fluctuations there are in year-to-year markets, precious metal investments are some of the most sound and rewarding, according to financial experts. And silver is your perfect option. As one charter financial analyst and precious metal expert estimated: "Uptrend in Silver Prices Looks Promising, Might Hit $50 per Ounce."

So, why not start or add to your silver collection with the brand-new Chuck Norris Silver Coin? Each coin weighs 31.10g, contains 1.0 Troy Ounce of 0.999 pure Silver, and is the size of a Silver Eagle. The reverse of the coin is engraved with the 5 principles for life that my mother instilled in me: Faith, Family, Fitness, Freedom, and Fight. A Certificate of Authenticity is included. The obverse of the coin features the Niue effigies Coat of Arms and Public Seal. This first-ever, legal tender Chuck Norris coin comes ready to showcase and enjoy with its own real wood display stand and patriotic packaging as an ode to my and others' military service.

Norris also wamts you to know that this coin -- worthless outside of its silver value (which in itself doesn't make it the "legal tender" Norris claims it is) and alleged collectible -- makes a great Christmas gift, and that he had this extremely stilted conversation with his mother:

My 100-year-young mom was so thrilled to receive her first Chuck Norris Silver Coin. As she did, she said to me, reflecting back upon the struggle of our family's early years in poverty, "This sure will buy a lot of caramels!" We both laughed out loud!

But then I said quite seriously, "Mom, thanks to our GOLDCO precious metal investments, we and our family will never have to face a future of financial uncertainty again."

My wife, Gena, and I pray your family members will be able to say the same. We believe they can, and it all could start with gifting them their first limited edition Chuck Norris Silver Coin. Supplies are limited, and the coins are almost all gone, so please get yours today here.

You mean all those years of TV andmovie acting didn't shore up Norris' finances? Or even the money GOLDCO is paying Norris to turn his column into the crassest form of self-promotional advertising?

NEW ARTICLE: CNS And The False School Board Narrative
Topic: CNSNews.com
CNSNews.com parroted its Media Research Center parent in pushing the falsehood that a national school boards group and the Justice Department want to criminalize all people who speak out at school board meetings. Read more >>

MRC Psaki-Bashing, Doocy-Fluffing Watch, Doocy-Free Edition
Topic: Media Research Center

The Media Research Center's Curtis Houck found a biased right-wing reporter whose name wasn't Peter Doocy to ask hostile questions to  Jen Psaki during the Dec. 6 White House press briefing:

During Monday’s episode of The Psaki Show, New York Post reporter Steven Nelson made the most of his infrequent opportunities to question Press Secretary Jen Psaki by invoking news about Hunter Biden’s Chinese business dealings and Miranda Devine’s new book about Hunter’s laptop. However, Psaki wanted nothing to do with either of them

Nelson began by citing a new and “big report” out of the Biden administration concerning “corruption” as a way of asking “two quick and hopefully pretty easy questions about that”(which ironically cited art sales as a key vehicle for money laundering).

[...]

Predictably, Psaki dismissed its importance since “the President’s son is not an employee of the federal government, so I’d point you to his representatives.”

As for the Devine book, The Laptop From Hell, Nelson said he “was hoping that you could confirm that the laptop is indeed authentic and not Russian disinformation as you seemed to suggest on Twitter last year.”

Psaki’s answer? She was even less interested: “And, as it relates to the book, I have neither had the time nor interest in exploring or reading the book.”

Nelson attempted to follow up, but Psaki wanted to go to the next reporter, arguing she had “answered your question” and reiterated he “can go to the representative of the person who’s not an employee of the federal government.”

Houck didn't mention that Nelson was shilling for his employer -- Devine is a fellow New York Post writer -- or that the Post is a right-wing newspaper owned by Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch.

Houck had another Doocy-less briefing on Dec. 7, but he found another Fox reporter to crush on for pushing her employer's anti-Biden talking points:

Tuesday’s White House press briefing was jam-packed amid Russian troops gathering on the border with Ukraine and a high-stakes call between President Biden and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, so it was a welcome sight when Fox’s Jacqui Heinrich and others highlighted the U.S.’s acquiescence to Russia on the Nord Stream II pipeline, Biden’s lack of public comments about the tensions, and whether he’ll handle it differently than Afghanistan.

Following lengthy remarks and a Q&A with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, CBS’s Nancy Cordes set up Press Secretary Jen Psaki by wondering whether the White House has “put plans in place in case Americans in Ukraine need to be evacuated quickly.”

[...]

As for Heinrich, she had two questions about Nord Stream II with one pertaining to whether the administration regrets greenlighting it and about whether they believe Russia is “using gas as a geopolitical weapon.”

[...]

Heinrich ended with a question on rising crime and specifically whether the White House agrees with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) that claims of a rise in smash-and-grab robberies are fake news:

Then, for unexplained reasons, Houck took the rest of the week off. Perhaps Psaki-bashing isn't enough if he can't also engage n Doocy-fluffing?

More COVID Misinfo Courtesy of Joel Hirschhorn
Topic: WorldNetDaily

The torrent of COVID misinformation from WorldNetDaily columnist Joel Hirschhorn has not abated. In his Nov. 16 column, he continued to insist that mRNA-based COVID vaccines are actually gene therapy, and the government is lying by calling them vaccines:

The Centers for Disease Control, or CDC, once was a federal agency that nearly everyone respected. That no longer is the case. Now there are many reasons why the CDC should be widely disrespected. With over 10,000 Americans dying weekly from COVID-19, the CDC is not protecting public health. Its latest debacle is how it changed the definition of "vaccine."

Just imagine this: The entire push for COVID "vaccines" was based on a lie – they did not meet the official CDC definition of a vaccine. Through deception, the government could coerce the entire population to get the shot. Calling them "vaccines" was the biggest lie from Anthony Fauci and the key to drug companies making many billions of dollars.

Why would the government's key public health agency change the definition of what a vaccine is in the midst of a pandemic? And after millions of Americans have taken the shot? Now millions more are being beaten into taking it for the first time and others to get booster shots.

Here is the key point. It became widely recognized by medical experts and informed citizens that COVID vaccines clearly did not fit the official CDC vaccine definition. CDC thought the answer was not to fix what was deficient with the vaccines or stop their use by most people, as so many medical experts advised. The agency's response was to change the vaccine definition to fit the so-called vaccines.

This was done so that vaccine mandates could keep getting pushed by the government. Of course, the COVID "vaccines" should be referred to as gene therapy products, even more accurate than calling them experimental vaccines.

Again: mRNA vaccines are not gene therapy because they do not alter your genes.

Hirschhorn ranted against vaccines again in his Nov. 23 column:

Big Government, Big Pharma and Big Media have colluded to keep pushing mass COVID vaccination despite all the evidence that it is not stopping spread of the virus. High vaccination rates are not producing good results in many counties, states and countries.

Americans may not be mentally prepared to hear the really bad news: The COVID pandemic is not going to end What the government is doing (and not doing) will ensure no end to the pandemic. Keeping it going means more money for big drug companies and more preventable deaths.

 

[...]

An endless pandemic will mean billions of dollars going to big drug companies for vaccines and a new group of expensive pills announced by Merck and Pfizer; the U.S. government is paying $700 for the former and $500 for the latter treatment. They want to compete with cheap, established early treatment protocols, including use of ivermectin.

Here is the crucial point to keep in mind. Current vaccines, including booster shots, do not kill the virus and do not prevent spread of the virus from fully vaccinated people. And the loss of effectiveness, especially for variants like delta, explains why countless more people will get breakthrough infections that are killing some people, like what happened to Colin Powell recently.

Hirschhorn went on to reference one of his favorite COVID misinformers, "the eminent Dr. Peter McCollough," as well as Steve Kirsch, another misinformer who rants against vaccines and pushes dubious treatments like hydroxychloroquine. He continued to rant:

The government keeps the pandemic alive by pushing high numbers of cases, though these are not very meaningful medically speaking. They are not accurate measures of serious COVID infection. PCR testing is commonly manipulated to yield positive results by running the test beyond 25 cycles. That manipulation promotes vaccination. But positive tests say little about whether the infection is serious, which it is not for nearly all people. We approach 50 million cases in the U.S., but only about 1.6% are COVID deaths (mostly for elderly people).

This should be clear: Mass vaccination and mandates will not end the pandemic. But there is no hint that government leaders are interested in taking a new fresh approach to addressing the pandemic. Hundreds of thousands of people will die unnecessarily in the U.S. and even more globally. More deadly than the virus are feckless government officials.

In his Dec. 3 column, Hirschhorn rushed to embrace the analysis of "esteemed senior French scientist Dr. Jacques Fantini" regarding the Omicron variant -- even though its existence had only been made public just a few days earlier and much of the news coverage was speculative:

A review of studies found unequivocally that COVID vaccines do not stop viral transmission, with no difference between vaccinated and unvaccinated people. So, all real-world evidence is that omicron cannot be effectively addressed by COVID vaccines. Together with Fantini's work, the proper conclusion it that omicron will not be very transmissible nor be more infective than delta.

Because mutations will continue to produce variants, it is critically important to use the work of Fantini to accurately assess whether or not a new variant should evoke the fears and government responses that have sprung up so quickly for omicron.

Meanwhile, in the real world, Omicron has proven to be much more transissible than even the Delta variant, given how rapidly it has become the dominant variant the U.S.

Newsmax Censors Full Story About Abortion Pill Reversal
Topic: Newsmax

Eric Mack "reported" like he was writing a press release in a Nov. 8 Newsmax article:

A group of pro-life doctors is launching a campaign to promote "abortion-pill reversal" (APR) for women who suddenly regret their decision to take a chemical abortion pill.

"The Abortion Pill Rescue Network needs pro-life medical professionals like you to provide urgent care to women who regret starting medication abortions," the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG) website reads. "Abortion Pill Reversal uses Progesterone to reverse the effects of Mifepristone."

The APR can halt and reverse the effects of unwanted chemical abortions, and the website urges pro-life doctors to become providers and educate women on the life-saving drug.

"Abortion Pill Reversal is a method of attempting to block or reverse the effect of mifepristone on the developing fetus in order to save the life of the preborn child for women who regret their abortion decision," the website reads. "It is based on basic pharmacokinetic principles and the existing literature shows that it is safe and effective."

In fact, there's lots of evidence that abortion pill reversal is not "safe and effective," and little evidence that it works at all. Critics of the procedure have noted that studies claiming success are undermined by shoddy methodology,  and another study had to be halted because patients were suffering severe bleeding.

It seems Mack is taking the "news" out of Newsmax.

CNS Unemployment Coverage Distortion Watch
Topic: CNSNews.com

CNSNews.com reporter Susan Jones primed the upcoming report on November's emloyment numbers with a Dec. 1 article noting that both Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell agree that the "single most important thing" that will bring workers back into the workforce is "getting past the COVID-induced disruptions." She also tried to justify her selective obsession with the labor force participation rate (which occurs only when a Democrat is president) by cheering a Republican senator referencing it, then adding:

According to the Congressional Budget Office, "Labor force participation is an important component of economic growth: As more people participate in the labor force, firms are able to expand employment and increase production."  

Moreover, CBO notes: "Greater labor force participation is associated with higher tax revenues because the number of employed people, and therefore the number of people paying income and payroll taxes, tends to rise. It is also associated with lower spending on means-tested programs (which provide cash payments or other forms of assistance to people with relatively low income or few assets), such as Medicaid, and on refundable tax credits.”

Thus, in her Dec. 3 article after November's numbers came out, she led once again with the labor force particiipation rate, though it was actually good news:

In November, 99,977,000 people in this country did not have a job and were not looking for one -- a decrease of 473,000 since October and the lowest number since Joe Biden became president, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday.

This number reached a record high of 103,418,000 in April 2020, the fourth month of the coronavirus pandemic, and it has remained above 100,000,000 for 14 straight months until now.

Among those not in the labor force in November, 1.2 million people said were prevented from looking for work due to the pandemic, little changed from October.

Interestingly, Jones avoided mentioning who was president in April 2020. Also interestingly, she waited until the 11th paragraph of her article to mention the very good news that the unemployment rate went down to 4.2 percent. But Trump did get a name-check from Jones, when she once again reminded us of how good the economy was under him before the pandemic:

The labor force participation rate reached a Trump-era high of 63.4 percent in January 2020, just before the onset of COVID. In April 2020, the rate fell to a 47-year low of 60.2 percent. It has moved up since then, but until this month, it remained within a narrow range of 61.4 percent to 61.7 percent since June 2020.

Jones also rehashed her obsession with the labor force rate again, while also looking down on anyone who isn't working:

BLS describes labor force participation as an important labor market measure because it represents the relative amount of labor resources available for the production of goods and services.

Also, people who work contribute payroll and Social Security taxes that help support programs for people who do not work.

CNS didn't supply any of its usual sidebars on government employmenet and Hispanic employment. Perhaps that news was too good, and good economic news when a Democrat is president is bad news for CNS.

MRC Amplifies Its Lie About Networks Pushing Border Patrol Whips Claim
Topic: Media Research Center

A while back, we busted Media Research Center writer Nicholas Fondacaro for falsely asserting that evening network newscasts reported that Border Patrol agents on horseback were whipping Haitian migrants -- despite the fact that none of the cliips he supplied ever showed anyone using the word "whips." Curtis Houc repeated thte lie in a Nov. 17 post:

On Tuesday night, the liberal major broadcast networks ignored on an important update to the investigation on the fake whips story along the southern border as the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general declined to investigate claims that Border Patrol agents used whips in September against Haitians illegally crossing into the U.S., passing the probe onto its Office of Professional Responsibility.

Of course, NewsBusters readers may recall that, when such claims were leveled on the week of September 19, ABC, CBS, NBC, and a whole host of fellow liberal outlets eagerly claimed without evidence that border officials were engaged in racism by whipping Black people longing to seek the American Dream. 

And just as they’ve done with the Steele dossier, the media are refusing to admit their mistake.

Despite the fact that they have been debunked, Houck went on to link to Fondacaro's discredited posts to bolster his own bogus argument:

Flashing back to September, these networks were eager to boast of these debunked claims as if they were fact. 

On ABC, World News Tonight anchor David Muir boasted on September 20 that they were “alarming images” and correspondent Kenneth Moton dubbed it “chaos and despair.” CBS correspondent Manuel Bojorquez was similarly unconcerned about facts that day, claiming U.S. officials were “threatening” illegal immigrants “with what appears to be horses reins or ropes.” Predictably, Telemundo also joined in the misinformation campaign.

The next night, the same two networks were up to no good while ABC kept up the lie into September 22.

Again: Fondacaro never quoted anyone from CBS or ABC using the word "whips."

Houck concluded: "If the liberal media admitted their mistakes, perhaps more people would trust them." How ironic that Houck made that statement while spreading a lie he will never admit telling, let alone apologize for.

CNS -- Which Touted Silver Linings To Pandemic -- Complains That Harris Sees 'Opportunity'
Topic: CNSNews.com

Susan Jones complained in a Nov. 12 CNSNews.com article:

Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking at the Paris Peace Forum on Thursday, focused on what she called the "dramatic rise in inequality" -- gaps between the rich and the poor that she says were made worse and more visible by the global coronavirus pandemic.

She called the pandemic "an opportunity" to address those gaps.

Then, at a news conference on Friday, Harris said she and other world leaders discussed "what should be the norms and the rules of the 21st Century."

[...]

Today, at a news conference marking the end of her visit to Paris, Harris said it's up to the United States and its partners and allies to "focus on what should be the norms and the rules of the 21st century."

"We are at the beginning of a new era, as highlighted by the pandemic, to be sure. But also marked by the increasing awareness...of the climate crisis and immanency of that and the urgency of this moment. Technology, what it has done in terms of creating opportunities but also creating real concerns about security.

"We are at the beginning of a new era," Harris repeated.

Jones diidn't mention that, as we've documented, CNS previously had no problem publishing writers who claimed to find silver linings in the pandemic:

• Managing editor Michael W. Chapman touted evangelist Anne Graham Lotz. who claimed to find a "blessing in the coronavirus" in that God is perhaps using the pandemic "to get our attention so that we will listen to His message," and that this will spark a "national spiritual renewal."
• CNS published a column by Tony Perkins of the conservative Family Research Council literally headlined "A Silver Lining to the Dark Cloud of COVID-19," in which he gushed that while thousands may have died, but people are "turning to God"
• A CNS column by John Stonestreet and Shane Morris promoted the alleged silver lining that divorce rates have gone down during the pandemic.
• A CNS column by Stan Greer of the National Institute for Labor Relations Research declared of the pandemic: "One potential silver lining of this catastrophe is that it could force many elected officials in states that have granted monopoly-bargaining privileges to government union bosses at last to recognize that they have a duty to revoke all such privileges."
• Erica Sanzi declared in her Oct. 15 CNS column: "It feels wrong to assert that there might have been a silver lining to the pandemic, but if one does exist, it’s that so many families got a front row seat for their children’s day-to-day education and were deeply unhappy with what they saw."
  

Jones didn't explain why these CNS columnists and writers are allowed to find silver liniings in a pandemic that "killed millions" but Harris isn't.

NEW ARTICLE -- The MRC's War on Jen Psaki (And Man-Crush On Peter Doocy): October 2021
Topic: Media Research Center
The Media Research Center's Curtis Houck pulls back a bit on his obsessive, predictable Doocy-fluffing and Psaki-bashing. Read more >>