General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe National Enquirer made sure that cheato won the
the Republican primaries. They cleared the way by lying about Cruz and Ben Carson. Just flat out lies based on checkbook journalism (bribes) and buying people off. The stories were so ridiculous that even at the time this whole scam should have been exposed clearly for what it was by mainstream news outlets. I'm not saying it was ignored, but it should have been the lead story for many weeks.
Because this conspiracy was successful and cheato won the primary, he felt free to use it against Hillary in the general election with ridiculous untrue stories about her "dying" and being a "traitor", etc. Again the corporate media paid scant attention.
I am glad that this trial is exposing all of this in more detail and more prominently. It really is a major scandal and a major dereliction of duty by the corporate media.
hlthe2b
(102,378 posts)As difficult as it might be (and unlikely she'd have a desire to do so), I have to wonder about pursuing civil liability against them.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)and sometimes I really question the way our side always has to take the high road even in the face of blatant lies.
Johnny2X2X
(19,118 posts)Rigged for Trump by he and the media. And the National Enquirer is still the media, at the time they were more influential than most big newspapers.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)and were very effective propaganda for uninformed gullible voters in red states especially. They didn't even have to buy the magazine to be influenced.
Johnny2X2X
(19,118 posts)It's not like they're the Weekly World News with another story about a Bat Boy.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)that turned out to be true. I forget the details.
Johnny2X2X
(19,118 posts)They broke Steve Jobs being sick with Cancer. They were the first to report on several scandals stories with the Brittish Royal family. They were the first with the John Edwards love child story that turned out to be true. They broke the Gary Hart story. They were the first to report Rush Limbaugh was addicted to pain pills.
People listen to them and they actually drive the narrative occasionally. With Hillary being "close to death", that's a story that got picked up in one form or another nationwide. Her health concerns were everywhere for months.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)DemocraticPatriot
(4,414 posts)Just over two weeks later, the National Enquirer published a photo of Rice sitting on Harts lap.
https://time.com/5444465/gary-hart-donna-rice/
LiberalFighter
(51,099 posts)NE had control of how their magazines were displayed in the racks.
AllaN01Bear
(18,439 posts)COL Mustard
(5,928 posts)Too hard to get that stink off my hands and people think I pooped myself.
blm
(113,097 posts)intrepidity
(7,337 posts)What's the difference between foreign actors spreading mis- and disinformation, and American actors doing the same? Is this truly what the 1st amendment was meant to protect? What is the remedy? Because it is just getting worse. Used to be, people could discern truth from bull, mostly, usually (or have I got my rose colored glasses on?). Sigh. Maybe it has always been this way, but there was more decency in society. I just don't know anymore.
leftieNanner
(15,158 posts)But, back in the day, we all got the News from Walter Cronkite and Huntley Brinkley.
Fox and Limbaugh changed all that.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)especially among low information voters, is a serious problem. When you have neither "book learning" nor common sense, you are ripe for exploitation. A few years ago, many low info voters had what I would call a BS meter. Seems to be completely missing now.
stopdiggin
(11,371 posts)"Enquirer story not true !"
Yeah .. I can see that ..
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)and patently untrue stories about trump, the media would have defended him, done some digging, and found out who was behind it. That should have happened in this case. They have always bent over backward to be fair to him, and been more than willing to trash Hillary.
leftieNanner
(15,158 posts)To be stupid garbage. Including the MSM. That's excepting Men In Black, of course. So they chose to ignore it.
Unfortunately, the awful headlines and photos on the front must have reached some weaker minds in the checkout line.
Sky Jewels
(7,146 posts)Low information, low education, religious, Fox News believers, hate radio listeners, susceptible to propaganda, white, racist, anti-intellectual.
mopinko
(70,237 posts)fox, et al, reported the stories. better outlets reported them w a lame debunking.
Irish_Dem
(47,446 posts)Certainly not just the National Enquirer.
senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)I don't know, but I do think that one way or another cheato and his team have sway over the corporate media's owners in the form of tax cuts if nothing else.
Irish_Dem
(47,446 posts)We know the news outlets are biased in favor of Trump and the GOP.
Warpy
(111,356 posts)the holier than thou crowd wouldn't have turned a hair at learning he was fucking a porn star while his wife was recovering from childbirth. In fact, it might have increased his status in the eyes of the pious, who have always viewed morality situationally.
It would not have cost him anything but a nanosecond's worth of dip in a few fringe polls.
He should have either let the gutter press do its thing or paid the hush money out of petty cash.
Remember, the defining characteristic of the MAGA fundagelical crowd is rabid patriarchy. Democrats get upset over the mistreatment of women. His fan club glories in the mistreatment of women.
orwell
(7,776 posts)...about reporting.
It is all branding, clicks throughs, and ad revenue. They don't care about accurate reporting because they get more engagement from breathless outrage and "breaking news."
And it works. And we are all paying for it with a world in perpetual turmoil and a collapsing biosphere.
With the greatest instant access to the planet's accumulated knowledge we have somehow turned out to be woefully misinformed.
And that is not an accident...
dalton99a
(81,599 posts)senseandsensibility
(17,145 posts)Yet I'll bet a good portion of the magats believed them completely.
Takket
(21,632 posts)DemocraticPatriot
(4,414 posts)I've been using the self-checkout at the grocery for 15 years, and the tabloids are only at the register lines.... so I missed seeing most of it.