Friday, July 27, 2018
Headlines for July 27, 2018
Headlines with an * are the ones we managed to fit in in our allotted 11 minutes.
Worst and Most Misleading Headlines (WAMMH) -- July 27, 2018
CANDIDATES FOR “WORST”/”MOST DISGUSTING”:
*MSNBC has done 455 Stormy Daniels segments in the last year — but none on U.S. war in Yemen
https://www.salon.com/2018/07/25/msnbc-has-done-455-stormy-daniels-segments-in-the-last-year-but-none-on-the-war-in-yemen/ (reprinted from FAIR)
A perfect example of “Fake News by Omission” or "Headlines you didn't see". And, to be clear, while other networks may not have had ZERO segments, they certainly had few and far between.
*Another example this week: 215 people killed in Syria by ISIS suicide bombers on Wednesday of this week. Neither BBC World News or ABC Nightly News mentioned it on air.
Before her arrest as an alleged Russian agent, Maria Butina’s proud defense of her homeland drew notice at American University
Accused Russian spy had shirtless Putin photo on phone, college friends say
Because it’s so rare that students or people in general from another country are proud of their home country.
“It wasn’t just the outspoken conservative politics of the auburn-haired Russian woman that drew the attention of other graduate students at American University. There was also her almost zealous embrace of her homeland. Butina’s cellphone case was emblazoned with a famous photograph of Russian President Vladimir Putin riding shirtless on a horse. She would buy friends rounds of vodka at Russia House”
Note that while the Washington Post article correctly identifies Butina as an alleged Russian "agent", many others, like the CBS News headline, refer to her as an accused "spy", which is false (the only charge against her, at least for now, is failure to register under the FARA act).
Note that while the Washington Post article correctly identifies Butina as an alleged Russian "agent", many others, like the CBS News headline, refer to her as an accused "spy", which is false (the only charge against her, at least for now, is failure to register under the FARA act).
Iran has laid groundwork for extensive cyberattacks on U.S., say officials
“Iran has positioned cyber weapons to hit private firms and infrastructure…U.S. officials said Iran is making preparations that would enable denial-of-service attacks against thousands of electric grids, water plants, and health care and technology companies in the U.S., Germany, the U.K. and other countries in Europe and the Middle East.” Denial-of-service attacks prevent people from accessing websites; they don’t affect electrical grids.
Stuxnet is finally mentioned…in paragraph 33, after 32 paragraphs of almost entirely speculative accusations against Iran.
Pompeo to Defend Trump With ‘Proof’ of Administration’s Actions vs. Russia
The Times puts “proof” in quotes although it refers entirely to simple observable facts, all of which have been reported in the Times, e.g., military buildup, demanding NATO military buildup, expulsion of 60 diplomats, sending arms to Ukraine.
U.S. government plays games with top Venezuelan officials
“Games”? They’re trying to overthrow the government. The “game” consisted of trying to put a “snitch jacket” on one of the officials by sanctioning a bunch of top officials EXCEPT him, in order to split the leadership by making them think that one of them is a CIA asset. In other words the same “games” the FBI played with the Black Panthers (just to name one parallel).
CANDIDATES FOR “MOST MISLEADING”:
Democratic Sen. McCaskill confirms Russian hacking attempt
She got a phishing email, which the Daily Beast [!!!] forensically analyzed and determined it came from Russia. Well, that’s what the WaPo says. Read the actual Daily Beast article: https://www.thedailybeast.com/russian-hackers-new-target-a-vulnerable-democratic-senator?ref=home
There is ZERO evidence these phishing emails came from Russia.
CANDIDATES FOR “FUNNIEST”:
*Facebook's Stock In Free Fall Because Everyone Already Uses It
Capitalism 101: expand or die (or at least see your stock decline). FB (& related sites) have 2.5B users out of 4B online.
*Putin gave Trump a soccer ball that may have a transmitter chip
(Also definitely misleading)
OH MY GOD HE’S TAPING THE PRESIDENT
Here’s what it actually is, by the way: https://www.soccerbible.com/performance/football-equipment/2017/how-does-the-2018-adidas-telstar-nfc-ball-work/
What the chip (which is in every Adidas World Cup ball) is is an NFC (Near Field Communications) chip, just like in newer model cellphones which let you use ApplePay or GooglePay and touch your cell phone against something on the counter to pay for your meal. The range of this transmitter (which cannot transmit anything until it is nearby another one) is about two inches! Also it doesn't COLLECT any data at all, it's entirely passive and transmits only what is already inside it (information about Adidas, basically).
*Betsy DeVos’ $40 million family yacht untied, causing $10,000 in damages
Someone untied it! I love them so much!
But don’t worry… “The SeaQuest is one of at least 10 boats owned by the DeVos family, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of the family's wealth. It can accommodate 12 guests and 12 crew members, according to the SuperYachtFan website. The DeVos clan also owns at least four planes and two helicopters, the Journal reports.”
Roseanne Barr on her Valerie Jarrett tweet: ‘I was so sad that people thought it was racist’
“muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj”. Her defense: she didn’t know Jarrett was Black, she thought she was Middle Eastern.
