It’s not the media’s job to report what is accurate, according to Chuck Todd. And if people believe Obamacare will send their premiums skyrocketing, it’s not his job to say that’s not a fact.
During a segment on “Morning Joe,” former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) speculated that most opponents of the Affordable Care Act have been fed erroneous information about the law. Todd said that Republicans “have successfully messaged against it” but he disagrees with those who argue that the media should educate the public on the law. According to Todd, that’s President Barack Obama’s job.
“But more importantly, it would be stuff that Republicans have successfully messaged against it,” Todd told Rendell. “They don’t repeat the other stuff because they haven’t even heard the Democratic message. What I always love is people say, ‘Well, it’s you folks’ fault in the media.’ No, it’s the President of the United States’ fault for not selling it.”
If people believe Obamacare will place Granny on a death panel and kick their dog, it’s because Republicans have “successfully messaged” that. And it’s not the news media’s job to report that Granny is safe even though the Republican message was probably distributed by the news media. After all, if they did that, they may be accused of liberal media bias. A fate worse than death.
Todd is wrong about basically everything he said during this segment on Morning Joe.
If Republicans have “successfully messaged against it,” why do so few people, including self-identified Republicans, agree with the congressional Republican strategy of trying to defund the law? Polls are not friendly to this position.
If people haven’t heard the Democratic message, it’s because the news media hasn’t reported that message. Members of the administration have taken time out of their schedule nearly every other day for the past year to promote the law, but you don’t hear about it very often even on the supposedly-liberal MSNBC.
And why not? Because if the news media relays the Democratic message too much, they will be accused of bias even though the Democratic message is the accurate message.
No one is asking Todd or others in the media to ‘sell the law,’ however we do expect supposed journalists in the news media to report what is accurate. And if you don’t consider reporting what is accurate to be your job, then what do you consider to be your job? What would you say you do here?
Access journalism is a terrible thing, and if the brains at MSNBC believe turning themselves into another CNN is a good idea, the network is in even bigger trouble than I thought.