There’s a lot to be excited about concerning yesterday’s news story that MSNBC’s breakfast show has banned Kellyanne Conway from appearing or speaking on it.
Kellyanne Conway is the woman who got Trump elected, having managed his surprisingly successful campaign. After his inauguration, she was promoted to White House Counsellor – effectively Trump’s adviser. Thus far, she’s got off to a bizarre and unbelievable start.
Interview Impossible
Watching her TV interviews is painful, and I say that as a Brit. We love awkward, cringing humour; The Office wouldn’t exist if we didn’t. But my god is it difficult to watch her have a conversation. The disbelief of her interviewers is palpable. Her CNN interview became an internet sensation due to interviewer Jake Tapper’s ‘are you kidding me’ face.
She’s also faced Today Show’s Matt Lauer pointing out that she ‘makes no sense’ yet she’s never flustered and always a picture of calm. It seems that making stuff up comes naturally to her.
Fairy Tales and Fake News
Kellyanne recently got herself in serious hot water for promoting and endorsing Ivanka Trump’s brand on air. It’s a possible violation of ethics and abuse of a government position, and the top US ethics committee wants her fully investigated. This comes as little surprise: her actions are in line with everything else she does – she is after all the one that coined ‘alternative facts’.
She’s also cited a fake massacre in a TV interview to justify Trump’s Muslim ban. I’m not even paraphrasing; she genuinely made up a mass killing. Since that awkward interview, she claimed that she simply misspoke, instead meaning to reference the two men from a town called Bowling Green who were accused of sending money to Al Qaeda. That would be all well and good if she hadn’t cited the same ‘massacre’ in two other interviews.
These are just some examples of many where Conway has provided false information. Her Politifact file is slim, I grant, but so far every entry has been proven false. Those are some incredibly bad stats right there. Yet she’s regularly interviews and broadcast across news channels across America, disseminating these untruths to the public. Something’s very rotten in the States.
Morning Joe Ban
Thankfully there’s hope in the form of Morning Joe’s host Mika Brzezinski. She’s the first to decide that she will no longer be booking Trump’s advisor for the show, as every time she appear son TV, “something’s askew, off, or incorrect”. According to Brzezinski, Conway is “not credible”.
It might not sound like a big deal. I can’t imagine a political aide being too upset if Paul Schofield didn’t want them on their show. But Morning Joe has serious viewing figures and covers a lot of politics. So much so that Conway has tried repeatedly to get on the show and has now been told to not bother. As long as Mika’s in the chair, it ain’t happening.
The message from MSNBC is speak the truth or stay off air. They’ve also said they will keep reporting on lies as long as the White House keeps telling them. Refusing to give airtime to ‘alternative facts’ Kellyanne Conway is an interesting and exciting precedent. It looks like the media is beginning to fight back.
The post The Media Fights Back: Kellyanne Conway Banned From Breakfast Show appeared first on Felix Magazine.
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