White House letter tells media how they should cover Biden impeachment probe

IT IS COMMON FOR THE WHITE HOUSE TO SEND PRESS RELEASES TO NEWS MEDIA TO GIVE THEM STORIES TO POTENTIALLY COVER.

WHAT’S NOT AS COMMON IS FOR A PRESS RELEASE TO TELL THE MEDIA **HOW TO COVER A PARTICULAR STORY.

WHICH IS WHAT THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS DOING –

ACCORDING TO A DRAFT EMAIL OBTAINED BY CNN.

A WHITE HOUSE SPOKESPERSON WANTS BIG NAME NEWS ORGANIZATION TO KNOW THE CORRECT AND INCORRECT WAY TO COVER THE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY INTO PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN.

THE WHITE HOUSE REPORTEDLY PLANS TO SEND A LETTER TO NEWS OUTLETS URGING THEM TO “SCRUTINIZE” HOUSE REPUBLICANS FOR THEIR DECISION TO OPEN AN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY.

THE DRAFT COPY OF THAT LETTER INDICATES IT WILL BE SENT TO CNN, THE NEW YORK TIMES, ASSOCIATED PRESS AND OTHERS, DETAILING THE CONTEXT THAT NEWS ORGANIZATIONS NEED TO PROVIDE.

THE EMAIL SAYS “STORIES THAT FAIL TO UNPACK THE ILLEGITIMACY OF THE CLAIMS ON WHICH HOUSE REPUBLICANS ARE BASING ALL THEIR ACTIONS ONLY SERVE TO GENERATE CONFUSION, PUT FALSE PREMISES IN PEOPLE’S FEEDS, AND OBSCURE THE TRUTH…”

COVERING IMPEACHMENT AS A PROCESS STORY – REPUBLICANS SAY X, BUT THE WHITE HOUSE SAYS Y – IS A DISSERVICE TO THE AMERICAN PUBLIC WHO RELIES ON THE INDEPENDENT PRESS TO HOLD THOSE IN POWER ACCOUNTABLE.”

BUT IS THAT “INDEPENDENT PRESS” STILL INDEPENDENT IF IT TAKES  ORDERS FROM THE WHITE HOUSE ON HOW TO REPORT ON A STORY?

THAT’S A QUESTION BEING ASKED… BY RIGHT LEANING NEWS OUTLETS COVERING THE STORY.

LEFT-LEANING NEWS OUTLETS ARE 

PROVIDING THE CONTEXT THE WHITE HOUSE IS ASKING FOR.

LET’S SHOW YOU A COMPARISON IN COVERAGE.

THE NEW YORK POST – A RIGHT LEANING NEWS ORGANIZATION – WROTE

“THE MISSIVE HAS RAISED EYEBROWS OVER CONCERNS ABOUT THE WHITE HOUSE DICTATING EDITORIAL DIRECTION.”

THEN THEY QUOTE A JOURNALIST FROM X –

QUOTE “THE WHITE HOUSE SHOULD NOT BE ENCOURAGING, INFLUENCING, OR INTERFERING IN THE EDITORIAL STRATEGIES OF AMERICA’S NEWSROOMS”.

“HE CONTINUED ‘NOW, ANY TIME THE MEDIA DOES TRY TO HOLD REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS TO ACCOUNT, THOSE LAWMAKERS CAN SIMPLY COUNTER BY QUESTIONING WHETHER IT’S ACTUAL JOURNALISM OR SOMETHING ENCOURAGED BY THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION.”

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WHILE THE NEW YORK POST’S ARTICLE QUOTED PEOPLE CRITICAL OVER THE PRESS RELEASE –

LEFT-LEANING NEWS OUTLETS ADDED THEIR OWN CONTEXT FOR ITS READERS –

AND DEFENDED THE WHITE HOUSE’S REMINDER TO REPORTERS.

WHILE THE NEW YORK POST’S ARTICLE QUOTED SOMEONE IN THEIR STORY –

THIS IS AN EXCERPT FROM CNN’S REPORT, IN THE REPORTER’S WORDS.

QUOTE “HOUSE REPUBLICANS, MOST OF WHOM HAVE DENIED THAT DISGRACED FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP COMMITTED ANY WRONGDOING, HAVE LONG SOUGHT TO BASELESSLY PORTRAY BIDEN AS A CORRUPT, CRIME-RIDDEN POLITICIAN ENGAGED IN SINISTER ACTIVITIES.”

THE ARTICLE CONTINUED – “WHILE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS HAVE PUBLISHED INNUMERABLE FACT CHECKS ON THE MATTER, THEY HAVE ALSO OFTEN FAILED TO ROBUSTLY CALL OUT THE MIS-AND DISINFORMATION PEDDLED BY REPUBLICANS IN THEIR COVERAGE, frustrating officials in the Biden White House who believe that the news media should be doing more”

ON FRIDAY, THE 5TH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS SAID THE WHITE HOUSE LIKELY VIOLATED THE FIRST AMENDMENT WHEN IT PRESSURED **SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES TO CENSOR COVID POSTS.

WITH THIS CURRENT LETTER, THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS AGAIN SHARING ITS CONCERN AROUND WHAT SORT OF INFORMATION IS BEING RECEIVED BY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.