In the on and off saga that is the liberal media’s coverage of Hillary Clinton’s e-mail scandal, the “big three” of ABC, CBS and NBC plus Spanish-language network Telemundo largely skipped on Thursday night the latest developments regarding the investigation into her e-mail aside from a vague reference on NBC and 26 seconds on Univision.
The nine seconds that NBC Nightly News was able to fetch on Clinton came at the conclusion of senior White House correspondent Chris Jansing’s report on the feud between Donald Trump and Jeb Bush and their usage of the term “anchor babies.”
Jansing gleefully commented that “[t]he infighting” within the Republican presidential side “helps to divert some attention away from Clinton’s own troubles over e-mails and a new poll that shows 53 percent of Democrats want Joe Biden to run against her.”
Surprisingly, the pro-Clinton Univision stepped up and provided the most (albeit still scant) Clinton coverage on Thursday’s Noticiero Univision. Fill-in co-anchor Ilia Calderon informed viewers that Clinton’s “lawyer has told a congressional committee” that “[t]he emails and other information contained in the computer server of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, which were turned over the FBI two weeks ago, were deleted prior to their delivery.”
While Calderon added that even though “Clinton said she did not know if the data in her server had been erased,” she also emphasized that “[e]xperts say many emails can be recovered, even after having been deleted.”
Continuing to stay on this growing scandal, the Fox News Channel’s Special Report had a full report on Thursday from chief intelligence correspondent Catherine Herridge on the FBI investigation and a hearing held in federal court with regards to a lawsuit by Judicial Watch. Herridge explained how:
In a D.C. federal court, lawyers for the State Department argued that they couldn't do more to search for Hillary Clinton's records or those of aides Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills because the FBI now has custody of the server and thumb drives. Plaintiffs said the judge was not persuaded.
Doing the work the networks neglected to do, Herridge found that “[b]uried in a recent court filing is the admission that the Blackberries used by Abedin and Mills were likely destroyed and Mrs. Clinton was never issued one nor did she use government computers.”
Mentioning how “[t]he Denver IT firm” that held the Clinton server “has now hired a crisis management team” and were “not very forthcoming” as to how the Clintons hired them, Herridge closed by circling back to the court hearing a significant development that came out of it:
And late today, a federal court order was issued in that Judicial Watch case and the State Department is directed to work with the FBI and the bureau has been directed to provide any new e-mails, including those deleted by Mrs. Clinton and recovered, as part of the FBI investigation[.]
Editor’s Note: MRC Latino’s Yuri Perez contributed to this report.
The Spanish and English translation of the news brief from Univision’s Noticiero Univision on August 20 can be found below.
Univision’s Noticiero Univision
August 20, 2015
6:33 p.m. Eastern
ILIA CALDERON, CONDUCTORA: Los correos electrónicos y otras informaciones que contenía el servidor informático de la precandidata demócrata Hillary Clinton [que] entregó al FBI hace 2 semanas, fueron borrados antes de la entrega. Su abogado se lo dijo a una comisión del Congreso. En declaraciones a reporteros a comienzos de esta semana, Clinton dijo desconocer si los datos de su servidor habían sido borrados. Expertos dicen que muchos correos se pueden recuperar, aun después de haber sido borrados.
ILIA CALDERON, ANCHOR: The emails and other information contained in the computer server of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, which were turned over the FBI two weeks ago, were deleted prior to their delivery, her lawyer has told a Congressional committee. In statements to reporters at the beginning of the week, Clinton said she did not know if the data in her server had been erased. Experts say many emails can be recovered, even after after having been deleted.
The relevant portions of the transcript from FNC’s Special Report with Bret Baier on August 20 can be found below.
FNC’s Special Report with Bret Baier
August 20, 2015
6:08 p.m. Eastern[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: Bad Call]
BRET BAIER: Well apparently, the server wasn't the only thing Hillary Clinton decided to buy herself. The State Department now says Clinton's Blackberry was not government issue, either and therefore not government encrypted. Chief intelligence correspondent Catherine Herridge tells us it's all part of evidence in a lawsuit involving the Democratic frontrunner.
CATHERINE HERRIDGE: In a D.C. federal court, lawyers for the State Department argued that they couldn't do more to search for Hillary Clinton's records or those of aides Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills because the FBI now has custody of the server and thumb drives. Plaintiffs said the judge was not persuaded.
JUDICIAL WATCH DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHER FARRELL: The government has now conceded that they have an affirmative obligation to go back to the FBI, to look at these records and those devices.
HERRIDGE: Buried in a recent court filing is the admission that the Blackberries used by Abedin and Mills were likely destroyed and Mrs. Clinton was never issued one nor did she use government computers.
(....)
HERRIDGE: Mrs. Clinton used a personal iPad that was not certified as secure by State Department IT specialists. A 2008 intelligence community directive known at icd 503 established the policy and there can be no approval if quote, “that information system would result in a high potential impact on organizations or individuals.”
(....)
HERRIDGE: Asked about the security of her personal devices, the Clinton campaign was noticeably silent. The State Department spokesman searched his papers for a prepared statement.
STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN JOHN KIRBY: There are – I'll just say there are reviews and investigations going on right now, including by our IG and by Congress and so, it's going to be inappropriate for me to comment.
HERRIDGE: The Denver IT firm that took on the server account for the Clintons has now hired a crisis management team.
(....)
HERRIDGE: And significantly, the firm was not very forthcoming about how they landed the contract.
(....)
HERRIDGE: And late today, a federal court order was issued in that Judicial Watch case and the State Department is directed to work with the FBI and the bureau has been directed to provide any new e-mails, including those deleted by Mrs. Clinton and recovered, as part of the FBI investigation[.]
