Continuing on a day-long trend of hyping a fake, politically motivated travel advisory by the left-wing pseudo-civil rights group the NAACP, CBS Evening News displayed a master class in leftist media bias when they spent over two minutes on the NAACP stunt before giving African American South Carolina Senator Tim Scott’s (R) presidential announcement a mere 40 seconds.
“A surprising move tonight from a major national civil rights group, the NAACP today issuing a travel advisory for the state of Florida,” anchor Norah O’Donnell reported as if this was a legitimate travel advisory and not a stunt to racially polarize the country more.
O’Donnell then turned to correspondent Mark Strassmann who hyped that “Florida [is] starting to feel uncomfortably warm. It's weather, it's politics. The NAACP is broiling, it’s targeting the state's $100 billion tourism industry with a travel warning.”
Sitting down with NAACP president Derrick Johnson, Strassmann asked: “Are you telling black Americans in other states to stay out of Florida?”
Johnson responded that they're “telling travelers [to] beware that you have a state and a state policy landscape that can be harmful to your existence.”
Strassmann subsequently labeled DeSantis’s policies to protect children from being taught inappropriate topics in school a “conservative crackdown,” and proclaimed that “DeSantis has stirred both content and contempt, blocking a high school AP course in African American studies, also in schools, bans on teaching gender identity, sexual identity, and Critical Race Theory, and a ban on abortion after six weeks.”
Once that segment was over, Strassmann tossed back to O’Donnell and she moved right into the next segment which was a news brief on Tim Scott’s presidential campaign announcement:
O'DONNELL: In more presidential politics, the 2024 campaign field got a little more crowded today. South Carolina senator Tim Scott kicked off his bid for the GOP nomination with a speech in his hometown of North Charleston. The Senate's only black Republican offered a message of optimism and compassion that he hopes will connect with voters.
SENATOR TIM SCOTT: Our party and our nation are standing at a time for choosing. I choose freedom and hope and opportunity. Will you choose it with me?
O’DONNELL: Scott is expected to hit the road in the days ahead with stops in Iowa and New Hampshire.
It's almost as if CBS wanted to keep the left’s racism narrative alive. Why else would they dedicate an entire segment to a racial smear campaign against the state of Florida while giving an African American Republican's presidential campaign a measly 40 seconds?
This crappy journalism from CBS Evening News was made possible by Chewy. Their information is linked.
To read the transcript click “expand”:
CBS Evening News
5/22/2023
6:38:03 p.m. EasternNORAH O’DONNELL: A surprising move tonight from a major national civil rights group, the NAACP today issuing a travel advisory for the state of Florida. The organization says that under Governor Ron DeSantis, the sunshine state has become quote “openly hostile toward African Americans, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals." CBS's Mark Strassmann reports this comes as DeSantis is set to announce his bid for the White House.
MARK STRASSMANN: Florida starting to feel uncomfortably warm. It's weather, it's politics. The NAACP is broiling, it’s targeting the state's $100 billion tourism industry with a travel warning.
Are you telling black Americans in other states to stay out of Florida?
DERRICK JOHNSON (PRESIDENT & CEO, NAACP): We’re telling travelers beware that you have a state and a state policy landscape that can be harmful to your existence.
STRASSMANN: In his conservative crackdown here, Governor Ron DeSantis has stirred both content and contempt, blocking a high school AP course in African American studies, also in schools, bans on teaching gender identity, sexual identity, and Critical Race Theory, and a ban on abortion after six weeks.
GOV. RON DESANTIS: We do not ever surrender to the woke mob because we’ve made the state of Florida the place where woke goes to die.
STRASSMANN: DeSantis points out a record 137 million people visited Florida last year, up nearly 13 percent over 2021. His spokesperson calls the NAACP's travel advisory a stunt. But among the backlash here, Disney, Florida's largest private employer, just canceled a billion-dollar development project. Latino and LGBTQ groups have issued their own travel warnings.
HEATHER WILKIE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ZEBRA YOUTH): Politics being politics is fine but it impacts lives.
STRASSMANN: Heather Wilkie leads Zebra Youth, an outreach group for young LGBTQ people.
WILKIE: It may take years for us to unwind the damage that has been done in Florida.
STRASSMANN: The fear factor is real?
WILKIE: A hundred percent.
STRASSMANN: With DeSantis announcing imminently that he's going to run for president, supporters and critics alike stay the same thing. If you want to know what he'll do as President, look at what he has done as governor. Norah?
O’DONNELL: Mark Strassmann, thank you so much.
In more presidential politics, the 2024 campaign field got a little more crowded today. South Carolina senator Tim Scott kicked off his bid for the GOP nomination with a speech in his hometown of North Charleston. The Senate's only black Republican offered a message of optimism and compassion that he hopes will connect with voters.
SENATOR TIM SCOTT: Our party and our nation are standing at a time for choosing. I choose freedom and hope and opportunity. Will you choose it with me?
O’DONNELL: Scott is expected to hit the road in the days ahead with stops in Iowa and New Hampshire.
