The media's liberal bias keep getting worse in the Age of Trump.
The Motor City Madman has had a change of heart.
Ted Nugent said he wants the country’s political rhetoric to soften in the wake of the June 14 shooting of Rep. Steve Scalise by a Bernie Sanders fan. And he’ll do his part by shelving his own ugly comments regarding the modern Left.
“At the tender age of 69, my wife has convinced me I just can’t use those harsh terms,” he said on the 77 WABC radio program Thursday. “I cannot and will not and I encourage even my friends, slash, enemies on the left, in the Democrat and liberal world, that we have got to be civil to each other.”
The media lapped it up. Outlet after outlet trumpeted the news, from smaller newspapers to the biggest media organs in the country. Type “Ted Nugent rhetoric” into Google News. You’ll see the blanket coverage his comments generated.
And, along the way, reporters recited some of Nugent’s previous, unexpurgated rants. They also mentioned Nugent’s politics. He’s unapologetically conservative.
Nugent’s conversion makes for good copy, no doubt. It also highlights the blaring hypocrisy at work in today’s media.
Remember George Takei? The actor who played Sulu across a skein of Star Trek projects still gets gigs. He’s better known now as a gay rights activist.
The liberal star sent out the following tweet days after the Scalise shooting. Note: The House Majority Whip was clinging to life at the time.
He followed that Saturday Tweet up with another blasting Rep. Scalise anew.
And yet his website still espouses “Family Values” and protecting the “Sanctity of Marriage.” pic.twitter.com/4XkgK0slvv
The liberal actor subsequently took down that Tweet. The earlier, nastier tweet remains on his account. The Louisiana Republican’s condition is improving, but his recovery could be considerable.
So how much coverage did Takei’s repulsive Tweet generate?
Type in “George Takei Scalise” into Google News and you’ll find several conservative news sites excoriating the actor for the message. And that’s it.
Nothing on Deadline.com, TheWrap.com, Variety or The Hollywood Reporter. The only mainsteam-ish outlet to cover Takei’s Tweet? Mediaite.com.
Variety inadvertently revealed an ironic twist to Takei’s comments. Shortly after the attack happened, the publication shared some of Hollywood’s reaction to the shooting. All were positive, hopeful and kind, Including Takei’s initial take.
Takei’s vile Tweet deserves news coverage. Period. The fact that he shared more warm-hearted sentiments before doubling down on his partisan rage makes it even more newsworthy. Hypocrisy equals clickbait, right?
(Takei is the same guy who once blasted Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as a "clown in black face.")
So why the silence?
It’s the same reason the media rushed to cover conservative-leaning comic Rob Schneider temporarily blocking liberal actor Seth Rogen on Twitter. In our intense news cycle that’s so minor it barely deserves a mention. Yet an array of media outlets covered the story in full.
Why? It made Schneider look bad.
The narrative matters first and foremost in today’s news coverage. Variety hoped to paint Takei in a positive light via his initial comments. The publication later protected Takei when his intentions soured.
The same holds true for other outlets. And we’ve seen this story before.
Reporters mostly ignored the outrageous Tweets written by A-list director Joss Whedon earlier this year. They turned Madonna sharing how she considered blowing up the White House into a one-day story. That’s after they ran her pathetic explanation, by the way.
Whedon and Madonna are both liberals. That means they’re granted selective immunity by reporters who should be telling the whole truth, not cherry picking what they cover for partisan purposes. A right-leaning comic like Schneider? Anything that can potentially embarrass the Deuce Bigalow actor is fair game.
Their failure to cover Takei’s hate Tweets reminds us of the unblinking bias that permeates the media in 2017.
[Cross-posted at Hollywood in Toto.]
