With his favorite President set to return to office on Monday (and the source of a lifetime of memories for him), serial carnival barker and real-life cartoon character Jim Acosta closed his Thursday morning hour of CNN Newsroom by declaring the media “democracy” itself in fawning over President Biden’s farewell address lamenting the lack of trust in the news media.
In other words, the pompous prick who sadly thrived off of attention and faux victimhood wanted a return to that sugar-high feeling.
Acosta only briefly brought it up earlier in the show when asking moderate Republican strategist Doug Heye to weigh in on his “misinformation” lecture and didn’t tip his hand. But, with less than a mintue left and no chyron, Acosta said he “want[ed] to take a moment to talk about something President Biden said during his farewell address.”
Acosta said Biden “warned the free press is crumbling in this country” and voiced his agreement by saying the “would add, that's only if we, the people, let that happen.”
He then fell into an all-too-predictable level of impenetrable sanctimony about the news media: “
Journalists exist to seek the truth, to tell people's stories, to lift up voices that may not be heard otherwise, to shine a light on injustice and to hold the powerful accountable. We are not the enemy of the people. We are the defenders of the people.
Oh, journalists, not we, the peons outside the esteemed press, have the power to be “defenders” of yourselves.
But, wait, there was more, including a Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith-like insistence that journalists aren’t just “important to democracy,” but rather “democracy” itself: “Walter Cronkite once said, ‘freedom of the press is not just important to democracy. It is democracy.’”
Before signing off, Acosta — the man who posted a picture of himself staring at, yes, himself in a dressing room mirror before a Late Show appearance — shared a sign some deranged, far-left feminist protester made for him in 2021:
I want to take a moment to show you something. A woman sent me this sign eight years ago. She carried it here at a march in Washington. She wrote on the back of the sign to me and the press here in DC, “you have our support.” To Nora, wherever you are, right back at you. Reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta.
Unbeknowst to him, sharing the poster gave birth to a new meme template that’ll likely live on for years to come. Thanks, Jim!
To see the relevant CNN transcript from January 16, click “expand.”
CNN Newsroom with Jim Acosta
January 16, 2025
10:59 a.m. EasternJIM ACOSTA: I want to take a moment to talk about something President Biden said during his farewell address. He warned the free press is crumbling in this country. I would add, that's only if we, the people, let that happen. Journalists exist to seek the truth, to tell people's stories, to lift up voices that may not be heard otherwise, to shine a light on injustice and to hold the powerful accountable. We are not the enemy of the people. We are the defenders of the people. Walter Cronkite once said, “freedom of the press is not just important to democracy. It is democracy.” I want to take a moment to show you something. A woman sent me this sign eight years ago. She carried it here at a march in Washington. She wrote on the back of the sign to me and the press here in DC, “you have our support.” To Nora, wherever you are, right back at you. Reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta.
