On Wednesday evening’s World News Tonight broadcast, ABC News led with a story claiming President Trump was briefed on the “concerns about what is now known to be the novel coronavirus pandemic were detailed in a November intelligence report”.
One problem: it doesn’t appear to be correct.
But the intended damage was already done….
CNN: ABC News: US intelligence warned of China’s spreading contagion in November
Daily Kos: Intel alerts were sounding about coronavirus as early as NOVEMBER
Daily Beast: U.S. Intel Officials Warned White House of ‘Cataclysmic’ Virus in November, Says Report
The Hill: US intel warned in November coronavirus spreading in China could be ‘cataclysmic event’: report
Business Insider: US intel predicted coronavirus ‘could be a cataclysmic event’ as far back as November
Vice: Here Are All the Times Trump Dropped the Ball on Preparing for Coronavirus
Jerusalem Post: US intelligence report warned of coronavirus in November – ABC
Complex: U.S. Intelligence Reportedly Began Warning of COVID-19 Outbreak Back in November
What’s most interesting is in ABC News’ own report, two minutes eighteen seconds in length, the last twenty seconds featured Jonathan Karl’s CYA as he knows he’ll be in President Trump’s crosshairs (again) the next time he has to assume his role as Chief White House Correspondent.
The deteriorated standards of what used to be called “journalism” are clearly at play here as there was a time where no stories would EVER be based on “sources” who refused to go on the record for the obvious reasons.
“Analysts concluded it could be a cataclysmic event,” according to an unnamed source who told ABC the reports were then “briefed multiple times,” to the DIA, the Pentagon’s Joint Staff, and the White House.
— Washington Examiner, 4/9/20
One of the reasons, which has been proven true over the years, is that some journalists will create fictitious sources and events to back up their preferred narrative. We’re not saying that happened here but suspicions are not unwarranted. When those creating product have clear condescension and contempt for their consumers, issuing misleading stories meant to damage the president before a president election is easy.
Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage. And basically, call it the stupidity of the American voter or whatever, but basically that was really, really critical for the thing to pass.
— Jonathan Gruber, “architect of Obamacare”
As the main mission of most in the professional media has been the destruction of the Trump presidency, any semblance of journalistic ethics were thrown out the window the moment Donald Trump announced his candidacy in 2015.
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