© AP/Richard Drew
On Monday, New York Times media columnist Jim Rutenberg praised CNN's Jake Tapper for a recent interview in which he pressed Vice President-elect Mike Pence on whether he knew that Gen. Mike Flynn, an adviser to Trump, had sought a security clearance for his adult son. Flynn's son had used social media to spread a false conspiracy theory involving Hillary Clinton.
Tapper had to ask several times before Pence finally allowed that the transition team had filed the "appropriate paperwork" for the security clearance before Trump formally dismissed Flynn's son last week, and Rutenberg said he wants to see more interviews like that.
If only such moments could stop being so special and start being normal," Rutenberg said of Tapper's interview. He added that "it can mean losing bookings and therefore ratings, given that politicians who face real grilling may be inclined to avoid the kitchens that cooked them — a risk worth taking.
The exchange also earned a positive write-up by the Associated Press' television reporter, David Bauder.
"Jake Tapper's verbal tug-of-war with Vice President-elect Mike Pence last week illustrated a persistent style the CNN anchor is making his signature, and one that he hopes his colleagues take up, too," wrote Bauder.
Tapper's colleague Brian Stelter, who reports on media for CNN, has also called on journalists covering Trump to take a more definitive stance against his assertions that cannot be backed up with evidence, such as a Twitter message he posted last month that said "millions" of people had voted in the election "illegally."
"See, focusing on the falsehood creates more confusion and gives the lie even more life and that's the wrong way to go," Stelter said of media reports on the tweet. "Focusing on Trump's tendency to buy into B.S. gets to really what's going on here. This calls for more reporting and for reporters to show our work, to show that we actually know the truth. ... The press has to have the power to respond."
Since winning the election, Trump has continued his habit of using Twitter to weigh in on issues of the day, often times to rebut negative news coverage and to push back against criticism.
Comment: Talk about focusing on falsehoods, creating confusion and giving life to lies:
- SOTT Exclusive: CNN's latest anti-Putin 'hit piece' is a complete farce
- CNN cuts feed of reporter criticizing Hillary, telltales Clinton's media control
- Key #DNCLeak2 emails: Cozy with CNN, silencing journalists and pinning it on Putin
- CNN forgets to turn off mic, records reporter telling debate focus group what to say
- Donna Brazile out at CNN, busted by Wikileaks sharing questions with Hillary Clinton in plot to crush Bernie Sanders
- New assignment: Judith Miller, NYT reporter who sold Iraq WMDs lie, now pushing the "Russian election hack" lie
- Damning: Veteran reporter exposes The New York Times' arrogant, disconnected, agenda driven approach to journalism
- AP debate 'fact-check' fail: "Assad/Russia not targeting ISIS" - directly contradicts AP's own reporting
Masters at works of fiction. What a bunch of shills!