Via Ed Driscoll of Instapundit, I found this admirably thorough story by Mollie Hemingway in The Federalist. Here, she said, are some of CNN’s reports about Christine Blasey Ford’s accusations against Brett Kavanaugh:
Read the letter Christine Blasey Ford sent accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct,
Post reporter says Kavanaugh accuser was ‘terrified about going public’,
Republican senators weigh in on delaying Kavanaugh vote,
Echoes of Anita Hill in allegations against Kavanaugh,
Dems call for delay of Kavanaugh vote after accuser comes forward, Listen to letter from Kavanaugh’s accuser, and
Washington Post: Kavanaugh accuser comes forward.
These senators could make or break Kavanaugh’s nomination,
The Kavanaugh controversy is a watershed moment for GOP,
Trump stands by Kavanaugh, supports ‘a full process’,
Why the Kavanaugh allegations come at the worst possible time for Republicans,
an interview with the reporter who broke the Post story,
Kellyanne Conway says Kavanaugh’s accuser ‘should not be ignored or insulted’,
a page devoted to a video of Kellyanne Conway’s statement,
Kavanaugh allegations lead to White House scramble,
Lawyer: Kavanaugh accuser willing to testify publicly,
State of play of the Kavanaugh nomination on Capitol Hill,
Joe Biden reacts to Kavanaugh allegation, reviving memories of Anita Hill hearing,
Why sexual assault survivors often don’t come forward,
Why Dianne Feinstein waited to take the Brett Kavanaugh allegations to the FBI,
White House plan to defend Kavanaugh relies heavily on women,
Brett Kavanaugh, Christine Blasey Ford to testify on assault allegations in public Monday,
Anita Hill’s accusations did not hurt public support for Clarence Thomas in ’91,
Republicans and Democrats grapple with Kavanaugh political fallout 7 weeks from midterms,
The power of a named accuser: Kavanaugh’s future now hangs in the balance,
Mark Judge, Kavanaugh’s high school classmate, details high school parties in past writings, and many others.
By September 18, CNN’s participation in the anti-Kavanaugh campaign was even more intense:
Why Kavanaugh should make men question ‘himpathy’,
Dianne Feinstein, elected in the ‘Year of the Woman,’ navigates the politics of #MeToo,
Julia Louis-Dreyfus lends support to Brett Kavanaugh accuser,
Anita Hill: Senate should ‘do better’ than it did in 1991,
Doug Jones: Senate should compel Kavanaugh’s friend to testify,
Kavanaugh nomination descends into chaos,
What happens if Christine Blasey Ford doesn’t testify?,
With Kavanaugh, McConnell’s throne is on the line,
Christine Blasey Ford is risking it all to speak out,
Kavanaugh decision moment: A horrendous act or a monstrous lie,
Emmy attendee shows up with ‘Stop Kavanaugh’ written on her arm,
What The Wall Street Journal gets dead wrong about Christine Blasey Ford and Brett Kavanaugh,
Women hold the key to Kavanaugh — and maybe control of Congress,
Trump on Kavanaugh: ‘This is not a man who deserves this’,
Former classmate of Kavanaugh’s denies being at party in sexual assault allegation,
Kavanaugh accuser wants FBI investigation before testifying,
Sen. Hirono’s message to men: ‘Just shut up and step up. Do the right thing.’,
5 big questions about the Kavanaugh hearing,
Kavanaugh hearing uncertain for Monday as accuser wants FBI to investigate before hearing,
George W. Bush defends Kavanaugh as ‘a fine husband, father, and friend’,
Accuser’s friend: She is nothing but honest,
Reliable Sources: Kavanaugh questions; left and right reactions,
Mark Judge tells Senate he ‘has no memory of alleged’ incident with Kavanaugh,
Read: Christine Blasey Ford’s attorneys’ letter requesting FBI investigation, and many others.
Trump calls Kavanaugh ‘an extraordinary man’,
Kavanaugh’s accuser made her move — now Republicans have to choose,
Mazie Hirono: Kavanaugh accuser is hesitating to testify because she’s afraid of a GOP ‘railroad job’,
Trump says he wants to see Kavanaugh’s accuser testify,
6 possible Kavanaugh scenarios, including a Supreme Court vacancy until 2021,
Anita Hill: FBI should investigate Ford’s claim,
Kavanaugh’s accuser says he was drunk at the time. What studies say about alcohol and memory loss,
Kavanaugh accuser’s lawyer: ‘Rush to a hearing is unnecessary’,
Friend of Kavanaugh’s accuser speaks out,
Toobin: If she won’t testify, he gets confirmed,
Reliable Sources: The Supreme Court clock is ticking,
Republicans just made a giant gamble on Brett Kavanaugh,
Collins says ‘it’s not fair’ for Kavanaugh accuser not to testify,
Did Donald Trump just hedge on Brett Kavanaugh’s future?,
McCaskill’s voting against Kavanaugh – and it has nothing to do with the accusations,
Grassley sets Friday deadline to hear back from Kavanaugh accuser,
Garamendi: This is a defining Me Too moment,
Accuser’s lawyer: Rush to hearing unnecessary,
Gillibrand: GOP approach amounts to ‘sham hearing’ on Kavanaugh allegations,
Begala: Hypocrisy, thy name is GOP,
GoFundMe raises more than $100K to help Kavanaugh accuser with security expenses,
Graham wants Kavanaugh vote before midterms
In Hemingway’s report, every one of these is a link. Click ’em and see. There were more, I just got bored of copying them.
And here is all the reporting CNN had done of the very similar allegation against Joe Biden by Tara Reade until yesterday:
Nice of them to make it so obvious, eh?
And they still couldn’t stop Trump appointing him. No wonder they are scared of him…..
It is hard to be sure what the original thoughts were of the many many PCers who quite recently were saying, “Believe all women” and are now saying nothing, either always or as much as possible between rare and brief moments in which they demand a fully cautious due process.
1) Were some simply incapable of foreseeing consequences, of imaging how they would look in an inevitable future – or of imagining that future was even likely, let alone inevitable?
2) Were some very aware of the double-sidedness but very confident of their media’s ability to ensure no or minimal cost to the narrative? Did they believe that, when done to aid political correctness, such things are permitted – and, for those who control the narrative, low-cost?
3) I have often commented on PC’s capacity for self harm through its methods degrading its capacity for self-correction. If you live in the bubble, and doing so is part of your identity and/or livelihood, you don’t want to be the first one to critique weak points in the latest fad. Almost a year ago, I posted about a couple of left-leaning Californians who left California because they had seen one too many “smart, talented colleagues fired, and their reputations blackened, because they had the temerity to utter a heterodox opinion, or made it known that they voted for a Republican,
Inside that bubble, asking, “Will our saying ‘Believe all women’ not embarrass us when a valued Democrat is accused?” would have been treated as evidence of insufficient enthusiasm.
4) Do commenters have other explanations – or a different choice of which is the most important one?
Out of interest, the score is 114 – 1 for the BBC
Blasey Ford
Reade
And they have the gall to put “Why you can trust BBC News” at the foot of each page
To be fair: judging from the titles, not all articles were about Blasey Ford; some were about the confirmation, e.g.:
The equivalent titles wrt Biden might be:
These titles would not be considered to be about the Reade case.
OTOH…this is an understatement:
Biden stands accused of a much more serious infraction, since he was a Senator at the time, and Reade was his assistant.
“And they have the gall to put ‘Why you can trust BBC News’ at the foot of each page
The way they frame the Reade story is nauseating, making play of the fact that it was “nearly 30 years ago” (i.e., a decade more recently than Ford’s accusations against Kavanaugh), that the statute of limitations has expired, and that – breathtakingly – “ the criteria for judging whether someone is a sexual abuser is looking at a consistent story from the accuser and a pattern of behaviour in the accused”. Really, BBC? Really? Where did those criteria go 18 months ago, when Ford’s story about a man with a spotless record changed almost by the hour?
I mean, compare that measured tone (“Mr Biden pledged to be ‘more mindful’ in his interactions”, “It’s possible that Tara Reade’s accusation of sexual assault against Joe Biden could derail his campaign, but it seems unlikely”, “so far she is the only woman to accuse Biden of sexual assault”), for example, with the Corporation’s breathless, tabloid-esqe first piece about Ford and Kavanaugh:
Shambles, d’ye hear? Shambles! Now, get close to the mic, turn down the colour on the picture, and fade up the ominous music…
Provided a Republican is involved.
“Nice nomination you got there. It’d be a shame if anything was to… happen to it…”
Everything, that was, except the media’s preferences.
I have to see having read what seemed to me to be a reasonably fair analysis of Reade’s allegation, I am far from convinced by it. Not “I don’t believe it” but “Hmm.”
Which makes it about a hundred times more convincing than CB-F’s allegation.
It is not just CNN – it is all the “mainstream” media.
And this is what they are educated and trained to be.
The point of the media, according to the people who created the “Schools of Journalism”, is to push “Social Reform” – ever bigger and more interventionist government.
If, to push Progressive Social Reform, it is necessary to LIE, to make up and push false stories, of course they do that.
And, conversely, if to push Progressive Social Reform it is necessary to cover up crime (such as massive financial corruption or sexual assault) of course they do that as well.
Does anyone think that, for example, the staff of the Economist magazine (such people as “Lexington”) are any different from the staff of CNN? They are not different – they lie, they twist, and they cover things up. And they feel good about themselves – for it is all for the cause of Progressive Social Reform.
And the schools and universities are the same – they push the same cause, and with the same dishonest methods.
The hypocritical news cycle – the time period between hyped absurd accusation and concealed credible one – is getting shorter. More years separate the MSM’s handling of Anita Hill / Clarence Thomas from their really having to cover for Bill Clinton than separate the MSM’s handling of Ford / Kavanaugh from their really having to cover for Joe Biden.
They must think our memories are growing shorter.
Relevant Discussion (h/t instapundit) of how people in a corrupt environment (the MSM in this particular case) become unable to see their own corruption, which is a problem for a group whose overt job is to inform and whose actual wish is to persuade.
Ditto politicians protected by the MSM: here are some old Pelosi tweets updated from Ford and Kavanaugh to Reade and Biden.