Mainstream Setting the Stage for 2016 Presidential Primaries
Alicé Leuchte | September 24, 2013
While many Americans have historically relied on the mainstream media for their sole information source, they are starting to realize that what they have actually been getting is the “shakedown.”
For example, there is an interesting development between Senator Rand Paul and the Associated Press surrounding his position on the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). On September 21, the AP released an article implying Paul was in favor of compromise legislation to fund the ACA:
Sen. Rand Paul says President Barack Obama’s health care law probably can’t be defeated… “I’m acknowledging we can’t probably defeat or get rid of Obamacare,” he said. “But by starting with our position of not funding it, maybe we get to a position where we make it less bad.”
The article later contrasts Rand Paul with other Republican Presidential hopefuls, saying:
Some Senate Republicans, including would-be 2016 presidential rivals Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida, have said they would vote to refuse to pay for the health care law, even if it meant shutting down portions of the government. Paul has called closing down the government “a dumb idea.”
Compare the AP article with Paul’s response in Breitbart.com later that day (“Rand Paul Fires Back at AP, Says He’ll Continue to Fight ObamaCare Funding”):
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) told Breitbart News on Saturday evening that an Associated Press report that claimed he said that Americans “probably can’t get rid of Obamacare” is inaccurate.
Paul said… “It’s kind of interesting that people create it to be news but I’ve said all along and continue to say that I won’t vote to fund Obamacare. I don’t think we should fund Obamacare…. if there is one penny for Obamacare I will vote ‘no.’”
This is a clear illustration why Americans need to be wary of referring to one news source or media network. To compound matters, the AP is an international news network, and their articles are used throughout the mainstream media – and even alternative outlets.
So many stories are simply reposted or recycled from news distribution networks, like the AP – without verifying the accuracy of the information. Like playing “telephone” in grade school, it isn’t hard to understand why so many people have been making important decisions (like who to support for President) based on distorted or even false information.
For example, FoxNews.com posted an article on this topic September 22, entitled “Paul: We probably can’t get rid of ‘Obamacare’.” At the bottom it states, “The Associated Press contributed to this report.”
The reality is that this article is a condensed version of the AP article mentioned earlier, and there was no effort to source this story beyond AP.
Politico and Infowars also missed the boat on this one, both posting articles repeating the same message from AP (“Rand Paul: GOP ‘probably can’t defeat’ Obamacare”). Infowars later added a one-sentence update referring to Rand Paul’s protest to the AP material, but still gave no sources for their update. “A” for effort, but “F” for diligence.
It is important to use discernment when it comes to any news item. All news stories should be regarded as opinion and the primary sources should be reviewed if available – especially on important matters.
Treat your news like your diet. Get your information from a variety of sources, and read your labels.
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