💣 Oops, They Did It Again: The Media’s Greatest Hits of Being Wrong
Sunrise Show Prep! Aug 1
💣 Oops, They Did It Again: The Media’s Greatest Hits of Being Wrong
By Larry O’Connor
Let’s play a game.
It’s called: What if you were this consistently wrong at your job?
Imagine a surgeon who removes the wrong organ. A lawyer who sues the judge. A pilot who confuses the runway with the highway. You’d get fired, sued, or institutionalized.
But if you’re a journalist? If you peddle conspiracy theories, pockmark reputations with rumor, and treat fact-checking like it's a lost art from a dead civilization?
Well, you get promoted. You win a Pulitzer. And if you’re The Daily Beast, you simply hit delete and pretend it never happened.
Take their latest forehead-slapper: a now-removed article repeating Michael Wolff’s claim that Melania Trump was “introduced” to Donald Trump by none other than—wait for it—Jeffrey Epstein.
Yes, really. Because if you're going to hallucinate a headline, make it nuclear.
The Beast published this innuendo straight from Wolff’s latest bath-salts-and-Jameson fever dream, Apocalypse, without so much as a passing glance at verification. No corroboration. No credible sourcing. Just, “Eh, sounds juicy. Let’s publish.”
Then came the lawyers. Melania Trump's team didn’t just issue a sternly worded statement—they dropped a legal anvil. And poof—the article was gone. Not retracted with an apology. Not corrected with transparency. Just memory-holed like it never happened.
Axios reporter Alex Isenstadt broke the deletion:
“Remember the lie that Trump said neo-Nazis were 'very fine people'? That lie is still repeated today. So is the bleach lie. And the border agent 'whipping' migrants. This lie about Melania will live on too. That’s how it works. No accountability. No memory. Just narrative.”
He’s right.
The lies don’t die. They metastasize. They become conventional wisdom. If you say a falsehood enough times in The New York Times or MSNBC’s basement bunker, it takes on the permanence of gravity.
Here’s the thing: the media doesn’t just get things wrong occasionally. They are consistently, aggressively, hilariously wrong.
They told us Hunter Biden’s laptop was Russian disinfo. It wasn’t.
They said Trump colluded with Russia. He didn’t.
They said border agents whipped migrants. They didn’t.
They claimed COVID might not have come from a lab. Then quietly changed their minds.
They insisted inflation was “transitory,” boys can get pregnant, and Hamas just wants peace.
Oops. Oops. And oops again.
The Fourth Estate has become the Fifth Column. And the American public? We’re the collateral damage in their endless ideological RPG.
What’s astounding isn’t just the frequency of these falsehoods—it’s the total lack of consequences.
Let’s imagine what would happen if, say, Tucker Carlson or Ben Shapiro published a similar whopper about Michelle Obama being part of Epstein’s circle. Twitter would detonate. The SPLC would weep openly. Congress would hold hearings. The New York Times would issue an 87-part podcast titled “The Melanin Connection.”
But when it’s Melania Trump? Meh. Just a minor error. Just a little Epstein. No biggie. Try again tomorrow.
This double standard is less about journalism and more about narrative control. The modern press isn’t there to inform you. They’re there to massage you into a set of beliefs they’ve pre-approved in a committee meeting at Columbia J-School and reinforced at brunch with George Conway.
This isn’t Watergate. It’s gaslighting with a press credential.
The press used to be watchdogs. Now they’re lapdogs. They used to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. Now they afflict the facts and comfort the self-righteous.
And it’s not just one outlet. The Daily Beast is a symptom. CNN, NBC News, Washington Post, New York Times—they’ve all taken their turn in the Hall of Shame. And nobody gets fired. Nobody apologizes. Hell, sometimes they get promoted to media critic.
You know, if the media had been this wrong in 1776, we’d all still be drinking tea and asking King Charles for pronoun guidance.
At some point, we have to stop treating these people like journalists and start treating them like political operatives with a LinkedIn page.
So here’s a modest proposal:
The next time the press runs another half-baked fever dream as fact, print it on a t-shirt with the words: “I’m With Narrative.” At least then, we’ll know who’s buying the bull.
Until then, watch your back—and don’t believe the headline.
It might be true.
But odds are, it’s not.
🎙️ RADIO GUEST LINEUP
🕕 6:35 AM – Tim Graham
Executive Editor, NewsBusters & Media Research Center
TOPIC: Media blackout on the latest Russiagate revelations and Kamala Harris's appearance on Colbert last night.
🕖 7:05 AM – Hans von Spakovsky
Senior Legal Fellow, The Heritage Foundation
Host of the weekly Heritage legal podcast, Case in Point
TOPIC: President Trump’s push to confirm judicial nominees — Should Senate Republicans stay in session until every nominee is confirmed?
🕢 7:35 AM – Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer
TOPIC: Breaking developments in the Russia Hoax investigation.
🕗 8:05 AM – Mary Margaret Olohan
Reporter, The Daily Wire
TOPIC: Inside look at the White House Ballroom Project and its symbolism.
🕣 8:35 AM – James Fishback
TOPIC: Trump’s plans for the Federal Reserve and Trade Deals—what to expect next.
🎙️ LARRY’S SHOW PREP
🔥 Smoking Gun Russiagate Docs Point to Hillary
Durham Appendix Released:
“This is the smoking gun.” — John Solomon
“They all knew.” — Catherine Herridge
“A scam from the very beginning.” — Sen. Mike Lee
CIA, Obama, Comey, and Soros-linked groups allegedly knew Hillary Clinton’s Russia hoax strategy before the FBI launched its probe.
🏛️ White House Ballroom Expansion
Classical architect James McCrery will lead the design.
Funded by private donors, not taxpayer dollars.
📺 Gutfeld Going on Fallon
Gutfeld: “Me going on Fallon’s show shows he’s not afraid of upsetting peers.”
💸 Pelosi Freaks Out on Insider Trading Question
🏛️ DEI Buried at University of Iowa
Undercover Video: Admin admits DEI is “hidden” in job roles to avoid scrutiny.
🤖 Biden’s Verbal Malfunction (Again)
📚 Kamala’s Book… Yes, Really
107 Days — Her memoir on the shortest campaign ever.
🧱 Trump’s Press Gaggle Hits
“Kamala? She can’t speak.”
“Ballrooms? I build things.”
“Redskins name? Bring it back.”
🫨 Elizabeth Warren Wipeout
🌍 Trade Update
17 countries notified; new tariffs take effect Aug. 7.