CNN’s spectacle of lies

| 12:01 pm EDT May 14, 2023
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I am a writer. I am not a perfect writer. I make mistakes sometimes. I try my best, and I write with feeling, honesty, and emotion. I am not dispassionate. And I never will be. For all those reading these words right now — what drew you to Palmer Report? What makes you love the writers here? Is consistency? Is it honesty and depth of feeling, and being on the right side of issues? Maybe. But I bet none of you would say you read Palmer report because it’s “dispassionate.” Dispassion — that is the word Chris Licht of CNN fame and shame used for Media reporter Oliver Darcy.

Darcy is not a big name, but he is an honest one. After the disaster that was the CNN Trump town hall, Darcy had written an honest and brutal assessment of the evening’s activities, saying: “It’s hard to see how America was served by the spectacle of lies that aired on CNN on Wednesday evening.”

For those words and more, Darcy was reportedly summoned into a meeting with the suits. The suits, especially Licht, were not happy. And they reportedly tore into Darcy, telling him he needed to be more “dispassionate” in his reporting.

It was not just Licht. CNN’s Comms chief was there, as was the editorial executive VP and senior VP of Global News.

Your coverage was too emotional, they reportedly told him. Imagine for a minute. Imagine standing up for the truth — standing up for America and then having to explain oneself to a bunch of smug, self-satisfied corporate shills, the CNN suites, the ones who allowed this shit-show to actually happen.

But Darcy stood by his work. And that’s good. However, it is said that the shills “put the fair of God into him.” This, my friend, is the new CNN. It is hard to put into words the admiration and respect I have for Darcy. I hope he won’t be another causality of the Licht firestorm. So what can we do?

Not watching is a good idea. But it’s not enough. I know many of you do not watch CNN, but why not tell others you know about all of this. The only thing these people understand is ratings and profit. Licht is likely halfway out the door, anyway. If he weren’t, he’d not be flipping out like this.

And boycotting works. It worked with Tucker. Yes, Tucker was let go because of his own bad behavior, but if there had never been a public outcry about him, he might still be there. You were part of that outcry. You helped get Tucker sacked.

It’s sad about CNN, but Licht needs to go. Unless or until he does, there is no CNN. It’s just a cold, bloodless, robotic echo chamber for ratings. It’s just dispassionate.