Conservative Pundit Goes Wild: Why does Michelle Malkin accuse Cokie Roberts of "fake news"?
Why does Michelle Malkin accuse Cokie Roberts of "fake news"?
“I distinctly remember that she was one of the first guilty culprits of fake news." - Michelle Malkin
Let’s compare the career tracks of Michelle Malkin and the late Cokie Roberts, shall we?
Michelle Malkin is the daughter of Filipino immigrants who she describes as “Ronald Reagan Republicans” who are not politically active. She majored in English at Oberlin College, which is one of the first post-secondary educational institutions to admit women and African-American students in the U.S. Even at an early age, Michelle Maglagan (her birth name) was a die-hard conservative; in an article she wrote for the student newspaper, she criticized Oberlin’s affirmative action admissions policy.
Although Malkin has done some journalism work, she is not a professional reporter. She’s an “op-ed” columnist, which means she provides opinion-based articles as a syndicated writer for Creators Syndicate. She has also been affiliated with the libertarian think tank Competitive Enterprise Institute, Fox News, CRTV, and the conservative Internet network Hot Air.
In other words, Malkin is a conservative who works primarily as a propagandist rather than a reporter.
Mary “Cokie” Boggs Roberts, in contrast, was a professional reporter and analyst for various newsgathering organizations. Though best known as ABC News’ Contributing Senior News Analyst, Roberts also worked for National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service as a reporter and political analyst.
Roberts was extremely qualified for her role as a Congressional observer. Her father Hale Boggs was a prominent Democratic member of the House of Representatives; he died in 1972 as a result of a plane crash in Alaska. Her mother Lindy was elected to succeed Hale in a special election in 1973 and was re-elected one year later on her own merits to a term of her own representing the Second Congressional District in Louisiana.
By then, Cokie was already a veteran in the TV news business, climbing her way to prominence from local news jobs at stations such as New York City’s WNEW to nationwide gigs at CBS, NPR, and ABC News.
Unlike Malkin, Roberts never delved in the murky netherworld of partisan propaganda. Though both of her parents were Democrats, Cokie Roberts was known for her professionalism and journalistic integrity. She died yesterday at the age of 75, as a result of complications from breast cancer.
As to why Malkin would attack Roberts by saying she peddled “fake news”? That’s easy to answer.
Malkin, of course, is wildly popular in conservative media circles. She speaks out against the “evils” of birthright citizenship and illegal immigration, and some of her books sell well among those Trump supporters who love the notion of “a great, beautiful wall” on the southern border. (You know, the one “Mexico will pay for.”)
Malkin is trying to make a huge issue over one incident back in 1994 when a producer at ABC News pushed Roberts to do a report on the State of the Union from the ABC News studio as if Roberts were at the Capitol. A shot of the Capitol was projected onto the TV screens (no doubt using the same green screen technique that weather anchors use in newscasts). Why this was done, it’s not clear. Suffice it to say, though, that ABC News execs higher up the ladder chastised Roberts and the producer for this sleight-of-hand, even though the facts in the report were themselves real and not alternative ones.
Taking part in a panel at the Paley Center on Tuesday, Malkin joined an array of liberal and conservative commentators and media figures to discuss whether the media is biased.
At one point in the discussion, Malkin—who has recently been making the media rounds hawking her latest anti-immigrant book—took aim at Roberts.
“Cokie Roberts, of course, passed away today and God bless her for an incredible career that she had but I distinctly remember that she was one of the first guilty culprits of fake news,” she declared.
“We’re doing this today?” CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter, who was also on the panel, interjected.
“Yes, yes we are,” Malkin confirmed.
“You’re attacking her today,” Stelter continued. “I just want to be clear: The body isn’t even cold yet.”
Malkin, meanwhile, said her remark was “pertinent” to the issue of “fake news,” bringing up an instance in 1994 when Roberts stood in front of a projection of the Capitol to do an ABC News report from the State of the Union address.
“This was a deliberate attempt to deceive the viewing public into thinking she was actually there live covering it,” Malkin added. “Fake news has existed far longer than before President Trump even had the idea of running for office.”
Malkin’s remarks, predictably, were not well received by the attendees, with many in the audience shouting at her to leave and go home.
Tuesday was far from the first time that Malkin has kicked dirt on a prominent figure after he or she has passed away. During this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference, Malkin slammed the “ghost of John McCain” for what she described as his weak immigration policies.
Calling news outlets such as ABC News and PBS’ News Hour “mainstream media” and claiming that all of their political reporting is “fake news” is a typical gaslighting technique employed by the right to bolster support for President Trump and his “policies.” It’s a play right out of The Authoritarian Rulers’ Handbook: silence the free press by sowing distrust and hate toward fact-based reporting that goes against the ruler’s message and criticizes a regime’s policies and actions.
That’s why Malkin calls the late Cokie Roberts’ legacy of work as “fake news.”
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