Tabloid Allegations Again Fly in a Political Campaign — and Why No One Can Look Away [+video]
By Domenico Montanaro. Once again, the political world is talking about a National Enquirer story.
The last time was during the 2008 presidential campaign when the tabloid alleged that Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards had fathered a child out of wedlock. When the rumor first surfaced, the media largely ignored it . . .
This time around, the story involves Ted Cruz and allegations of multiple extramarital affairs. To be clear, the story quotes none of the alleged women involved nor does it even mention their names. It has not been substantiated by any other media outlet, including NPR.
And despite whether any of it is true, unlike the Edwards story, this one has been harder for the media to ignore. Why? Because Cruz himself brought it up.
“Let me be clear: This National Enquirer story is garbage,” Cruz said, unprompted by questions from any reporters, in an on-camera statement in Wisconsin, where the candidate is campaigning before the April 5 primary there. “It is complete and utter lies. It is a tabloid smear.” (Read more from “Tabloid Allegations Again Fly in a Political Campaign — and Why No One Can Look Away” HERE)
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The Remarkable CNN Exchange That Took the Ted Cruz Affair Rumors From the Tabloids Into the Mainstream
By Callum Borchers. If you’re just now hearing the unsubstantiated rumor that Ted Cruz engaged in multiple extramarital affairs, there’s a good reason: Mainstream media outlets had been ignoring the gossip since Wednesday afternoon, when the National Enquirer posted it online.
But by midday Friday, there was no avoiding the smutty story line — not after a Boston Herald columnist and radio host suggested live on CNN that Cruz’s former communications director had slept with her one-time boss, with the former Cruz aide appearing right there with her on live TV . . .
CNN anchor Kate Bolduan, who’s had an eventful couple days on the air, shook her head in dismay as Adriana Cohen, a Trump enthusiast, hijacked a live interview that also included former Cruz spokeswoman Amanda Carpenter and steered it straight into the gutter. Bolduan asked Cohen if she was ready to move on from another unseemly subject — Trump’s tasteless, Wednesday-night retweet that unfavorably compared the physical appearance of Cruz’s wife, Heidi, to that of Trump’s wife, Melania. (Read more from “The Remarkable CNN Exchange That Took the Ted Cruz Affair Rumors From the Tabloids Into the Mainstream” HERE)
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