NYT Commits the Same Mistakes It Apologized for Four Years Ago
We know now that the New York Times‘s letter to its readers in the wake of President Donald Trump’s surprise 2016 victory was a non-apology apology. . .
As the kids say, LOL. The paper’s coverage of the 2020 presidential election was not only as misleading as it was four years ago, it was misleading in the same way, overstating the odds of Democrats everywhere thanks, at least in part, to a belief in race and gender as the defining features of American politics. Identity politics has come to define the New York Times, but the country isn’t so monolithic.
Four years ago, the paper wrote not one but two pieces arguing Hillary Clinton and the Democrats were making major inroads in Texas thanks to the state’s growing minority population. Clinton, reporters Matt Flegenheimer and Jonathan Martin wrote, was leading “a new offensive aimed at extending her growing advantage over Donald J. Trump while bolstering down-ballot candidates in what party leaders increasingly suggest could be a sweeping victory for Democrats at every level.” Trump went on to trounce Clinton by nine points.
Fast forward to last month, when Martin promised that this time, Texas was “a true presidential battleground, and either candidate could prevail.” The result: Trump by six.
The fake news wasn’t limited to one state. The Times covered Susan Collins’s impending demise: Susan Collins Hasn’t Changed Much, but Maine Has. Collins won by nine. They claimed Republicans were botching the Senate race in deep red South Carolina, where Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison was alleged to have a real shot at unseating Republican senator Lindsey Graham thanks to the state’s growing diversity—”surprisingly competitive,” a “remarkable feat.” That kind of credulous reporting helped Harrison raise nearly $100 million for his campaign. The result: Graham won by 14 points, just 3 points weaker than the pummeling he gave his last challenger in 2014. (Read more from “NYT Commits the Same Mistakes It Apologized for Four Years Ago” HERE)
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