THE DAILY NEWSLETTER - FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2021 

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
CNN's Miguel Marquez

Recent CDC data shows that unvaccinated people make up the vast majority of those now hospitalized with Covid-19, and CNN's Miguel Marquez sought to understand these patients' decision-making process.

In a segment that aired Friday morning on New Day, Marquez visited Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge where he spoke with Aimee Matzen, who is struggling to breathe and exhausted by Covid.

“The fact that I am here now, I am furious with myself,” she told Marquez. “Because I was not vaccinated.” Matzen is currently in the Covid-19 intensive care unit where she is receiving oxygen treatments and hopes she stays well enough to avoid getting hooked up to a ventilator.

It was a thoughtful and emotional interview, and Marquez consistently showed Matzen respect, encouraging her to share her story with a candor that may help convince others to get vaccinated.

MEDIA LOSER:
Michael Che

Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update co-hosts Michael Che and Colin Jost have a routine in which they write tasteless jokes for each other to read on air. This results in some absolutely offensive jokes, but it's also patently obvious by Che and Jost's reactions that they know what they're saying is awful. 

Che showed no such self-awareness in an Instagram story he posted on Thursday, attacking gymnast Simone Biles

Opinions about Biles' recent decision to drop out of the Tokyo Olympics are varied. However, Che didn't just mock her as a "quitter" -- he shared a so-called joke about Larry Nassar being someone who "understands" Biles "better than anyone" because "[h]e too had to quit doing what he loved at the pinnacle of his career because of mounting pressure."

Yes, the same Nassar who was the former team physician convicted of sexually abusing hundreds of young female gymnasts, including Biles. This wasn't some SNL schtick. It was just plain gross.

NBC Sports Host Roger Bennett on England’s Tragic Euros Loss, Sports Culture Wars, and His Moving Book on a Lifelong Love for America

The A-Block

Here we go again...

With the rollout of three Covid-19 vaccines approved by the FDA for emergency use authorization, many Americans hoped that this summer would be the beginning of the end of the pandemic. But new developments with the highly contagious Delta variant are threatening to screw that all up, plus the ongoing squabbles about mandating vaccines and masks. Here are some of the highlights from our latest coverage.

Will we see a national vaccine mandate soon? President Joe Biden and the White House had conflicting comments on that topic. 

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) is fed up with lockdowns and mandates and told Fox News viewers they shouldn't comply with them.

Fox News aired a graphic on Friday declaring “vaccines work” alongside data showing how few unvaccinated Americans have died or been hospitalized with Covid-19.

Tucker Carlson continues to ask questions that have already been answered, as pointed out in this commentary by Mediaite's Michael Luciano. Carlson's colleague Jesse Watters tossed out another dose of misinformation about where Covid hotspots are.

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough went off on anti-vaxxers and their "rights to be an idiot."

The New York Times is rolling back their plans to return to in-person work.

Want to see a Broadway play? Get your shot. Audiences -- as well as cast and crew -- are now required to be fully vaccinated


In Other News...

Mike Lindell Pulls All MyPillow Ads From Fox News After They Refuse to Run Ad About His Election Claims

Trump Pressured DOJ to Undermine Election Results: 'Just Say the Election Was Corrupt and Leave the Rest to Me'

BREAKING: Trump Taxes MUST Be Given to Congress, Biden DOJ Rules 

WATCH: Megan Rapinoe's Game Winning PK that Advanced US Women's Soccer in the Olympics

Must See Clip

The 'Ultimate in Umbrella Comedy'

Friday morning on New Day, CNN's John Berman served up a hilarious play-by-play of British Prime Minster Boris Johnson's epic battle with an umbrella.

It had everything: physical comedy, a weather report, dad jokes, and quips about how Prince Charles has benefited from inherited umbrellas. Plus, a debate about "chuckles" vs. "chortles." 

Watch the ridiculously silly clip here.

Links We Like

HIPAA, the health privacy law that’s more limited than you think, explained
- Sara Morrison, Vox
Olympics Remind Us That Sports Build Bridges Where Governments Can't
- Fiona Harrigan, Reason
As The Manatee Goes, So Do Aquatic Ecosystems
- Steve Bornhoft, Tallahassee Magazine
Why Managers Fear a Remote-Work Future
- Ed Zitron, The Atlantic
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