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Joe Rogan
Podcaster Joe Rogan's name is a more common sight in our Loser column. He's frequently entertained irresponsible conspiracy theories and misinformation -- far too often under the guise of "just asking questions" -- and with the massive size of his audience, every speck of tin foil-hatted half-truth he amplifies has the potential to cause serious harm. With great power comes great responsibility, after all.
That being said, we do make an effort to call balls and strikes around here, and when Rogan gets it right, we are more than happy to sing his praises. And that goes double for when he's making an important point directed at a segment of his own audience.
On last Wednesday's episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan took aim at those on the right who have been blasting Blaze TV host Dave Rubin over the recent announcement that he and husband David Janet are expecting two children via surrogate later this summer.
In his typical unfiltered style, Rogan blasted "all these f*cking vicious, right wing, ideologically captured people" who were attacking Rubin and Janet. Rubin had done nothing wrong by simply trying to "express a little bit about [his] own personal life," Rogan continued, and didn't deserve for these "hateful a**holes" coming after him.
Rubin "just wants to be a loving father with his husband," said Rogan. It's a somewhat obvious point, but an important one, and we applaud him for making it. |
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 | MEDIA LOSER:
Today News Africa's Simon Ateba
The White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) counts among its members hundreds of journalists from print, television, radio, and online media outlets around the world, and is responsible for credentialing the press corps who attend the White House Press Briefings to ensure "the ability to seek answers from powerful officials, up to and including the President."
Today News Africa's Simon Ateba may soon find himself no longer on the WHCA membership rolls, after his latest outbursts during Friday's press briefing. During outgoing White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki's last day, Ateba interrupted and shouted questions while other reporters were attempting to speak, drawing scolding responses from Psaki and his WHCA colleagues.
He has now been threatened with suspension or possibly even expulsion from the WHCA if he interrupts again. In an email to Ateba, obtained by Mediaite, WHCA President and CBS News Radio White House Correspondent Steven Portnoy warned him that his "disruptive behavior at last Friday’s briefing interrupted your colleagues and reflected poorly on the press corps."
“There is no right of any reporter to be called on by any official. Preventing your colleagues from asking their questions is no way to seek relief.”
Ateba retorted that the WHCA needs to reform and maintained that he was the "victim." An unconvincing response. |
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| A tragic weekend This should have been yet another pleasant May weekend, with kids celebrating the end of the school year and summer's scorching heat not yet fully settled in. Instead, Americans in multiple cities are mourning lost loved ones murdered in mass shootings.
Payton Gendron, an 18-year-old resident of Conklin, New York, drove several hours to a Tops Friendly Markets grocery store in Buffalo on Saturday, where he allegedly shot and killed ten people and wounded three others. One of the victims included a Buffalo police officer, who fired back at the gunman but was unable to stop him due to the body armor he wore.
He is alleged to have posted a 180-page manifesto online that contained racist and anti-Semitic views, including voicing support for the conspiracy theory that immigrants are “replacing” America’s white population, and to have targeted this specific store because of its location in a heavily Black neighborhood.
Gendron was taken into custody at the scene and has been charged with first degree murder. He may face additional charges for hate crimes or other offenses.
The gunman allegedly bought the AR-15 used in the shooting legally, but modified it with an illegal high-capacity magazine. He also was reportedly investigated while he was in high school for making a violent threat.
The usual suspects didn't hesitate to push wild conspiracy theories. Far-right Florida congressional candidate Laura Loomer and Arizona State Sen. Wendy Rogers both suggested the Buffalo shooting was some sort of false flag operation by the federal government.
Multiple commentators pointed a finger of blame, for at least the Buffalo shooting, at Fox News and specifically top-rated host Tucker Carlson, including CNN's Abby Phillip and S.E. Cupp and The View co-host Ana Navarro. CNN Newsroom host Jim Acosta launched an especially pointed rant at Carlson's "dangerous" rhetoric on his show Sunday.
Megyn Kelly, on the other hand, defended her "friend" Carlson on the Monday episode of her podcast. “Why can’t we spend two f*cking minutes mourning," Kelly lamented.
In the middle of Sunday's coverage of the latest developments in the Buffalo shooting, tragedy struck again on the other side of the country. A gunman killed one person and injured at least 5 others at Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, California.
Churchgoers managed to hogtie the gunman with an extension cord, confiscate his weapons, and restrain him until police arrived. Orange County undersheriff Jeff Hallock praised their "exceptional heroism."
Perhaps one of the most tragic elements of these mass shooting stories is how they start to blur together after a while -- especially when they happen so closely together in time. But for our fellow Americans now grieving the death of their loved ones, it's a shocking and senseless loss that will impact them forever. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all the families and friends of this weekend's victims. May their memories be a blessing.
🇺🇦 FOR LATEST UKRAINE COVERAGE CLICK HERE
In Other News... Liz Cheney Blasts House GOP Leadership for Enabling 'White Nationalism, White Supremacy and Anti-Semitism'
Clarence Thomas Sends Message to Media: I'll Leave the Court When 'I Do My Job as Poorly As Yours'
WATCH: Fauci Laughs and Tells CNN’s Acosta He’s ‘For Sure’ Not Interested in Staying in His Position if Trump is Re-Elected
NBC News Verifies Images of Kathy Barnette Marching With Proud Boys On January 6
HOWE: Jen Psaki Says ‘Ultra-MAGA’ is ‘The President’s Phrase,’ But New Reporting Blames Six Months of Focus Groups For It
Industry News... Why Deadline Can’t Publish Our Magazine Interview With Cannes Film Festival Head Thierry Frémaux RATINGS: May 12 -- Wolf Blitzer Leads CNN in Demo |
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| Context? Republican Senate candidate Kathy Barnette was questioned on her Islamophobic tweets on Fox News Sunday and provided a rambling explanation that she was not expressing “full thoughts” or “even full sentences.”
Barnette is surging in the Pennsylvania Senate primary, despite little name recognition and a war chest dwarfed by her rivals, former Bridgewater CEO David McCormick and TV doctor Mehmet Oz. Despite her fierce support for Donald Trump, the former president has endorsed Oz.
She has faced criticism from other prominent conservatives, including Fox News host Sean Hannity, who said her old tweets -- railing against Muslims and immigrants, among others -- “likely render her unelectable in Pennsylvania.”
In an appearance on Fox News Sunday, anchor Shannon Bream questioned Barnette on those tweets, and asked her if she could provide any "context" for the tweets.
What followed was a convoluted word salad from Barnette, who rambled on for several minutes but didn't really explain. Watch for yourself here. |
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