I cover the media nearly every day at Twitchy, by which I mean that, every day, I mostly point and laugh at their corruption and incompetence. But this week may have been one of the worst for the dead legacy media in my more than two years of writing for Twitchy.
CNN, of course, covered itself in shame more than the rest, but they were not alone. After lying about the terror attack at Gracie Mansion in New York City, CNN was forced to delete a tweet, followed by an 'explanation' that was even more disgraceful. The same goes for CNN contributors Abby Phillip, Ana Navarro, and Edward Isaac-Devore, all of whom falsely claimed that Mayor Zohran Mamdani was the target of the attackers, both of whom pledged their allegiance to ISIS.
It only got worse from there. The media also lied about two Islamic terror attacks in Virginia and Michigan, and then proceeded to lie about the war against Iran, falsely pushing the propaganda that the Trump administration and the Department of War had not considered the possibility that Iran would try to close the Strait of Hormuz. (I won't even get into their fake pearl-clutching over feeding our troops well.)
At a Pentagon briefing yesterday, Hegseth and the Department of War let the media have it, setting his sights on CNN in particular.
HEGSETH
— www.Jonny Clock1977.us (@JonnyClock1977) March 14, 2026
takes aim at CNN's Iran coverage: 'Fake news'
War Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed media coverage of Operation Epic Fury during a Pentagon press briefing.
MEDIA :
White House erupts over CNN report claiming Trump team underestimated Iran response on Hormuz
Fox News /… pic.twitter.com/zhnHM7epC7
Scorched. Earth.
And everything he said is accurate. The left hates Trump, we know that. That's why they undermine him at every turn.
But it is becoming more and more obvious that the reason they hate Trump is that they hate America.
But then came the whining.
The thing about legacy media hacks is that they believe they are heroes. Not the men and women prosecuting the war, but they, as they sit at their laptops 6,000 miles away from danger. Nothing threatens this false self-image more than when someone like Hegseth calls them out for who they truly are: cowards.
If there is one disgraceful member of the legacy press who believes this about himself more than anyone, it is former CNN apparatchik Jim Acosta. Never mind that he was so bad at his job that even that network fired him, and no other network will hire him, Acosta still thinks he should get a Medal of Freedom for how well he wrestles a microphone away from a woman half his size.
Acosta can't attack Hegseth on the substance, though. His quiver of facts is empty. Instead, he went after the Pentagon for not inviting the 'major' outlets to this briefing.
The major networks and news outlets were not participants in that Pentagon “briefing.” Lindell TV, One America News, Real America News all asked “questions.” This is happening in the United States. Fills you with confidence?
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) March 13, 2026
Needless to say, Acosta has to show everyone how stunning and brave he is by shutting off replies.
Just let that sink in for a second. A man who still calls himself a journalist (laughable as that misconception is) refuses to engage in dialogue. This alone says everything about him.
In this instance, however, Acosta also demonstrated the other trademark he is best known for -- being wrong.
And Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Joel Valdez called him out on it to his face.
Can the following reporters from the major cable news networks please confirm you were at today's Pentagon press briefing? Jim @Acosta still doesn't believe you were there.@LMartinezABC (ABC)@Ellee_Watson (CBS)@halbritz (CNN)@JenGriffinFNC (Fox)@JulesJester (MS NOW)… https://t.co/0J2qIcOc3n
— Deputy Press Sec Joel Valdez (@JoelValdezDOW) March 13, 2026
Oh, gosh. Would you look at that? It appears that every major cable news network WAS at the briefing, after all. Even the ones who openly hate the administration.
After all, Hegseth wanted to call them out, so why wouldn't he invite them? He's not a coward like Acosta.
But Acosta wasn't done. Despite having all of the egg on his face at this point, his next move was not to apologize or at least retract his previous assertion, as any normal person would do, but to break out his shovel and keep digging.
Oh, give me a break. Why don’t you let all of the major outlets in there and ask their questions and oh by the way, get rid of your ridiculous press access rules and start acting like a real pentagon press secretary. Stop BSing the American people. https://t.co/cjdhCymwPe
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) March 13, 2026
What part of 'all the cable news networks were there' did Acosta not understand?
His tweet was beyond incompetence and corruption at this point. Now, Acosta was just a four-year-old toddler throwing a tantrum and banging his fists on the ground.
So, like any parent with a child throwing a hissy fit, Valdez spanked him again. Publicly.
Secretary @PeteHegseth has taken questions from mainstream media like ABC News (literally today), NBC News (also today), the Wall Street Journal (again, today), the New York Times, BBC News, Daily Mail, and many more. Maybe try watching one of the press briefings?
— Deputy Press Sec Joel Valdez (@JoelValdezDOW) March 13, 2026
Big talk… https://t.co/cTlNd9zQVs
... coming from you @Acosta when you won’t even turn on your replies on X! Coward.
Good Lord. This is just embarrassing now.
There's a common expression on social media that everyone knows. It's called 'taking your L.'
And no one on the left, least of all fake journalists like Acosta, knows how to do it.
It's one thing to lose an argument. That happens to the best of us. It is quite another thing to be called out on the facts, PROVEN wrong, and still refuse to accept reality -- let alone have any dignity or self-respect.
Acosta doesn't know how to hang his head in shame, so we're all forced to do it on his behalf. And I'm getting pretty tired of it. I'll give Phillip an ounce of credit. At least when she was proven wrong about Mamdani and the attack in New York, she issued an apology on X and on her show. Granted, it was one of those weasely apologies in which she refused to accept responsibility, but at least she said the words, 'I apologize.'
Those are the words Acosta should have used. Those and no others. But he can't.
I want to be clear about one thing here. The reason Acosta can't take his L isn't that he knows he is right. Even someone as dense as he can understand that he just got taken to the woodshed on the facts.
No, Acosta can't admit defeat because, in his mind, he believes he is righteous.
Big difference.
That's also why he shuts off replies. He knows that everyone on X will call him out just like Valdez did. He doesn't want to hear any of that. He simply wants to scream his righteousness from the rooftop of his apartment, the truth be damned.
There are many words to describe this. Delusional is one. Cowardly is another. But one word that can never be used to describe Acosta's behavior is 'journalism.'
Obviously, the biggest joke about Acosta is one that doesn't need to be said. His delusional, sociopathic childishness is exactly why no one will hire him, and his once bright career has been reduced to online interviews (that no one watches) with Rosie O'Donnell from his kitchen.
All because he doesn't know how to take his L. He doesn't understand that integrity means trying to get the story right, not ignoring the story to feed his righteousness.
It is main character syndrome run horribly amok.
This dates back to Acosta's previous, most infamous incident. When he was in the White House Press Corps, and a White House aide tried to take the microphone away after he had asked all of his questions, he refused to give it up. And became a laughingstock as a result (not to mention a disgrace).
Everything that he has done since then only further confirms the fact that he never cared about being a reporter. He wanted to be an activist, and he wanted the story to be HIM, regardless of whatever the story really was about.
Jim Acosta is beyond redemption. Everyone knows this. But he can still serve as an object lesson for others in the legacy media who want to retain (or regain) a shred of credibility.
You are not the story. You are NEVER the story.
And when you get the story wrong, for the love of God and Edward R. Murrow, learn how to take your L.
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