Earlier today, the Atlantic’s Anne Applebaum explained why even though everything in the Steele dossier was wrong, the Steele dossier wasn’t really wrong.
Well, Washington Post Fact Checker Glenn Kessler is at least willing to acknowledge that the Steele dossier wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. But that’s not saying much about Kessler’s journalistic integrity:
The Steele dossier captivated Americans at the start of the Trump presidency. Now there's a criminal indictment. This @washingtonpost Fact Checker guide to the story will bring you up to date. https://t.co/uRgJzSHki8
— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) November 17, 2021
The Fact Checker guide to the story!
Kessler’s “analysis” includes some pretty choice bits. Here’s one:
There is an old saying in journalism: You’re only as good as your sources. Now a Nov. 3 indictment of Danchenko on five counts of lying to the FBI has suggested that Steele’s sources were not very good at all. Danchenko has pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer said the indictment presents “a false narrative designed to humiliate and slander a renowned expert in business intelligence for political gain.”
The Danchenko indictment has further bolstered the perception, especially on the right, that the dossier was a smear campaign orchestrated by Trump’s opponents. The indictment alleges that a source for Danchenko was a longtime political operative who was a supporter of Clinton and that another source, who had no role, was falsely identified by Danchenko.
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Kessler does briefly acknowledge that the media largely got swept up in all the Steele dossier excitement:
The Steele dossier has raised uncomfortable questions in media circles about whether some news organizations and TV pundits too quickly embraced sketchy opposition research that shaped their coverage.
But that’s about as introspective as Kessler’s willing to get.
It captivated the press more than anyone else. Why was that? https://t.co/Vzt6mBFgdi
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) November 17, 2021
We’re dying to know, Glenn. Think really hard, and maybe you’ll solve this mystery.
Who pushed this dossier as fact?! Anyone know?! 👇👇👇👇 https://t.co/fAtBtRox4q
— Lfoxy23 🇺🇸💙✭ (@lfoxy23) November 17, 2021
This you? https://t.co/x3VntYdgwh
— Nick Graham (@nlgraham1) November 17, 2021
Looks like it!
If the Fact Checker doesn't lead with "we pushed this ridiculous piece of shit story for 3 years" he's leaving out the most important fact https://t.co/TEjijQYQU7
— DaveinTexas (@DaveinTexas) November 17, 2021
lol, captivated. Maybe the press was captivated. They slobbered over it enough without actually digging into some pretty obvious issues with the source material. I think most of America knew it was made up, some just didn't care because it was hurting the other team.
— Michael (@MkHmmr) November 17, 2021
"Because the Washington Post lied to you for 5 years about Trump-Russia Collusion, and Steele was our "source" for the lies, read the Washington Post to bring you up to date [on how we plan to lie to you now that there are criminal indictments and we might have legal exposure]". https://t.co/veTWSIKu8l
— Svetlana Lokhova (@RealSLokhova) November 17, 2021
https://twitter.com/stoicynic/status/1460997550480113666
Can’t cover their asses without trying to sneak in one more clever little trick:
https://twitter.com/NathanWurtzel/status/1460998749002645509
Glenn is no dummy; he’s just a dishonest hack.
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