It’s important to bear in mind that CNN’s Chris Cuomo isn’t the only news network anchor who got busted for actively running interference for Andrew Cuomo. MSNBC host Katy Tur did, too.
“I’m texting w @KatyTurNBC,” advisor Lis Smith wrote to the group. “Katy is saying my spin live. Like verbatim.”
Smith did not the public knowing she was advising Cuomo bc it would be bad for her “credibility.” https://t.co/oY7oim8dMY
— Josefa Velásquez (@J__Velasquez) November 30, 2021
The Washington Examiner’s Becket Adams thinks he’s found the “spin” referenced by Lis Smith:
here is what i believe is the March 3, 2021, MSNBC segment in which reporter Katy Tur supposedly parroted Andrew Cuomo’s sexual harassment spin “like verbatim.”
relevant moment at the 3:40 mark.https://t.co/i4CpVOBqz4
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
Watch:
Definitely sounds like spin.
the Cuomo spin at the time was: he isn’t a sex pest. he’s just a handsy italian.
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
in private texts to fellow Cuomo operatives, here is how Democratic strategist Lis Smith described Tur’s coverage: pic.twitter.com/njDTqdJVEk
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
here is how The City reports Smith’s reaction to Tur’s reporting on March 3, 2021. pic.twitter.com/2bAVh2WhPD
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
watch the above clip and determine for yourself whether Tur did indeed personally and uncritically regurgitate the pro-Cuomo spin.
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
Recommended
Tur seems committed to giving Andrew Cuomo a helping hand, even though she pretty clearly isn’t convinced by what she’s saying. Hopefully she got something nice out of the deal. Some flowers, maybe? Chocolates? A handbag?
for good measure, here is a clip from 2017 of Tur responding to news of Matt Lauer’s firing. there's a lot in there about #metoo, believing all women, and the need to stand up for the victims of sexual harassment. pic.twitter.com/Dljclq1Pab
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
As we noted yesterday, Tur’s monologue there is particularly striking when you consider her willingness to downplay the allegations against Andrew Cuomo.
big question is why Tur would refer to Lis Smith as "somebody who is close to the [Cuomo] family” as opposed to a hired gun who was brought on specifically to spin the sexual harassment scandal by any means necessary.
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
Here’s one possible explanation:
(because she doesn't know any better and is just fakin' it on the assumption that nobody will call her on that)
— Jeff B. is *BOX OFFICE POISON* (@EsotericCD) December 1, 2021
see: the final paragraphs of my write-up:https://t.co/KZovcQIOtX
— tsar becket adams (@BecketAdams) December 1, 2021
It’s important to remember Tur is not a pundit or a commentator. She is part of MSNBC’s “hard news” division. That she repeated the Cuomo spin, presenting it as the family’s side of the matter and withholding the fact that her information came from a paid strategic operative, suggests either a major ethical failing or complicity.
Let me put it this way: In the 1995 film Casino, after gamblers score roughly $45,000 on a slot machine scam, hotel operations manager Sam Rothstein (Robert De Niro) fires the employee who should’ve put a stop to the scheme the moment it became obvious. Rothstein says, “Listen, if you didn’t know you’re being scammed, you’re too f***ing dumb to keep this job. If you did know, you were in on it. Either way, you’re out.”
The same can be said here for Tur.
If she didn’t realize Cuomo’s spin doctors fed her obvious nonsense, she’s too stupid to keep her job. If she did know, it means she was in on the effort to help Cuomo escape the consequences of his actions.
Katy Tur is not an honest journalist. And whether or not that’s intentional doesn’t really matter at this point. In either case, she can’t be trusted.
https://twitter.com/BecketAdams/status/1466114998300729356
We’ll bet they didn’t.
Again the story here isn't Chris Cuomo. https://t.co/LrpmsQ2pWh
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) December 1, 2021
Chris Cuomo is certainly one part of the story. But Katy Tur plays a starring role, too, and that shouldn’t be ignored.
Don’t think that MSNBC won’t try to ignore it, though.
MSNBC completely avoided the breaking news of Chris Cuomo's suspension last night, which came after minimal coverage of CNN’s growing scandal where no one on-air at MSNBC expressed any sort of commentary or criticism against the rival anchor.https://t.co/HysUJPwHQ0
— Joseph A. Wulfsohn (@JosephWulfsohn) December 1, 2021
If they tackle Chris Cuomo’s involvement, they have to tackle Katy Tur’s. And averting their eyes is just easier for them.
That's because they are not competitors…they are partners. https://t.co/baLOBPoJ5t
— Pradheep J. Shanker (@Neoavatara) December 1, 2021
Partners in crime.
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