THE DAILY NEWSLETTER  - MONAY, APRIL 6, 2020

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
Chris Wallace

Surgeon General Vice Admiral Jerome Adams told Chris Wallace Sunday morning that the president made a decision “that’s appropriate for him” in not wearing a mask when out in public after the new CDC recommendation.

Wallace asked Adams whether Trump saying he wouldn't wear one is a messaging problem. “Does that statement by the president send a mixed message about taking this recommendation seriously?” he asked.

Wallace pressed Adams on several points, including the president talking up "an unproven, untested drug," in the extremely effective interview.

Wallace also interviewed billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates in the same edition of n Fox News Sunday, and that, too, was extremely revealing.

Gates has been in the news quite a bit over coronavirus, thanks to his prescient 2015 TED Talk on pandemic preparedness, and to his major commitment in both money and resources to getting a vaccine as fast as we can. But in that coverage, as is often the case, cherry-picking of quotes has led to his remarks being used as arguments for and against measures like social distancing.

But Wallace cut through a lot of that, and even got a comment on Dr. Anthony Fauci from Gates. 

In other words, on Sunday, as he often does, Fox anchor Chris Wallace defied partisan bickering and tribal expectations and did his job. 

If there's anything more vital right now in the press, we haven't heard of it.
MEDIA LOSER:
Pastor Tony Spell 

Louisiana pastor Tony Spell, leader of the Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, has been in the news for over a week now, following his arrest for violating a statewide Stay-at-Home order; an arrest he live-streamed on Facebook to maximize the attention he got.

Despite the arrest, and six misdemeanor charges, Spell has vowed to continue holding large services that exceed Louisiana's ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. 

Spell went on CNN this weekend, where anchor Victor Blackwell conducted a spectacular interview about the whole thing

When Blackwell asked Spell whether he and his church believe the science on the Covid-19 pandemic, Spell said "we believe the science." As he has in other interviews, he attempted to paint this as a religious effort, not a publicity stunt or political exercise, and cited the need for comfort and prayer.

But Blackwell's grilling revealed more than Spell probably intended. He was apparently flustered by Blackwell confronting him over how he could claim to be pro-life while putting people "in jeopardy."

“We were supposed to be at a million and a half body bags, we’re at 8400. So the narrative is false, Victor," said Spell, exposing what his actual motivations and echoing a theme very prominent on the Trump right.

The Blackwell interview is fantastic. The bad example Blackwell is setting for his followers, and the bad image he creates for religious leaders, is not. It's a loser, any way you preach it.

The A-Block

Boris Johnson Moved Into Intensive Care

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is now in intensive care in the hospital after being admitted yesterday over his continued coronavirus symptoms.

Johnson announced a little over a week ago he tested positive for the coronavirus. On Sunday, he was admitted to the hospital yesterday in what his office called a “precautionary step” after having persistent symptoms.

"This is going to be a bad week."

Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that states are “putting themselves at risk” by not instituting lockdowns, and that it would be false for anyone to claim America has the coronavirus pandemic under control.

In a Sunday interview with CBS’ Margaret Brennan on Face The Nation, Fauci explained that “this is going to be a bad week” for the country because “we’re going to continue to see an escalation” in Covid-19 projections.

"WE WILL GET THRU THIS"

CNN host Brooke Baldwin who tested positive for the coronavirus last week has shared with her followers that she is doing well in her fight against COVID-19.

“I’m very healthy and feel like one of the lucky ones… but am careful to still take this day by day,” Baldwin shared in a post to Instagram on Sunday morning.

Postponed

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers (D) announced on Monday he would order a postponement of the elections that were scheduled to happen in his state tomorrow.

The governor stated that all in-person voting for statewide and local elections would be pushed back to June.

Your ratio of the day

Why is CNN's John Harwood tweeting about a Fox News contributor’s make up? Good question. And there were a lot of people asking it.

Disturbing, unusual, out of the ordinary

Mediaite founder and ABC News chief legal analyst Dan Abrams went off on President Donald Trump today for his firing of intelligence community inspector general Michael Atkinson, the official who first brought the whistleblower complaint to Congress.

The president’s decision to fire Atkinson dropped on Friday night. Abrams said on his SiriusXM show the president was clearly “trying to bury” the firing of someone he wasn’t happy with.

"Quack cure"

Dr. William Haseltine, a biologist and former Harvard Medical School professor, warned Americans against using much-hyped malarial drugs to fight the coronavirus on Fox News, Monday, describing it as a “quack cure” which could have fatal side effects.

On Dana Perino’s The Daily Briefing, Haseltine said, “It’s sad to me that people are promoting that drug. We know already from studies at best it will have a very mild effect. At very best.”

Mask-Match

 

FOX News Channel anchor Eric Shawn has been featuring good news and positive stories (as has Mediaite), and this weekend, he brought to the air the founders of Mask-Match, who have been working hard to get masks "directly into the hands of the healthcare workers who are on the front lines right now."

A great effort, and a great story.

Introducing Mediaite+

Mediaite is introducing a new premium experience today, allowing you to enjoy the site free of advertisements and with additional exclusive reporting. This is a project that had been in the works before the recent coronavirus outbreak — it was then put on hold, but we have decided to move forward with a free first month for everyone.

Today, we’re proud to launch Mediaite+ — a brand new subscription service designed to give you even more of the industry content you’ve come to expect from us over the years. Many have been asking for a Mediate experience without ads (including on videos!), and now, we’re able to deliver. No more side banners. No more auto-play or required video commercials. READ MORE HERE.


 

Must-See Clip(s) of the Day

"First time I’ve done The Tonight Show without wearing pants"

The videos here almost defy description. Not because they are strange or scary or weird or funny - which they are - but because they are so varied and so good we hesitate to ruin the surprise for you.

We've gathered the highlights from last week's quarantined and socially-distanced late night TV, and you should know that some of the people starring - and in some cases singing - in these clips include Adam Sandler, Weird Al Yankovic, Bill Gates, Jennifer Aniston, and mother, uh, -loving Samuel L. Jackson.

It's awesome. You're stuck at home anyway, why miss out?

Links We Like

Why Are We Having A “Debate” Over Hydroxychloroquine?
via HotAir
All Signs Point to China
via National Review
Why Donald Trump's Firing Of The Intelligence Community Ig Is So, So Egregious
- via CNN
This Is What Happens When a Narcissist Runs a Crisis
- via New York Times
NBCUniversal Makes Bid to Cut More Ads as Madison Ave. Grapples With Coronavirus
- via Variety
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