THE DAILY NEWSLETTER  - THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
Chris Webber

Former NBA star Chris Webber offered some impassioned and emotional commentary Wednesday night on NBA players striking in protest after the shooting of Jacob Blake.

Webber appeared on Inside the NBA, after Kenny Smith walked off the set in solidarity with the players.

“I’m very proud of the players. I don’t know the next steps,” Webber said.

“Ωon’t really care what the next steps are because the first steps are to garner attention, and they have everybody’s attention around the world right now. Then leadership and others will get together and decide the next steps.

"So we know it won’t end tomorrow. We know that there’s been a million marches and nothing’ll change tomorrow.

"Don’t listen to these people telling you don’t do anything because it’s not going to end right away. You are starting something for the next generation and the next generation to take over."

Charles Barkley agreed, and said it was  "appropriate" that the Bucs were cancelling the game and approved of moves across the league to support them. 

Webber's comments were speread far and wide on social media. A gripping moment.

MEDIA LOSER:
Tucker Carlson

Fox News host Tucker Carlson opened Wednesday’s show by addressing the suspected vigilante killing of protesters by a 17-year-old man, armed with an assault rifle, who visited Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Many have seen a racial element to this story, as the civil unrest came in the aftermath of the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police.

But Carlson seemed to justify the behavior that led to two deaths — or at least explain it — when he laid blame for the violence on a lack of police. “How shocked are we that 17-year-olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would?” Carlson asked rhetorically, before concluding by blaming “the academic, left funded by big business, to crush the last remaining resistance to their control of the country y and that resistance is an independent American middle class.”

Carlson has a history of controversies surrounding race. Last month, a senior writer for his show, Blake Neffresigned when racist and homophobic posts he had written online were uncovered.

Many on Twitter, who comprise the very “chattering class” to whom the Fox News host often thumbs his nose, were shocked and outraged by his commentary.

THE INTERVIEW: DON LEMON

Don Lemon Opens Up About CNN's Coverage of Trump, Who He Watches on Fox News, and Protesting Racial Injustice

The A-Block

RNC NIGHT THREE: TWO PENCE

Second Lady Karen Pence, whose son serves in the Marines, focused on praising members of the United States armed forces and their spouses during her speech at night three of the Republican National Convention.

KELLYANNE CONWAY

Kellyanne Conway is set to leave the White House at the end of the month. Last night she spoke at the RNC convention talking personally and praising President Donald Trump.

MIKE PENCE

Vice President Mike Pence opened his RNC speech Wednesday night with a message about the ideals that shaped America and a swipe at the Democrats for their convention last week.

Speaking from Fort McHenry, Pence said, “It was on this site 206 years ago when our young republic heroically withstood a naval bombardment from the most powerful empire on Earth. They came to crush our revolution, to divide our nation, and to end the American experiment. The heroes who held this fort took their stand for life, liberty, freedom and the American flag. And those ideals have defined our nation.”

He then added, “But they were hardly ever mentioned at last week’s Democratic National Convention. Instead Democrats spent four days attacking America.”

“Joe Biden said that we were living through a season of darkness. But as President Trump said, where Joe Biden sees American darkness, we see American greatness,” he said.

THE RATINGS

The RNC's ratings are down slightly from the DNC's last week.

RNC NIGHT FOUR

Catch the live program for the fourth night, as well as all the clips and highlights, via our ongoing coverage.


FOX FIGHT

Fox News anchor Chris Wallace faulted Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich for implying that vigilante justice was an understandable response to a lack of police action amid protests — leading to a tense debate over what was actually said.

It got tense.

‘That is Bullsh*t!’

CNN’s Don Lemon got heated as he and Chris Cuomo lambasted Republicans for ignoring the killings of protesters in Kenosha, for which 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse has been arrested and charged.

‘Am I Wrong?’

CNN’s Anderson Cooper was stunned when contributor and Trump defender David Urban began CNN’s Anderson Cooper was stunned when contributor and Trump defender David Urban began literally booing him for bringing up President Donald Trump’s flirtation with disinfectant injections as a COVID-19 treatment.
 

“We got to take a break, but if it had been up to the president, though, we would have had more deaths by experimenting on people with bleach, so I’m not sure if we really…” Cooper said, as Urban retorted “No, come on, boo, come on Anderson, you know better, boo.”

“He didn’t want to inject bleach into people? In medical experiments?” a stunned Cooper asked.

“Boo, come on,” Urban said.

“He didn’t David? Am I wrong?” Cooper asked.

Sounds familiar

Late-night host Stephen Colbert admitted to viewers that he “didn’t do his job” by refusing to watch the Republican National Convention — questioning, “Why should we watch their reality show if it doesn’t reflect our reality?

"Our reality" ... it's that like "one's truth"?

Must See Clips

HURRICANE LAURA

Weather Channel reporter Stephanie Abrams had a close call live on the air Thursday morning when she was almost hit by debris as she reported on Hurricane Laura, as staff could be heard freaking out off-camera.

The near-accident was preceded by some rather on-the-nose foreshadowing.

Links We Like

Only some kinds of protest are always ‘mostly peaceful’
- via National Review
With Hurricane Laura hammering the gulf, why are U.S. Energy markets so calm?
- via Scott Lincicome

Charging Kyle Rittenhouse with first-degree murder is facially absurd
- via The Blaze
Trump’s argument about “Joe Biden’s America” is undercut by the fact that he’s in charge
- via Vox
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