To say there is a deep and insidious problem within our journalism industry is no longer conspiratorial talk. The examples of this pathology are mounting and becoming more widespread. A rational mind would think that, at some point, the news outlets would recognize their own problems and begin to take measures to address the credibility wounds, but instead, they only appear to be dumping sodium where they bleed as they sharpen more blades.

Just a couple of months ago, we watched in amazement as there was self-immolation across the press environment when numerous outlets ran with the claim of Israel bombing a hospital, allegedly killing 500 Palestinians. It was a complete fiasco of reporting, leading to international implications. And then, in stunning fashion, the news outlets repeated this very same act just days later, when many claimed a church was bombed and the collapse killed hundreds. 

Daybreak showed the church still standing. Meanwhile, journalism’s character was being reduced to rubble.

Now, we seem to have a similar episode playing out in the press on our own shore. The news for days was that Governor Greg Abbot was responsible for the drowning deaths of a mother and her children as they attempted to cross the Rio Grande to enter Texas. After Abbott seized control of some entry points in his state and pushed out the Border Patrol, there was outrage from the Biden administration and in the press; Governor Abbott was preventing these federal agents from…not enforcing their duties, was the argument. (Let’s also toss in the quaint sidebar element of the Biden authorities suing Texas for enforcing our border laws.)

Now Biden and the press had just the ammunition it needed. The Texas Military Department, which had been dispatched to take over the border duties from the feds, was said to have prevented the BP from entering the Shelby Park access point where the family was said to be in distress, leading to the drownings. But as Matt Funicello detailed yesterday, this entire story was garbage. 

• The TMD conducted a search, and they found no episode.

• The drownings took place on the Mexcian side of the river

• Then, the main disqualifier was that Mexico initially alerted US authorities one hour after the bodies were recovered.

This is journalism malpractice of the highest (lowest) order, and it directly mirrors the unacceptable charges seen with the Israeli reports that were completely compromised. Now, exactly how did all of this play out? The story first broke with Camilo Montoya-Galvez from CBS News, who delivered the initial report of the drownings on Saturday.

A woman and two children drowned near an area where Texas has blocked Border Patrol from processing migrants.

Rep. Henry Cuellar said Texas prevented Border Patrol from trying to rescue them. A CBP official tells me Cuellar’s account is accurate.https://t.co/4PMbE6UODm

— Camilo Montoya-Galvez (@camiloreports) January 14, 2024

Multiple news agencies ran with this report, quoted DHS officials, and then Joe Biden weighed in on the episode. The president excoriated Abbott, and the White House issued statements about the moves to block federal agents. The press chirped right along, delivering all of the invective despite the presence of disqualifying evidence. The TMD issued its initial statement on Saturday, which should have had members of the media exploring the matter. Instead, they chose to run with the narrative of Texas killing immigrants.

Even after a second report from TMD came out on Sunday with more explanations on the matter, the press kept at it. There was all the evidence to point to errant reporting and disputed facts, yet the press was unwavering. CNN had an egregious display, as four reporters weighed in with its Monday account and spent the bulk of the report quoting Democrats and condemning Texas authorities. It was nearly 20 paragraphs in before finally getting to the version of events from the TMD.

It was not until Tuesday that the full story was being revealed, and the coverage of these details was far less energetically reported. That initial CBS News report typifies what we have seen from the press on this story. On his Xitter feed, Montoya-Galvez initially pumped out half a dozen posts about the story on Saturday, but then as the facts emerged, he followed up with only choice notations and far less enthusiasm. His initial report on CBS News now carries a correction and altered headline, well after launching a media firestorm. Yet we see that even this repair job attempts to maintain the anti-Abbott/anti-Texas narrative line.

Update: This story and headline were updated to reflect information shared by federal officials with the Supreme Court on Monday, Jan. 15. In that filing, the Justice Department said the three migrant drownings had already occurred when Border Patrol requested access to Shelby Park to help other migrants, though it did note it was "impossible to say what might have happened if Border Patrol had had its former access to the area."

It is NOT impossible to say: Nothing would have changed had BP been granted that access, as the drownings had already taken place before they were even made aware of the incident. The Initial CBS Post on Xitter remains unchanged from its initial accusation.

This is simply disturbing to behold from the press. When you are looking at a story that essentially maintains that a governor’s actions led to the deaths of a family, would it not be of importance to get the details correct before rushing forward? We can see clearly that the framing was in place and eclipsed the desire to get the facts collected; the story was just too perfect for the narrative, so why let accuracy interfere with the plan?!

Keep in mind: These are the same journalists and outlets decrying misinformation and lecturing on the threats of false news circulating. Yet, just as we saw with the Israeli incidents, there is no hesitation from them when accusing political opponents of murderous activity. That kind of ethical malpractice is acceptable, as we see from the lack of any accountability.