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Cancel CNN

AP Photo/Ron Harris

The January 6th Riots at the Capitol had a huge effect on our ability to report the news. While we certainly strived for accuracy before that date, the events of that day were used as a weapon against conservatives in a way that affected what we could (and in which way) we could serve you, our readers.

While those issues have been talked about ad nauseam over the last nine months, one issue we have seen them continue to avoid in many ways is the double standard that the MSM and Big Tech have allowed. When they are quick to point out the factual inaccuracies of Fox News or Donald Trump, they similarly are slow or silent when it comes to mistakes of their ideological camp.

For the last several years, CNN has been among the worst offenders of fake news, all while claiming to be the bastion of fact, demanding “truth” from elected leaders and other media outlets. It is sad, really. I am sure all of us can remember when CNN was a reliable source, early in the cable news battle. I can remember sitting and watching CNN in the 1990s, from the Gulf War to Waco to Oklahoma City to Flight 800, Princess Diana, and even 9/11. When you wanted unfiltered and reliable news, we all turned to CNN.

We remember Bernard Shaw and John Holliman bringing us news from across the country and around the world. News, which at one point was only available twice a day, was suddenly available 24 hours a day, thanks to CNN. “Larry King Live” and “Crossfire” were some of the first shows I remember watching and being fascinated by. For 16 years, CNN was the sole source of 24-hour news.

When many of the new competitors joined the cable news fray in 1996, CNN began diversifying away from what made them so successful and started to copy what their new competition was doing. Since Bernard Shaw’s 2001 departure from the network, CNN has taken a nosedive in credibility, largely because of the types of shows they were producing.

Then, as the age of Trump picked up, CNN became less concerned with reporting and more concerned with destroying his credibility. That focus and fascination with destroying Trump have spilled over into all conservatism, to the point of the outright fabrication of content.

We don’t have to jump far to remember that during the 2016 Presidential Election, Donna Brazile fed debate questions to the Clinton campaign, an outright violation of anything even approaching a journalistic standard. In 2017, three CNN reporters were sent out to pasture over a story on Anthony Scaramucci. Let’s also not forget when Don Lemon sat and chuckled as two commentators (including The Lincoln Project’s Rick Wilson) made numerous inappropriate jokes about Trump supporters.

CNN led the charge against high-schooler Nicholas Sandmann, falsely alleging he approached and harassed a Native American man. That accusation earned Sandmann a hefty settlement from both CNN and the Washington Post.

Let’s be clear, just one of those offenses would have earned a site like RedState a significant ban from most social media sites. However, CNN continues to operate with impunity.

Now, it seems they have met their match in one of the most surprising people: Joe Rogan. Rogan, who jumped on the scene years ago as the host of NBC’s “Fear Factor,” has more recently been seen as an ongoing commentator for mixed martial arts and UFC, and as the host of the Spotify podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience.”

Rogan’s podcast has drawn a gamut of guests, often controversial, including Alex Jones, Kanye West, and even a blunt-smoking Elon Musk. While many efforts have been made to cancel Rogan in the past, his “zero f***s to give” attitude have made it near impossible for any of the mud-slinging to stick.

When Rogan was diagnosed with COVID-19, Rogan took to his social media to discuss how his fight against the viral infection was going, including speaking specifically about the types of treatment he was receiving.  Among those treatments were the much-DeSantis-hyped monoclonal antibodies, and the controversial Ivermectin.

When CNN took to the airwaves to discuss Rogan’s video, they placed a filter over the video to make Rogan appear unwell, as Redditor’s were quick to point out. They went further to slam Rogan’s use of the drug as “spreading misinformation,” and attacked Rogan as having used a “horse dewormer.” Days later, in an episode of his podcast featuring guest comedian Tom Segura, Rogan addressed the controversy in no uncertain terms:

“Bro, do I have to sue CNN?” Rogan responded. “They keep saying I’m taking horse dewormer. I literally got it from a doctor. It’s an American company. They won the Nobel Prize in 2015 for use in human beings, and CNN is saying I’m taking horse dewormer. They must know that’s a lie.”

Well, as happens most of the time, the truth came out. In the most recent episode of Rogan’s podcast, he had CNN Medical Expert Sanjay Gupta as his guest, and it went exactly how you’d expect it to go.  The often cantankerous Rogan went after Gupta specifically over his network calling Ivermectin, as prescribed to him by a doctor, “horse dewormer.”

After several minutes of dodging the question, Rogan pinned Gupta with the following:

ROGAN: “Does it bother you that the news network that you work for out-and-out lied, just outright lied about me taking horse dewormer?”

GUPTA: “They shouldn’t have said that.”

ROGAN: “Why did they do that?”

GUPTA: “I don’t know.”

ROGAN: “You didn’t ask? You’re the medical guy over there.”

GUPTA: “I didn’t ask. I should have asked before coming on your podcast.”

ROGAN: “But they did it with such glee.”

GUPTA: “No!”

ROGAN:  “Yes they did. I watched.”

And Rogan is right. CNN absolutely lied and framed Rogan as a nutjob. They spread misinformation at the behest of an agenda, just as they did with Nicholas Sandmann.

Instead of shrugging Rogan’s accusations off, Gupta has been put on defense about the network as reported by Nick Arama. If Rogan’s statement’s were untrue, why not sue him? Why rush Gupta on for damage control?

The point is simple, though. If other sites and publishers have lost their access to readers and viewers over their misinformation, CNN should also. Twitter should take action, as well as Facebook. Fact-checkers should be grading their statements. Lawyers should be kicking down their front doors. If conspiracy sites like InfoWars can lose their hosting and social media sites over their unevidenced horsesh*t claims, why not CNN?

It is time to send CNN to the ash heap of history.

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