Jonathan Lemire: Another propagandist of the press corps

According to his online biography, “Jonathan Lemire is a White House reporter for The Associated Press (AP) and a political analyst for MSNBC and NBC News.” He cannot – and is not – both a reporter and an analyst for NBC/MSNBC. His frequent appearances on the latter prove it.

As a reporter, you would expect Lemire to be objective and unbiased in his published accounts.  He would get and present both sides of an issue.  Get the facts and let his readers draw the conclusions.

Instead, Lemire writes from his conclusions.  He feeds pre-digested press pablum to the world.  Like most denizens of the east coast media cabal, Lemire writes from his left-wing perspective.  He editorializes as he “reports.”

That is not an uncommon problem within the Fourth Estate.  Media bias to the left in the studios and newsrooms is well known and well documented.  The lopsided liberal bias results in one-sided partisanship in favor of Democrats.  Studies have shown that between 70 and 80 percent of reporters, editors, columnists, producers, analysts, and commentators are Democrats of the liberal persuasion.  In the east coast cabal that appears to be higher.  Lemire personifies that truth.

It is Lemire’s paid services to MSNBC in which his extreme bias is best seen.  He may carry the title of an analyst, but it is not the function he performs.  In fact, he would not have that high-profile gig on MSNBC if he was an honest analyst.

One does not get a seat at the table on “Morning Joe” – or any other MSNBC program — unless you are willing to parrot the opinions and prejudicial narratives concocted or endorsed by the network’s management, scripted by the producers and voiced by the online personalities.  Apostasy is not permitted.

Folks like Lemire are trading off their honor and integrity for fame and fortune in a Faustian agreement with the media barons.  They are no longer journalists who subscribe to the standards and ethics of the profession, but propagandists devoted to convincing rather than informing their viewers and readers. As “Morning Joe’s” Mika Brzezinski once claimed. “It is our role to tell people what to think.”

The essence of propaganda is to develop narratives – true or not – and advance them repeatedly.  It is the tactic of Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels, who famously – or infamously – said that if you repeat a lie often enough, the public will come to believe it — no matter how big the lie.

If you watch Lemire over time – as I have – you will realize that he does not have an original thought – and most certainly never a counterpoint.  He adds nothing new to the conversation.  He is just another voice in the bass section.  When asked to offer his opinion – his so-called analysis – Lemire retreats to echoing the sentiment he heard around the table.  He knows the script and he follows it without a hint of improvisation.

Perhaps his narrow view is the result of the fact that he has never escaped the narrow east coast media bubble.  He has never spent much time away from the hardcore liberal establishment that dominates the culture in that region.  Lemire grew up in Massachusetts and graduated from Columbia University.  He cut his reporting teeth in New York City, where he worked for the New York Daily News for ten years – before joining Associated Press.

According to most polls – which never seem to be the subject of media coverage – the news industry is held in very low regard by a majority of the American people.  They do not believe what they see and read.  The people of the press have lost their trust.

Some like to blame President Trump because of his attacks on what he calls “fake news,” but the public’s disrespect for the Fourth Estate was seen long before Trump.  The gradual decline of trust in the news media parallels the industry’s abandoning old standards for what became known as “advocacy journalism” – and that has now devolved into propaganda-as-news.

Lemire is not the cause – and maybe he could not make much of an improvement on his own – but he is most certainly the creature of the corrupted culture. His value on MSNBC is his voice, not his brain.

So, there ‘tis.

Related posts

4 Thoughts to “Jonathan Lemire: Another propagandist of the press corps”

  1. Jaakko Talvitie

    It is a high time for adult and fact-based news reporting, as well as civil conversation on Social Medial, if we want to preserve the foundation of this country (USA – the best in the world) was built on.
    • However, unfortunately today it all depends where one gets their information – 50% from Social Media – a true journalism has disappeared with the 24/7 news cycle
    • As all of us know, if you repeat the miss-information often enough (and in multiple outlets), it will become a generally accepted fact
    • Everyone has the right to their own opinions (not facts) and ADULT life style choices, but nobody has the right to impose, intimidate, blackmail, dictate, or legislate as to how rest of us (individuals, corporations) should believe, think, and function.
    • There are three sides to each story – yours, mine, and the truth somewhere in the middle, since none of us are totally objective, nor do we have all the relevant facts on hand at the time.

    When small activist groups attempt to do that, what is that – Anarchy?
    • 4.6% are LGBTQ
    • 0.6% Transgender – now allowed to destroy women/girl sports and the privacy of bath/locker rooms
    • 1.0% Muslim

    So why are these groups a part of just about every (federal, state & local) political conversation and regulation, and often at the expense of the majority?

    US Congress did not change the Dress Code for the Jews to wear kippah during the Sabbath, but for one Muslim to wear her headdress every day – What a Country!

    • As Einstein stated: “Education is not learning the facts, but teaching the brain to think”

    Check this out and draw your own conclusions – where are we today with Eight Steps to Destroy America
    https://rense.com/general62/destroy.htm

  2. Right on my friend. Ex-democrat. I don’t believe anything they say. I watch local news. If they say a building burned, I check and pass by. If burned, I believe. If not, fake news.

  3. CUFF this DERANGED and DEPLORABLE REPORTER from the FAKE NEWS MEDIA NETWORK’S
    that need to have their LICENCES REVOKED. !!

  4. Larry, this is the weakest story in the history of stories!

Comments are closed.