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How should Trump's tweets be reported? (Page 2)
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andi*pandi
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Feb 2, 2018, 02:38 PM
 
I feel it does both. It explains why the spin (black on black violence higher percentage than cop killings so shut up BLM) is abhorent, and details other abhorent things the tweeter has tweeted.

Is it a hitpiece? really? Anything inaccurate in the story?
     
subego
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Feb 2, 2018, 03:03 PM
 
I misused the term and withdraw the accusation. My apologies to you and the Post.

I re-skimmed the article a few times and am not seeing discussion of the spin. If it’s there, it’s outnumbered 10-to-1 by slagging the source.

Again, I posit what would make the source relevant is a clear endorsement of him by Trump. A retweet does not demonstrate this.
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 3, 2018, 06:47 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Here’s the chain...


As in, not a story about the content of the tweet.


Here’s the LA Times text:

Amid criticism for his response to violence that ensued between white supremacists and counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday, President Trump retweeted Jack Posobiec – an alt-right media figure who pushed the PizzaGate and Seth Rich conspiracy theories.

After blaming "many sides" for the initial violence that left one counter-protester dead, Trump on Monday condemned the KKK, neo-Nazis and white supremacists as "criminals and thugs."

For many, the response was too little, too late. Three CEOs stepped down from the White House manufacturing council, and criticism of the president continued.

Posobiec is well-known in alt-right circles. He was a vocal believer that top Democrats were involved in a child sex trafficking ring at a Washington, D.C., pizza parlor, and that the Democratic National Committee was behind the death of former staffer Seth Rich.

His tweet had nothing to do with Charlottesville, instead linking to a story about Chicago homicides. It's unclear why Trump chose now to retweet Posobiec to his 35.9 million followers.
Your complaint is people criticizing Trump for who he retweets. The first give context who he retweeted, the second criticized his response to Charlottesville, his retweet, and who he retweeted. That seems like the right way to cover it?
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 3, 2018, 06:48 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Is the best way to address the misleading spin to have an article about how the content is misleading, or an 800 word hit on how the author is a shithead?
The 800 word hit usually points out that the shithead has ulterior motives and posts misleading facts or flat-out lies. The point is to inform the reader so they can put future content from shithead in the proper perspective.
     
subego
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Feb 5, 2018, 03:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Your complaint is people criticizing Trump for who he retweets. The first give context who he retweeted, the second criticized his response to Charlottesville, his retweet, and who he retweeted. That seems like the right way to cover it?
If what makes the tweet worthy of reportage is it’s content, this does not seem like the right way to cover it.

This is the way one covers him endorsing the source. I think the question of whether he does is legitimate, but it cannot be answered with the confidence implied by how these papers chose to present it.
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 8, 2018, 06:39 PM
 
Conscious or not, it's still a pattern that's troubling, and worth pointing out.
     
subego
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Feb 8, 2018, 06:54 PM
 
It is.

The Post doesn’t really make that point though.
     
subego
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Feb 25, 2018, 02:18 PM
 
Here’s a fresh one.

Trump just retweeted a fringe radio host who has attacked the Florida school shooting survivors | Washington Post

Originally Posted by Washington Post
Trump’s retweet of Dupree had nothing to do with guns. It was also four years old and didn’t seem particularly relevant to anything in the news.

“It’s ok 2 b black, conservative and love America and not vote Democrat!” Dupree posted in 2014.

Is this quality, fair journalism?

Can we at least agree this does not fit the model “what’s being reported on is the (horrible) content of his tweets, the source is icing on the cake”?

The entire cake is icing.
     
andi*pandi
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Feb 25, 2018, 11:16 PM
 
It means he's following that guy, and approves of his tweets enough to retweet.

If Charles Manson was on twitter and posted a good joke about turtles, and I retweet it, disregarding Manson's other posts about hateful things, does that make me an

a) idiot, for not knowing who I'm retweeting,
b) a jerk, for following charles manson
c) all of the above, aand idiot++ for not knowing Manson is dead.
     
subego
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Feb 25, 2018, 11:27 PM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
It means he's following that guy
It doesn’t, and he’s not. He only follows 45 (har har) accounts. This dipshit didn’t make the cut.

I want to go further, but this premise upon which the argument is based is demonstrably incorrect.
( Last edited by subego; Feb 25, 2018 at 11:39 PM. )
     
OreoCookie
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Feb 26, 2018, 12:19 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Is this quality, fair journalism?

Can we at least agree this does not fit the model “what’s being reported on is the (horrible) content of his tweets, the source is icing on the cake”?

The entire cake is icing.
I don't think it's that easy here: if Trump had never before re-tweeted horrible stuff from horrible people, and re-tweeted a more benign tweet from a not-so-benign person, I'd completely agree with you. But Trump has a history of re-tweeting stuff from horrible people, including right-wing extremists (e. g. anti-semitic tropes where some of his supporters that the star of David was actually a sheriff's star). He should know better by now, and I think it is fair to criticize him for not (wanting to?) learning his lesson. Moreover, he isn't Joe Schmoe, he is POTUS, and that means he should be held to a much, much higher standard than everyone else.

So yes, I think it is fair to make this a story because of who he is and what he has done in the past.
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subego
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Feb 26, 2018, 12:42 AM
 
As I’ve said, I don’t take issue with that story.

What I’m taking issue with is that’s not how the story is being reported.

“Trump just retweeted a fringe radio host who has attacked the Florida school shooting survivors” isn’t implying “he should know better” it implies “he does know better”.

It’s certainly possible he does know better, but I’ve seen an agonizing number of examples he does not.

As much as I’d like to, I can’t bash him for the former in the face of so much evidence for the latter.
     
andi*pandi
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Feb 26, 2018, 01:07 AM
 
You keep giving him a pass for not knowing better. Is he a toddler coloring on the walls?

We're going in circles, I think.

(how do you find people on twitter if not by following them... searching? do your friends retweet them? Or does Twitter have a facebook algorithm that says, "hey, if you liked this racist **********, here's 3 more guys just like him!" )
     
subego
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Feb 26, 2018, 01:26 AM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
Is he a toddler coloring on the walls?
Kinda sorta?

Which in the context of the President of the United States, is kinda sorta a damning accusation, no?
     
OreoCookie
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Feb 26, 2018, 04:34 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
“Trump just retweeted a fringe radio host who has attacked the Florida school shooting survivors” isn’t implying “he should know better” it implies “he does know better”.

It’s certainly possible he does know better, but I’ve seen an agonizing number of examples he does not.
When you write someone should know better, then that means the person fails to live up to the expectation. I don't claim President Trump does know better, I am not privy his thought processes (thank you very much). But as President of the United States, anything he says should be weighed carefully. Saying “Oh, but he's Trump, we know he doesn't do that.” is a cop out because it means we are lowering our standards. He has done this before, e. g. (to mention a random other example) when he re-tweeted from the account of a member of the BNP (British National Party), despite Prime Minister May scolding him publicly for that, he didn't learn. All I can conclude is he doesn't want to learn from his mistakes. (Or, perhaps, does it on purpose.)
Originally Posted by subego View Post
As much as I’d like to, I can’t bash him for the former in the face of so much evidence for the latter.
I don't understand what you want to say here.
If Trump should know better but doesn't, it is still valid and necessary criticism that he has to be an adult and be careful what he says (in words, tweets or in other writing). He is POTUS and doesn't get participation trophies. If he does so despite knowing better, than that's worse.
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Kinda sorta?

Which in the context of the President of the United States, is kinda sorta a damning accusation, no?
Why are you inclined to do that? Immaturity is not a defense for not acting maturely. He's not a 4-year old, but a grown 70+-year old man.
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Waragainstsleep
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Feb 26, 2018, 05:31 AM
 
Hes a moron. i don't know why you're trying so hard to analyse this.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
subego
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Feb 26, 2018, 02:05 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
Why are you inclined to do that? Immaturity is not a defense for not acting maturely. He's not a 4-year old, but a grown 70+-year old man.
Do what?

I ask because what I’m doing doesn’t sound like what everyone thinks I’m doing.

subego: he’s a petulant man-baby who doesn’t understand or care about the station of his office.

Chorus: Y U CUT HIM SLACK?!?
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 26, 2018, 05:40 PM
 
I'll bite. Everyone is up your ass because you put down more letters nitpicking how Trump is treated when, even if this is an unfair representation, its peanuts.

To put it as a metaphor, you're concerned the motive of a murder wasn't reported correctly, ignoring the murder.
     
subego
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Feb 26, 2018, 11:21 PM
 
The amount of letters I put down to defend an accurate statement will be in direct proportion to the number of letters spent challenging it with inaccurate ones.

There’s a reason properly establishing motive is instrumental to successful prosecution. I’m concerned about motive because I seek justice for the dead victim by winning my case.

No irony in a thread about Trump lacking respect for his duty the press gets defended for railroading him.
     
OreoCookie
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Feb 26, 2018, 11:29 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
No irony in a thread about Trump lacking respect for his duty the press gets defended for railroading him.
That difference right there is why people criticize you here: Trump is not being railroaded here, when it comes to his tweets, he is not being criticized unfairly.
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subego
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Feb 27, 2018, 12:00 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
That difference right there is why people criticize you here: Trump is not being railroaded here, when it comes to his tweets, he is not being criticized unfairly.
What makes a criticism fair is its accuracy.

If Trump is unaware of things said by people he retweets, to imply otherwise is inaccurate, thus unfair. Full stop.
     
andi*pandi
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Feb 27, 2018, 12:23 PM
 
but he should not be unaware.

"Oh, I didn't know manson was a killer, I just liked his turtle joke" is not a valid excuse for the president of the united states.
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 27, 2018, 12:40 PM
 
Trump watches cable news. I'm feel certain he's seen coverage of his retweeting bad hombres. Therefore, Trump knows about the dangers of retweets. If he retweets people without checking, that is now willful ignorance.

Edit: I feel like we already had this convo where the conclusion was he doesn't care

Edit 2: It's the first posts on the first ****ing page!

So which is it, subego? Is he so stupid he doesn't know he retweets terrible people or does he not care as long as he agrees with what they said?

After n-hundred retweets does his motive matter anymore when he's POTUS?
     
subego
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Mar 1, 2018, 03:30 AM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
"Oh, I didn't know manson was a killer, I just liked his turtle joke" is not a valid excuse for the president of the united states.
To be fair, it was the Citizen Kane of turtle jokes.

I haven’t bailed, just busy.
     
OreoCookie
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Mar 1, 2018, 04:49 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
If Trump is unaware of things said by people he retweets, to imply otherwise is inaccurate, thus unfair. Full stop.
I think that not only completely misses what is important, but you insist that the question is equivalent to something nobody but Trump can know. It doesn't matter whether Trump doesn't care to learn or flatly doesn't care who he retweets: he fails to do his due diligence that comes with the office he holds. That expectation is not unfair, it comes with the job. The criticism here is not about a single tweet, it is that this is the umpteenth time this has happened, it is a patter of President Trump.
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subego
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Mar 1, 2018, 12:31 PM
 
That didn’t mean pile on.
     
 
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