In the quiet town of Mount Pleasant‚ South Carolina‚ an ordinary Friday took a turn for a frightening moment for Timothy Snipe. What started as a routine task – letting his dog Roxie out for a potty break – quickly escalated into a scene straight out of an action movie. The drama of this unexpected... The post Tiny dog starts barking at woods. Next thing owner knows he’s wrestling a coyote with his bare hands appeared first on Animal Channel.

Executive Summary In Part 1 of this report‚ the MRC Censorship Investigation Project uncovered how the Biden administration used the federal government to silence Americans who don’t support its leftist agenda through a year-long series of State Department seminars that trained teachers to use censorship tools in their classrooms. Now in Part 2‚ we detail how the federal government is using taxpayer money from the Department of Homeland Security’s terrorist prevention program to censor conservatives nationwide.  Like the State Department before it‚ the DHS is using the University of Rhode Island’s Media Education Lab (the “Rhode Island Lab”) to accomplish its anti-American goals of training teachers to use censorship tools in the classroom and silence political dissent. Biden’s DHS approved a three-phase censorship strategy‚ set to culminate close to the 2024 presidential election.  The DHS funded this endeavor through the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program. MRC Free Speech America previously reported on this controversial program and how it has been weaponized to target Christians‚ conservatives and the Republican Party. Phase 1 of this strategy was the launch of a public awareness campaign‚ featuring DHS-commissioned blog posts attacking former President Donald Trump‚ “MAGA supporters‚” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene‚ free speech and the Second Amendment. The campaign also included controversial podcasts‚ panel discussions and community events to generate support for censorship. The blog-post portion of the campaign used incendiary language disparaging Biden’s political opponents‚ all funded with taxpayer dollars. Examples include:  “We are all living in a darker‚ scarier‚ angrier‚ less hopeful country thanks to Mr. Trump’s influence. Are we on the verge of civil war?” “Donald Trump was also adopting the shock-jock style that Rush Limbaugh built into a cultural phenomenon‚ including his misogynistic and racist comments‚ conspiracy theories‚ and grievances.” “It won’t be easy‚ but we really have to reduce Trump’s influence”  “[I]t's tempting and entertaining to tune into the circuses of the Marjorie Taylor Greenes‚ Louis Farrakans [sic]‚ and MAGA supporters.” “It turns out even Fox Media has limits on how much misogyny and racism it will tolerate from its stars–witness the canceling of Tucker Carlson’s show last week.” Phase 2 of the strategy finances the current and ongoing‚ nationwide expansion of the seminars initially established by the State Department. These seminars train educators across the country on how to divert students away from conservative ideas and media sources skeptical of the administration’s agenda. While these seminars are now closed to the public‚ it is highly likely that the same censorship methods introduced during the State Department-funded seminars continue to play a central role in the DHS seminars since the same organizations continue to lead the effort. These tactics include pushing educators to put censorship tools from for-profit media ratings firms Ad Fontes and NewsGuard into American classrooms.  It is telling that before being allowed to participate in the DHS-funded seminars‚ educators must declare their political ideology. One teacher who declared herself “conservative” reported that she was confined to a breakout group controlled by the director of the Rhode Island Lab so as to limit her access to the most damning material. Phase 3 of the recently launched strategy provides cash prizes of up to $1‚000 for children who create social media posts to increase demand for “media literacy” mandates — a euphemism for censorship. The program mimics the German socialist model introduced as part of the Rhode Island Lab’s partnership with the State Department‚ which focuses on pushing teachers to turn children into “media producers.”  To enhance this astroturf campaign‚ Biden’s DHS selected the leftist lobbying group “Media Literacy Now‚” which lobbies state legislatures for laws requiring “media literacy.” Media Literacy Now has a revenue-sharing agreement with Ad Fontes‚ the company that provides the “Media Bias Chart” used to disparage conservative media. Because the two organizations also have overlapping board members and staff‚ they essentially function as a single enterprise.   ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Report   Inside the Biden Admin’s New Strategy to Censor‚ Push Leftist Activism Into American Classrooms A “whole of society approach.” That is the phrase the Biden administration uses to describe its plan to harness an interconnected alliance of public and private actors for the purpose of targeting its political opponents and turning children into left-wing activists.  In Part 1 of this report‚ the MRC Censorship Investigation Project detailed how President Joe Biden’s State Department used the University of Rhode Island’s Media Education Lab (the “Rhode Island Lab”) to push German censorship and indoctrination to American teachers. After this grant concluded‚ Biden’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used the Rhode Island Lab to coordinate with a vast array of domestic actors‚ from local politicians to left-wing activist organizations to a lobbying group to the American public school system. The DHS’s program consisted of three phases. The first phase‚ which has concluded‚ consisted of propaganda work‚ ranging from podcasts to community events to blog posts that directly attacked and disparaged the Biden administration’s opponents. The second phase‚ which is ongoing‚ is a turbocharged version of the State Department seminars detailed in Part 1. These seminars explained how to bring censorship tools and German activist techniques to American classrooms. The final phase‚ which has just launched‚ pays children up to $1‚000 to create social media posts so as to increase demand for “media literacy” mandates — a euphemism for censorship. Phase 1 of this strategy was the launch of a public awareness campaign‚ featuring DHS-commissioned blog posts attacking former President Donald Trump‚ “MAGA supporters‚” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene‚ free speech and the Second Amendment.  Phase 1 of the DHS project is its most sprawling‚ consisting of community events‚ a well-produced podcast series‚ a flashy website and a series of blog posts. This strategy was consistent with the administration’s “whole of society approach‚” where private and public actors are seamlessly integrated into a unified whole. The DHS financed the Rhode Island Lab with $700‚000 awarded through the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Program. MRC Free Speech America has previously reported on this controversial program‚ and how it has been hijacked for left-wing advocacy. First proposed by the Obama administration to combat Al Qaeda's domestic recruitment efforts and later put on hold‚ the TVTP grant program was revived by a small number of DHS bureaucrats in 2019 who “circumvented the White House budgeting process” in the chaos after the ouster of Secretary Kristjen Nielsen. This quiet resurrection of TVTP was conducted by then-Acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan after months of behind-the-scenes pressure by Miles Taylor. Taylor was the then-“Anonymous” author of the infamous New York Times opinion piece “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration.” In that article and a follow-up book‚ Taylor — who had served as the Chief of Staff for the DHS — bragged about spending years “working diligently from within to frustrate” the mission and objectives of then-President Donald J. Trump. Taylor later told Politico he masterminded the TVTP revival and redesign against the direction of Trump’s White House‚ which was not “initially all that interested” in funding the program. Scandal-plagued DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas called TVTP a “priority … of the highest importance‚” placing it under the Center for Prevention Programs &; Partnerships (CP3).  Mayorkas personally attended every session of a DC-area meeting of TVTP grantees‚ and bragged that under his leadership‚ CP3 “has helped 143 different … pilot programs get off the ground and flourish.” One of those programs was PREVENTS-OH in Dayton‚ Ohio‚ where the DHS directed TVTP funds to promulgate a “Pyramid of Far-Right Radicalization” tying Christians‚ conservatives and the Republican Party to militant neo-Nazis.  When the Rhode Island Lab — a part of the University of Rhode Island (a taxpayer funded‚ public university) — petitioned Biden’s Department of Homeland Security for TVTP money to promote “media literacy” and combat “disinformation‚” it had a peculiar request. The Rhode Island Lab proposed  creating a program  “using the Media Literacy Now national network.”  As Part 1 of this report detailed‚ Media Literacy Now is a lobbying group‚ not an academic institution. It defines itself as an “advocacy nonprofit” dedicated to “ensuring that media literacy is recognized by policymakers and the public as an essential part of K-12 education.” Due to overlapping staff‚ finances‚ and revenue-sharing agreements‚ Media Literacy Now effectively functions as a single entity with the Rhode Island Lab and media ratings firm Ad Fontes. Media Literacy Now requested to be the DHS grant’s “fiscal agent” — the same role it had played when part of the “Project Team” overseeing the completion of the State Department grant detailed in the previous report.  The Rhode Island Lab and Media Literacy Now used the TVTP grant money to begin “Courageous RI‚” a “media literacy program” that — in its words — “aims to mobilize RI residents with the skills to counteract the societal forces inciting intolerance‚ hate and violence.” Courageous RI is run by two people: Renee Hobbs and Pam Steager. The mastermind of the State Department seminars‚ Hobbs is both an advisory board member for Media Literacy Now and the founder and CEO of the Rhode Island Lab. Steager‚ meanwhile‚ is the Rhode Island chapter president for Media Literacy Now and the Rhode Island Lab’s director of community engagement. As detailed in the first report‚ Hobbs and Steager previously worked together for the State Department using “media literacy” to overhaul the Austin‚ Texas‚ Police Academy. Once receiving their grant‚ the Rhode Island Lab and Media Literacy Now quickly activated the “national network” they had bragged about. Steager coordinated with the Rhode Island Department of State and Secretary of State Gregg Amore‚ the chief elections officer for Rhode Island. Amore had previously worked with Steager and Media Literacy Now on a media literacy bill when he was a state representative.  As Secretary of State‚ Amore made the Department of State an official partner of Courageous RI and assigned his Associate Director of Education and Public Programs‚ Lane Sparkman‚ to ghostwrite Courageous RI’s “Manifesto” for Steager. This “Manifesto” emphasized how “political extremism‚ rage‚ and anti-government theories … can lead to targeted violence and domestic terrorism.” Sparkman then helped Steager and Hobbs plan Courageous RI’s launch event. To thank Sparkman for her help‚ Steager sent Sparkman an offer to accept a $50 digital gift card paid for with taxpayer dollars as a “small token of gratitude.” Steager helped draft Amore’s statements at Courageous RI’s launch event‚ where the Secretary proclaimed‚ “[W]e have become so focused on individual rights‚ we have forgotten about the collective good.”  Another featured speaker at the event was Cranston Public Library Director Edward (Ed) Garcia. Neither Hobbs nor Steager objected to Garcia using his speech to rant against “a small but vocal minority … relying on disinformation and fear tactics.” Though he did not invoke its name‚ Garcia was seemingly referring to the Independent Women’s Network (IWN)‚ a women’s rights group that advocates for school choice and against child sexual mutilation. IWN was forced to pay $1‚200 in police security last year in order to host a dialogue at Cranston Library that was targeted by left-wing protestors‚ according to DailyMail.com. After IWN’s event‚ Garcia temporarily banned “outside use of our library space” (and thus future IWN assemblies). At the same time‚ he celebrated the hostile protestors for their “stand against divisive and discriminatory rhetoric.”  The launch event‚ which was a “packed” in-person ceremony‚ was followed by a series of virtual follow-up events dubbed “Courageous Conversations.” These community events were structured to promote “media literacy” strategies for tackingling “propaganda‚ disinformation‚ and conspiracy theories in social media.” In their events‚ Hobbs and Steager repeatedly reiterated that the entire “Courageous Conversations” were intended to be replicated across America so as to “keep the conversation going‚” and that the Rhode Island Lab would be offering material support for participants willing to conduct an event of their own.  Unsurprisingly‚ Steager and Hobbs used 2023’s “Courageous Conversations” to push far-left propaganda‚ with staff often jumping in to make provocative‚ politically-charged claims on pop culture and politics. Among the more outlandish inputs to their “conversations” were that “content moderation” could never be censorship‚ that Russia had “influence[d]” the 2016 election and that actress-turned-conservative activist Gina Carano had “a long history of making really creepy‚ antisemitic comments.” One May 2023 event‚ titled “Feelings and Facts‚” ordered participants to explore an interactive “Conspiracy Chart.” The chart provided a list of alleged conspiracy theories that it described as past “THE ANTISEMITIC POINT OF NO RETURN” and equivalent to “Holocaust denial.” Among the supposedly hateful “theories” were the idea that American institutions are permeated with “cultural Marxism” and use of the phrase “Trans Agenda.” The Conspiracy Chart also claimed the “only one sordid reason” why “conservative and far-right media” investigate George Soros (a prominent activist billionaire) is “because he is Jewish.”  As Part 1 of this report detailed‚ the Rhode Island Lab pushed a curriculum created with money from Soros himself. This curriculum ordered teachers to use the censorship tool NewsGuard in their classrooms. Another “conspiracy theory” the chart labeled as equivalent to “Holocaust denial” was belief in a  “deep state” — a bureaucracy within the administrative state which sought to sabotage the Trump presidency.  As described earlier‚ the current TVTP program was masterminded by DHS bureaucrat Taylor‚ author of the infamous Times article “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration.” In the article‚ a then-“Anonymous” Taylor bragged that “many of the senior officials in [Trump’s] own administration are working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda … I would know. I am one of them.” A mere five years after that article‚ the Rhode Island Lab is using the funds it received from the TVTP program Taylor helped design to erase the memory of what he did.    A June 2023 event encouraged attendees to watch a propaganda video titled “Misinformation in the Latino Community.” In this video‚ NBC/Comcast pundit Carmen Sesin claimed that Florida’s shift towards Trump from the 2016 to 2020 was “absolutely” because of “disinformation” in “Spanish-language media.”  This same video disparaged attendees at a rally for then-candidate (and now Republican Congresswoman) Monica de la Cruz and identified Telegram channels for nationally-syndicated radio host Dan Bongino and publication The Western Journal as problematic. The video claimed (without evidence) that Spanish-language radio channels like Actualidad 1040AM and Radio Mambi had spread disinformation against “Joe Biden” and that the stories may have come from Russia.  The video also warned of “a wave of misinformation aimed at Latinos heading into 2022” that could hurt Democratic Party candidates and recommended that platforms like Meta and Telegram be more aggressive with their censorship efforts to prevent the spread of so-called misinformation. In its DHS grant application‚ the Rhode Island Lab explained that “[a]fter the grant program funding has expired‚ we will continue to offer ‘Courageous Conversations’ as a community-based program with support from the Rhode Island philanthropic community.” True to its word‚ the Rhode Island Lab is currently touting a new “Courageous Conversation” for 2024‚ this time based in Charlottesville‚ Virginia and commencing on Jan. 17.  In addition to the “Courageous Conversations‚” the Rhode Island Lab and Media Literacy Now used DHS funds to create a glossy podcast series‚ aptly titled “CourageousRI: A Podcast Series.” DHS Agent Robert Mahoney‚ the Rhode Island Lab’s CP3 grant administrator‚ appeared on the show. Mahoney used the platform to sing praises of the Biden administration’s “whole of society approach‚” emphasizing that the DHS sought to “have a way of reporting” examples of “unusual behavior‚” such as “somebody who has access to guns or has anti-government [views] or has conspiracy theories of a lot of things.”  Mahoney stated that such enemies of the state were “picking and choosing what they believe and how far they want to go with that conspiracy theory or how much they believe in a certain ideology. And they sort of weave that into a narrative‚ almost like a quilt.”  Mahoney’s comments are disturbing as they mirror those given by his coworker Joseph “J.R.” Masztalics‚ who touted the “whole of society approach” when he spoke in his official capacity at the DHS-funded seminar that unveiled the aforementioned “Pyramid of Far-Right Radicalization.” The other podcast guests also tended to be quite radical. In April 2023‚ the Courageous RI podcast hosted left-wing activist Jennifer Lima‚ a North Kingstown school board member who received international attention for bizarre antics like demanding that students who engage in “misgendering” should be sent to prison. Hobbs heaped praise on Lima‚ proclaiming: “[I]n my world‚ you are the epitome of a courageous leader” and “[W]hat could we do‚ moving forward‚ to inspire people to be as courageous as you are?”   In another episode‚ Steager urged listeners to implement a specific Holocaust education lesson plan. This curriculum exploited the worst atrocity in human history for political points‚ equating opposition to open borders with genocide and claiming “Christianity historically promoted antisemitism‚ [and] anti-Judaism.”  One passage required students to read an essay by now-presidential candidate Cornel West‚ wherein he declared that “antisemitism has proven itself to be a powerful force in nearly every post of Western civilization where Christianity has a presence.” In the passage‚ West — who said elsewhere “the Israeli state … has been racist in practice since its inception” — went on to remark‚ “I am not going to believe the hype‚ even when I see Jews highly assimilated sometimes at high levels in American civilization believing they've been fully accepted by the Goyim.” Another guest was then-Congressman David Cicilline‚ who joined the podcast to hawk his controversial book House on Fire. According to the book description on Amazon‚ “House on Fire identifies the key threat to our democracy—that the GOP has become a Trumpist authoritarian cult—and outlines how we fight back.” Cicilline resorted to similar incendiary language on the podcast‚ deriding a proposed Utah women’s rights law as “targeting trans kids” and demanding censorship legislation “to be sure that these [social media] platforms are responsible for the amplification of dangerous‚ toxic‚ untrue content” such as (in his words) “misinformation” from “Trump.” Steager enthusiastically endorsed Cicilline’s comments. Cicilline concluded the podcast by saying that “media literacy ought to be taught in every single school in this country‚ and every grade‚ because it’s never too young to begin to develop those skills.” Steager responded “Thank you. We believe that too.” Interestingly‚ while still serving in Congress‚  Cicilline wrote a letter asking the DHS to approve the Rhode Island Lab and Media Literacy Now’s grant request.  It is unsurprising Cicilline would take particular interest in the Rhode Island Lab’s insidious agenda to push censorship under the guise of media literacy. As the Chair of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Antitrust‚ Commercial &; Administrative Law‚ he made his signature issue a (failed) effort to reshape telecommunications law so as to target conservative speech. Cicilline left Congress shortly after filming the podcast to run the Rhode Island Foundation‚ a powerful “community foundation” that is a public partner of Courageous RI.   “The left’s ‘whole of society approach’ is really about empowering leftwing organizations to fight against American values and democratic norms‚” commented MRC Free Speech America Vice President Dan Schneider. “It is clear that Cicilline realized that he would have more power as the head of the Rhode Island Foundation to push a leftwing agenda than he had as a duly-elected Member of Congress who chaired an influential committee. The usurpers of our Constitution are well organized and are colluding with the Biden administration to bring our democracy to an end.” The Rhode Island Department of State and the Rhode Island Foundation are not the only formal partners of Courageous RI. Also included on that list are the Rhode Island Department of Health (which advocated for the Rhode Island Lab to get its grant)‚ the Rhode Island School Superintendents Association and the office of Biden’s U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island‚ Zachary Cunha.  Another official partner is more overtly partisan: Moms Demand Action (MDA). MDA is a radical gun-confiscation group which has pledged to “fully embrace diversity‚ equity‚ and inclusion (DEI).” MDA‚ a part of the umbrella organization Everytown for Gun Safety‚ is backed by activist billionaire Michael Bloomberg‚ the owner of Bloomberg News and former New York City Mayor . (Part 1 of this report detailed how Rhode Island Lab’s “affiliated faculty” member Lauren McClanahan‚ a graduate of the State Department series of seminars‚ had students in her Bellingham‚ Washington class create a propaganda video advocating for donations to the Everytown for Gun Safety network.)  While most taxpayers would likely be alarmed that the DHS-created “Courageous RI” partnered  with a hyper-partisan activist group like MDA‚ such an alliance is emblematic of the Biden administration’s “whole of society approach.” The Rhode Island Lab and Media Literacy Now are able to act as a conduit between the government and the more extreme elements of the left in order to enact “systemic change in K-12 education.”  The Rhode Island Lab is using taxpayer money to fund a campaign against Second Amendment liberties. The first way it went about doing so was by commissioning taxpayer-funded blog posts. At $250-a-piece‚ and paid for with the TVTP grant money‚ the blog posts were commissioned to educate on “misinformation‚ disinformation‚ media literacy … and more!” After being selected and approved by the Rhode Island Lab‚ the articles were featured on the taxpayer-funded Courageous RI website.  One DHS-financed article raged at “Second American Sanctuaries” and “the NRA‚” while advocating for an “assault weapons ban” and other draconian restrictions on gun ownership. Another piece enthusiastically directed readers to Bloomberg-backed Everytown for Gun Safety and the Giffords Center for Violence Intervention (GCVI)‚ an anti-Second Amendment liberties advocacy group linked to left-wing Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) (GCVI often works with Bloomberg’s Everytown/MDA organizations in order to coordinate its advocacy). A third piece eagerly proclaimed‚ “We can urge our state governments to repeal Stand Your Ground and Open Carry laws” because “Stand Your Ground laws allow individuals to shoot anyone they believe is threatening them” (they do not).    The writings were not limited to advocacy against Second Amendment liberties or for gun confiscation. They also made sure to disparage journalists‚ former President Trump’s supporters and even the First Amendment.  One detached-from-reality screed lamented: “We are all living in a darker‚ scarier‚ angrier‚ less hopeful country thanks to Mr. Trump’s influence. Are we on the verge of civil war?” The piece complained that the former President Trump “was able to crawl into the safety of First Amendment protections” and “was able to sidestep the only societal controls against hate speech by buying Truth Social‚ his own media outlet.” The taxpayer-funded blog ominously concluded that “[i]t won’t be easy‚ but we really have to reduce Trump’s influence.” Another taxpayer-funded blog the Rhode Island Lab published with TVTP money complained that “preserving freedom of expression from censorship is often invoked to counter efforts to regulate hateful expression‚ in particular in online environments” and asked “whether social media platforms should really have the power to be such empty vessels for people to fill up with invective‚ fights over politics‚ disinformation‚ propaganda‚ racism‚ and misogyny.”  The Rhode Island Lab article further argued in favor of censorship along the lines of what the Biden administration has been accused of: strongarming social media companies to silence dissident speech. The blog suggested that “leaders have the capacity to stand up against false narratives in real time‚ flag inflammatory content for removal by social media companies‚ and provide non-partisan online spaces for intercommunal engagement.”  This same DHS-funded article wrongly claimed that “the political right enjoys higher amplification” on social media “compared to the political left.” This is untrue. As MRC’s CensorTrack.org shows‚ conservatives are overwhelmingly more likely to be censored than those on the left.   Another of the blogs even disparaged the late Presidential Medal of Freedom-winner Rush Limbaugh‚ commenting that “Donald Trump was also adopting the shock-jock style that Rush Limbaugh built into a cultural phenomenon‚ including his misogynistic and racist comments‚ conspiracy theories‚ and grievances.” The piece also attacked Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) as “the extreme fringe of the right wing‚” and remarked‚ “It turns out even Fox Media has limits on how much misogyny and racism it will tolerate from its stars–witness the canceling of Tucker Carlson’s show last week.”  A different piece — centered on “the hijacking of our public dialogue” but titled “Time to Focus on Unity” — told readers not to “tune into the circuses of the Marjorie Taylor Greenes‚ Louis Farrakans [sic]‚ and MAGA supporters.”  “Louis Farrakhan is a virulently antisemitic hate group leader who has repeatedly referred to Jewish people as ‘termites‚’” said MRC Free Speech America Vice President Dan Schneider. “It is unconscionable to equate such a person to the seventy-four million Americans who supported Donald Trump‚ especially in a piece professing to signify ‘unity.’”  The Rhode Island Lab did not conceal its intention to engage in left-wing activism when it applied for its grant. On the contrary‚ its proposal attacked Trump supporters from the “north‚ south‚ east‚ and west” of the state‚ suggesting they posed a “threat of violent extremism.” After all‚ as Part 1 of this report detailed‚ it was no secret that the Rhode Island Lab and its deeply partisan founder Hobbs had long engaged in extreme and conspiratorial left-wing activism.  Phase 2 of the strategy finances the current and ongoing‚ nationwide expansion of the seminars initially established by the State Department. Part 1 of this report detailed how the State Department paid the Rhode Island Lab to conduct a year-long series of seminars training educators how to inoculate students against conservative ideas. Phase 2 of the DHS grant program replicated this structure‚ but with the intention of bringing the scheme nationwide. The State Department seminars focused on bringing longstanding German censorship strategies to American classrooms. Among the strategies educators were instructed to employ were using videogames to teach children to reject so-called “misinformation‚” instructing students to rely on hopelessly biased‚ anti-conservative fact checking sites like PolitiFact and Snopes and training educators how to use censorship tools like Ad Fontes and NewsGuard to block student access to websites with dissident views. This last aspect is particularly disturbing‚ as Media Literacy Now — the Rhode Island Lab’s fiscal agent for the grant — received 10 percent kickbacks from certain Ad Fontes subscriptions.  In Courageous RI’s formal announcement‚ the Rhode Island Lab explained that for Phase 2 of the program‚ it would conduct a series of seminars for American educators. These seminars‚ which are currently being conducted‚ mirror what was done at the State Department events covered in Part 1 of this report — training educators how to implement “media literacy” in American classrooms. However‚ unlike with the State Department seminars‚ the work is being done behind closed doors‚ but evidence shows that these seminars are still being conducted in a hyper-partisan manner.  The application for the DHS seminars reveals that potential participants were asked to rank their ideology on a 1–10 scale from “Strong Red Conservative” to “Strong Blue Liberal.” A teacher who participated in this program told the Media Research Center (MRC) she believed that‚ after self-identifying as a “conservative‚” she was deliberately confined to a breakout group controlled by the director of the Rhode Island Lab so as to limit her access to the most damning material. While the State Department series of seminars concluded in April of 2022‚ the DHS-funded seminars are designed and intended to be perpetuated indefinitely. The Rhode Island Lab boasted that after receiving the seeder money from the DHS‚ it has “a blueprint for raising the money to expand this statewide program in Rhode Island and to serve the needs of people in other states.”  Phase 3 of the recently launched strategy provides cash prizes of up to $1‚000 for children who create social media posts to increase demand for “media literacy” mandates — a euphemism for censorship.  While Courageous RI is intended to exist in perpetuity‚ the culminating phase of the DHS grant  is a scheme to pay children to be activists for censorship‚ including paying students up to $1‚000 per Instagram blog post. These payments are specifically intended to apply pressure to governments to comply with the demands of these young activists. Among the educational programs the Rhode Island Lab promoted at the State Department seminars was one crafted by the organization MEET Tolerance (MEET is an acronym signifying “Media Education for Equity and Tolerance”). As detailed in Part 1 of this report‚ the MEET Tolerance curriculum explained how to use “children as media producers‚” where young students would be “[a]dvocating intercultural values and social justice through [their] own media productions and practices.” Part of MEET Tolerence’s curriculum is a strategy developed by socialist German politician Konstantin von Notz to reward grade school students with prizes for crafting Instagram posts as part of a seemingly grassroots push for censorship laws.  This German astro-turf model‚ titled the “Youth Media Contest‚ is “Phase 3” of the TVTP grant program. The Rhode Island Lab is currently offering cash prizes to “high school and college students” who create social media posts “designed to raise public awareness of the harms of hateful extremist propaganda.” In order to “win” their payment‚ children and young adults must produce “videos‚ billboards‚ memes‚ screencasts‚ infographics‚ and simple video productions” to “reduce the power of harmful propaganda and disinformation.”  In its grant proposal to the DHS‚ the Rhode Island Lab boasted that this third phase would create “[p]ublic demand for media literacy in public education‚” as “[p]ropaganda can be used in socially-beneficial ways.” The Rhode Island Lab predicts that as a long-term result of Phase 3’s astroturf push for “media literacy” mandates‚ “[p]ublic demand for media literacy in public education [will be] increased.”  As Part 1 of this report detailed‚ Media Literacy Now defines “media literacy” as “a tool to create the society we all deserve: one that nurtures racial equity‚ social justice‚ and true democracy. Media literacy equals cultural change.” Its quest for “media literacy” is based on the idea that making too much information available to the public is inherently a threat. Media Literacy Now subscribes to the fringe idea that society is threatened by an “infodemic.” This theory defines “[a]n infodemic [as] an overabundance of information‚” and this overabundance could only be corrected by having “media and social media platforms … collaborate with the UN system with Member States and with each other” to censor information with which the collective disagrees.  The Biden administration is able to get something quite special with its $700‚000 TVTP grant. Harnessing the Media Literacy Now “network” and‚ ultimately‚ paying children to advocate for “media literacy” mandates ensnares the whole of the American public school system in its agenda. “Eighteen states‚ plus countless additional school districts‚ have already required ‘media literacy’ education‚ creating an easy path for Ad Fontes and NewsGuard to enter American classrooms‚” commented Schneider. “With Courageous RI’s renewed efforts‚ this number will likely rise much higher.” Increasing demand for media literacy is just one side of the Rhode Island Lab’s Phase 3 social media contest‚ though. Because prizes can be awarded for anything that the Rhode Island Lab’s believes will “raise public awareness of the harms of hateful extremist propaganda‚” Schneider sees more trouble on the horizon.  “We saw the State Department seminars push censorship and leftist activism‚” he warned. “We saw the Lab’s McClanahan — a graduate of those State Department seminars — push censorship and leftist activism. We saw the blog posts push censorship and leftist activism. It is abundantly clear what these $1‚000 social media posts are going to be doing.”  Conclusion What makes the Rhode Island Lab uniquely dangerous is that it offered a seemingly limitless army of outside groups which the Biden administration could activate with a relatively small amount of money. With just two grants — first from the State Department‚ and now from the DHS —  the Biden administration has been able to artificially create a perpetual “[p]ublic demand for media literacy in public education‚” supercharging a censorship industry devoted to an inherently anti-American philosophy hidden beneath the asinine monicker of “media literacy.”  The Rhode Island Lab’s “media literacy” is an ideology that views the greatest danger to society as an “overabundance of information.” It treats knowledge as a disease to be prevented or destroyed. Students are taught to avoid media critical of the left and to consume a relentless diet of authoritarian propaganda pushing racialist social structures‚ political violence and subservience to the State.  Kingston‚ Rhode Island may not be a place most Americans have heard of. But in a single university building in this mid-sized New England town‚ the Biden administration is harnessing the power of foreign governments; ruthless billionaires; demagogic politicians; radical‚ extremist groups and unscrupulous censorship firms. It is a “whole of society” approach with a single target: America’s youth.  Recommendations: It will take a whole of society response to fight the Biden administration’s whole of society approach: Parents should call their local school boards and check if Ad Fontes and/or NewsGuard have been imposed in their children’s classrooms. If they have‚ parents should demand their removal.  Congressmen and state attorneys general must investigate media literacy advocacy groups like Media Literacy Now for receiving potentially unlawful kickbacks from censorship firms.  New England nonprofits should distance and disentangle themselves from activist groups like the Rhode Island Foundation that masquerade as non-partisan community organizations. Congress must defund all domestic censorship programs‚ including the TVTP program that targets Sec. Mayorkas’s critics and finance anti-American activism.

ABC’s Good Morning America released a surprisingly positive segment Wednesday morning on the topic of homeschooling. And For an outlet that works overtime to make traditional and family values seem like anomalies‚ this was a bit of a shocker. Host George Stephanopoulos started out the segment noting how much homeschooling has risen in the past couple of years. Then tech contributor Becky Worley presented the story. “While most experts thought families would return to schools after the COVID restrictions eased‚ that's actually not the case‚” Worley said before talking about one mom‚ Alisha Wright of Richmond‚ Virginia‚ who’s been homeschooling her kids for nearly 10 years.  “She built the curriculum around subjects that pique their interest and banded together with other parents in a cooperative where multiple students learn from other parents - or in Wright's case‚ an outside instructor‚” Worley said.   Wright spoke highly of her experience homeschooling her kids. She is part of a co-op where outside teachers come in and teach her kids‚ along with kids of other families. Wright also mentioned that though she homeschools‚ she and her family “don’t spend a lot of time in our house.” Instead they’re often visiting museums‚ plays‚ theaters‚ and getting involved in the community‚ she said. Related: Louisiana Teacher Arrested For ‘Sexting’ 15-Year-Old Student   Jeanne Faulconer‚ senior contributor for thehomeschoolmom.com‚ noted that while experts thought that in-person student numbers would increase after kids were welcomed back to school following COVID closures‚ that didn't happen. Instead‚ even after kids were invited back to in-person learning‚ homeschooling numbers still went up.  Worley added the following: The Washington post found that nailing down an exact number of children homeschooled is close to impossible. 11 states don't even require parents to report if their child is homeschooled. But the Post estimating that there are currently 2.7 million homeschooled kids compared to 1.5 million in 2019.  The GMA segment also highlighted Peter Jamison‚ staff writer for The Washington Post‚ who noted that many parents who support homeschooling do so to protect their children from bullying and to keep kids safe. Worley explained that some critics of homeschooling worry that kids won’t receive a “quality” education at home‚ “citing a lack of standardized testing and‚ in many states‚ no requirement to submit assessments of progress.” As Faulconer mentioned‚ there are varying levels of quality with a homeschool setting‚ just as there are varying levels of quality among public schools. Neither is right or wrong‚ superior or inferior‚ but it's rather up to families to decide the best route for their kids.  As a nod to homeschooling‚ you can regulate what content your kids do and don’t learn. For example‚ at home‚ unlike at most public schools‚ you don’t have to teach your kids how to change their gender‚ how to masturbate‚ or where to get abortions … unless of course you want to? Though I personally plan to homeschool my own kids because of how screwed up public schools are‚ I also recognize that there are some good public schools out there who don’t try to indoctrinate and groom their students. Unfortunately‚ those schools are becoming fewer and fewer. “While we might think of homeschooling being one parent sitting at a table all day going over lessons‚ many are opting for a less traditional approach these days. They're creating more of a co-op and having some at-home instruction in addition to learning in small groups in the community or with other homeschooling families to share the teaching load‚” Worley said before passing it back to Robin Roberts who said that information was “good to know.” While GMA wasn’t praising homeschooling like it was the greatest thing since sliced bread‚ the segment didn’t bash it - which‚ honestly‚ is a green flag for the outlet.  Follow us on Twitter/X: In a surprisingly heartfelt moment at the Emmys Succession actress Sarah Snook thanked her unborn baby for giving her the strength to give her performance. pic.twitter.com/0ukihZzzJ8 — MRCTV (@mrctv) January 16‚ 2024

PBS NewsHour anchor Geoff Bennett awarded six minutes of book publicity to liberal author Joshua Green‚ and his new book The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren‚ Bernie Sanders‚ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‚ and the Struggle For a New American Politics. Bennett was right about one thing: the Democrats have a "far left."  Bennett: Between the House GOP's government funding fight and former President Donald Trump's hold on the Republican Party‚ much has been made of the far right's strong sway over the GOP and its agenda. But what doesn't get nearly as much attention is the far left's influence in the Democratic Party…. But unlike myriad pieces on the dangers of the “far right” that have aired for years on the tax-funded channel PBS‚ the Green interview that aired Tuesday evening skipped controversies and any sense of danger posed by radical left politicians in America like Warren‚ Sanders‚ and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. There was no use of the word "extreme‚"  no rehashing of old controversies and embarrassments (a ripe field for Warren and AOC in particular). The segment contented itself with a single “far-left” label‚ and even that was countered by a “far-right” label. Green traced the rise of the populist left to the 2008 financial crash: Green: Yes‚ Warren is a fascinating figure. I got to know her just after the crisis. She was still a Harvard law professor‚ but she had just been appointed one of the overseers of the government's bailout of Wall Street after the crash. And she used that fairly obscure position as a platform to really go after the Obama administration‚ the banks‚ and articulate this version of left-wing populism that really hadn't had a voice in recent American political history. It wound up catching fire‚ really starting a movement…. Green’s presence drew out a little media truth-telling: Could Biden actually be pushing leftism under the guise of moderation‚ validating a conservative argument? Geoff Bennett: And fast-forward to the current moment. How do you view the progressive influence on President Biden's agenda? Because you could argue that he has governed like an economic populist and in many ways far less than the centrist Democrat that he was expected to be‚ given his long track record. Biden also underwent a “remarkable evolution” into a left-wing populist‚ albeit on the sly‚ by the over-stimulus to counter the government-imposed shutdowns related to COVID. Green: Which is really a remarkable evolution….I think Biden's evolution in particular has been an interesting one‚ because he was in the White House with Barack Obama as his vice president when that first crash hit‚ and then‚ when he was elected president‚ inherited another great economic crash that followed the COVID pandemic….He shows up on union picket lines. He does things that would have been fairly unimaginable for a centrist Democrat to do 10‚ 15 or 20 years ago. The two were careful to differentiate Democratic populism from “the kind of populism that Trump supporters prefer‚” in Bennett’s phrase. Green contrasted Warren‚ Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez’s “economic populism” with the right’s “cultural populism‚ a lot of anger toward immigration‚ America first nationalism….” Bennett did question Green about a potential “ceiling of support for progressive candidates.” Green agreed and also suggested Biden had smuggled leftist populism under the “code” of D.C. centrism. Green: …..I think there is a ceiling on candidates who are explicitly described -- defined as left-wing progressives in Democratic primaries. It's really only in deep blue places like Ocasio-Cortez's district in New York and a few other places where these true left-wing progressives‚ democratic socialists‚ have been able to get themselves elected. But we have seen in a lot of races since then‚ in Democratic primaries and general elections‚ that they try and they fail. So‚ one of the arguments I make in the book is‚ the future of this brand of progressivism may not be through these particular politicians‚ but through politicians like Joe Biden‚ who kind of code as more moderate‚ as more centrist‚ but who still take up and put into place a lot of the politics that my characters gave rise to. Will the press pick up on the idea of Joe Biden‚ secret leftist? Not during an election year. This segment was brought to you in part by Fidelity. A transcript is available‚ click “Expand.” PBS NewsHour 1/16/24 7:44:30 p.m. (ET) Geoff Bennett: Between the House GOP's government funding fight and former President Donald Trump's hold on the Republican Party‚ much has been made of the far right's strong sway over the GOP and its agenda. But what doesn't get nearly as much attention is the far left's influence in the Democratic Party. I sat down last week with Joshua Green to discuss just that. It's the focus of his latest book called "The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren‚ Bernie Sanders‚ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‚ and the Struggle For a New American Politics." Joshua Green‚ welcome to the "NewsHour." Joshua Green‚ Author‚ "The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren‚ Bernie Sanders‚ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‚ and the Struggle For a New American Politics": Good to be with you. Thanks. Geoff Bennett: In the book‚ you trace the rise of the modern-day progressive movement to the 2008 financial crisis. How was that a clarifying moment and a catalyst for progressive politics and progressive politicians? Joshua Green: I mean‚ to me‚ the 2008 crash in its aftermath was the defining event in recent U.S. political history. And then it gave rise to this furious populist backlash on the right‚ which eventually gave rise to Donald Trump‚ but also on the left‚ which gave rise to my characters‚ first Elizabeth Warren‚ then Bernie Sanders‚ who nearly succeeded in winning the Democratic nomination in 2016‚ and then ultimately to this new generation of younger progressives‚ such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the cohort around her in Congress. Geoff Bennett: You mentioned Elizabeth Warren. And in the book‚ you explore how she ultimately emerged at the center of the government's response to the financial crisis. And‚ at the time‚ she was an unlikely voice in that regard. Walk us through her evolution‚ based on your reporting. Joshua Green: Yes‚ Warren is a fascinating figure. I got to know her just after the crisis. She was still a Harvard law professor‚ but she had just been appointed one of the overseers of the government's bailout of Wall Street after the crash. And she used that fairly obscure position as a platform to really go after the Obama administration‚ the banks‚ and articulate this version of left-wing populism that really hadn't had a voice in recent American political history. It wound up catching fire‚ really starting a movement. And within a few years‚ even before she ran for Senate in 2012‚ people in Washington would talk about the Elizabeth Warren wing of the Democratic Party. So it helped give rise to this new brand of progressivism that we saw rise up in the wake of the crisis. Geoff Bennett: And fast-forward to the current moment. How do you view the progressive influence on President Biden's agenda? Because you could argue that he has governed like an economic populist and in many ways far less than the centrist Democrat that he was expected to be‚ given his long track record. Joshua Green: Which is really a remarkable evolution. I mean‚ when I first came to Washington as a reporter in 2000‚ Biden was a senator from Delaware‚ was known as a great friend of business‚ was sometimes jokingly referred to as the senator from corporate America. I think Biden's evolution in particular has been an interesting one‚ because he was in the White House with Barack Obama as his vice president when that first crash hit‚ and then‚ when he was elected president‚ inherited another great economic crash that followed the COVID pandemic. And the response to those two crashes‚ I think‚ illustrates what an effect these populists have had. After COVID‚ Biden put in place multiple rounds of stimulus‚ unemployment benefits‚ student loan freezes‚ small business loans‚ but all of it focused on the middle class in a way that hadn't necessarily been true of the response to the '08 crisis. And so‚ when you hear Biden speak today about the economy‚ he talks about building it from the middle out. He shows up on union picket lines. He does things that would have been fairly unimaginable for a centrist Democrat to do 10‚ 15 or 20 years ago. Geoff Bennett: What is it about the Democratic brand of populism that's different from the kind of populism that Trump supporters prefer? Joshua Green: Well‚ the populism that I write about with Warren‚ Bernie and Ocasio-Cortez is really focused on economic populism. And I think my last book‚ "Devil's Bargain‚" was about the rise of Steve Bannon and Donald Trump in right-wing populism. And mostly‚ I think that's focused on a kind of cultural populism‚ a lot of anger toward immigration‚ America first nationalism. Certainly‚ there are some economic components. Trump is very hawkish toward trade. He's put in place — he put in place steel tariffs the Biden administration has kept in place. There are areas of overlap. But‚ to me‚ it's the cultural element that distinguishes the right-wing populism from the left-wing populism that I write about in this book. Geoff Bennett: What about the politicians themselves? Is there a ceiling of support for progressive candidates? Democrats who might support progressive policies‚ there hasn't been enough support from the Democratic base to propel one of the progressive politicians into the White House. Joshua Green: You know‚ it's an interesting question‚ because‚ if you go back to 2019‚ I was embedded with Warren and with Sanders for a time during the Democratic primaries‚ when they were both running for president. It seemed like in the moment that progressive politics was really taking off‚ and yet neither one of them emerged as the Democratic nominee‚ partly because there were two of them running and they split the progressive vote. But‚ really‚ I think there is a ceiling on candidates who are explicitly described — defined as left-wing progressives in Democratic primaries. It's really only in deep blue places like Ocasio-Cortez's district in New York and a few other places where these true left-wing progressives‚ democratic socialists‚ have been able to get themselves elected. But we have seen in a lot of races since then‚ in Democratic primaries and general elections‚ that they try and they fail. So‚ one of the arguments I make in the book is‚ the future of this brand of progressivism may not be through these particular politicians‚ but through politicians like Joe Biden‚ who kind of code as more moderate‚ as more centrist‚ but who still take up and put into place a lot of the politics that my characters gave rise to. Geoff Bennett: The book is "The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren‚ Bernie Sanders‚ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‚ and the Struggle For a New American Politics." Joshua Green‚ thanks for coming in. Good to talk to you. Joshua Green: Thanks so much‚ Geoff. Appreciate it.

Wednesday’s edition of CNN This Morning assembled a panel to discuss Former U.N. Ambassador and GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s recent comments that America has had moments of racism‚ but has never been a racist country. Commentator Natasha Alford didn’t just disagree with the historic assertion‚ but also tried to pin 2022 and 2023 mass shootings by white supremacists in Buffalo and Jacksonville on the entire country. Before making the divisive comments‚ Alford asserted that Haley’s remarks prove she cannot be president during a time of deep division‚ “You do not deserve to be president of this country if you don't have a coherent‚ consistent message about race. It is just 101‚ right? If you're going to lead this country through a time of division and partisanship‚ you have to have a consistent message.”     After claiming Haley’s remarks show “why people don't trust her‚ Alford got to Buffalo and Jacksonville‚ “This will not work in a general election‚ Okay? You want to say that America was not a racist country to voters who are in Buffalo‚ right‚ and just saw people killed in the Top shooting‚ or in Jacksonville‚ Florida. I mean‚ all of these voters are out there‚ and they want to know that you are going to tell the truth‚ but also that you have a message of hope for the future. Flip-flopping on that doesn't earn you any respect.” Co-host Poppy Harlow then reported on the campaign’s attempt to clarify or perhaps clean up the initial remarks‚ “Her campaign later yesterday put out a statement that said America has always had racism‚ but America has never been a racist country.” Alford quickly responded‚ “That’s even worse” and after co-host Phil Mattingly asked why‚ she continued‚ “I mean‚ it's just -- it's talking out of both sides of your mouth. And again‚ we cannot trust leaders who don't actually have a vision around this‚ right? People are tired of the division. They are tired of the sort of pain and gaslighting around racism.” She also added‚ “And so if you come with a message that says‚ you know‚ we're not racist‚ but you know‚ I had a couple of experiences with racism‚ but -- it's just not cohesive‚ it's not coherent‚ and it undermines any sense of belief that this person actually stands on what they believe.” Mattingly then claimed that “I would venture that I don't know anybody in the Republican Party who would give that different of a message. In fact‚ Ron DeSantis agreed with it last night. I think Senator Tim Scott has said similar things.” Fellow panelist Scott Jennings then got the conversation back on a more level-headed plane‚ “Noted Republican‚ Vice President Kamala Harris has said‚ ‘This is not a racist country‚’ when she and Tim Scott had a conversation about this a while back. I do think you can make a distinction between saying an entire country is racist versus saying that there have been individual people or moments of racism.” Jennings is‚ of course‚ correct and that has nothing to do with Haley’s comments as he would proceed to argue that Haley was wrong by pointing to the rise of the KKK after the Civil War. It is not gaslighting to claim that Buffalo and Jacksonville are not representative of the entire country. Here is a transcript for the January 17 show: CNN This Morning 1/17/2024 6:18 AM ET NATASHA ALFORD: You do not deserve to be president of this country if you don't have a coherent‚ consistent message about race. It is just 101‚ right? If you're going to lead this country through a time of division and partisanship‚ you have to have a consistent message. And I think this is why people don't trust Nikki Haley. They can't trust that she actually says what she means and she believes‚ but they -- they can count on her saying whatever sounds good to the audience that she's speaking to. This will not work in a general election‚ Okay? You want to say that America was not a racist country to voters who are in Buffalo‚ right‚ and just saw people killed in the Top shooting‚ or in Jacksonville‚ Florida. I mean‚ all of these voters are out there‚ and they want to know that you are going to tell the truth‚ but also that you have a message of hope for the future. Flip-flopping on that doesn't earn you any respect. POPPY HARLOW: Especially on this issue. ALFORD: Especially. HARLOW: It just -- one note‚ in case people miss it. Her campaign later yesterday put out a statement that said America has always had racism‚ but America has never been a racist country. ALFORD: That's even worse. PHIL MATTINGLY: Why? ALFORD: I mean‚ it's just -- it's talking out of both sides of your mouth. And again‚ we cannot trust leaders who don't actually have a vision around this‚ right? People are tired of the division. They are tired of the sort of pain and gaslighting around racism. And so if you come with a message that says‚ you know‚ we're not racist‚ but you know‚ I had a couple of experiences with racism‚ but -- it's just not cohesive‚ it's not coherent‚ and it undermines any sense of belief that this person actually stands on what they believe. MATTINGLY: I would -- at the same time‚ I would venture that I don't know anybody in the Republican Party who would give that different of a message. In fact‚ Ron DeSantis agreed with it last night. I think Senator Tim Scott has said similar things. SCOTT JENNINGS: Noted Republican‚ Vice President Kamala Harris has said‚ "This is not a racist country‚" when she and Tim Scott had a conversation about this a while back. I do think you can make a distinction between saying an entire country is racist versus saying that there have been individual people or moments of racism.

Fox Business host Charles Payne bodied MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and legacy media setting themselves up as the gatekeepers of facts. After playing a sanctimonious lecture by Maddow on why the media refuses to give Trump “an unfiltered live platform‚” Payne derided this strategy as both wrong and ineffective on the Jan. 16 edition of Making Money with Charles Payne. Payne said‚ “No one ever gave them the job of deciding what was true or false.”  Earlier this week‚ both MSNBC and CNN opted to silence former President Donald Trump during his victory speech following the Republican Iowa caucuses. CNN Anchor Jake Tapper opted to censor Trump at the first mention of immigration. Notably‚ Tapper has been known to freak out when Trump is given a chance to speak uninterrupted or portrayed in a positive light.  On MSNBC‚ Maddow’s explanation of her network’s decision to silence a president upset Payne. Maddow told MSNBC’s viewers‚ “There is a reason that we and other news organizations have generally stopped giving an unfiltered‚ live platform to remarks by former President Trump. It is not out of spite; it is not a decision that we relish; it is a decision that we regularly revisit. And‚ honestly‚ earnestly‚ it is not an easy decision.” While Maddow struggled to get these phrases out without laughing‚ Payne was not amused. Payne dove into the historical power of the press as “the fourth estate” and its corruption in the present. Payne added‚ “In recent years‚ the fourth estate has become honorary‚ has become contemptuous. The avalanche of negative headlines in stories‚ folks‚ are mindboggling. And here’s the weird thing about it‚ the irony about it… All this negativity has created a public that news organizations say they now decry.” It’s not a huge surprise that the public‚ who the media seem to loathe‚ would loathe the media back. Payne concluded by mocking the media’s failed attempt to silence the front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination. “The Media should push back when they have to to protect the audience‚ but this is something entirely different what we’re watching. When you don’t allow someone with power and influence to speak on your platform‚ you actually give them a louder voice and you give other platforms more importance. Let the people hear‚ let the people decide‚” Payne said. Conservatives are under attack! Contact CNN at 404-827-1500 and MSNBC at (800) 952-5210 and demand they do their jobs by broadcasting important events to the American people. 

In February 2021‚ liberal journalists (correctly) were crestfallen that Tribune‚ The Baltimore Sun’s parent company‚ would merge with Alden Global Capital‚ an infamous newspaper conglomerate known for stripping down newspapers to ghost status with‚ in some cases‚ only one staff writer and the thickness of a store-brand napkin.  After it was announced Monday that local businessman and Sinclair Broadcasting Group executive Chairman David Smith had rescued The Sun with plans to revitalize it to a robust status‚ the left is apoplectic. Why? Sinclair‚ the local news behemoth Smith runs‚ has been accused for years of tilting right. Based on the hissy fits pitched by the AP‚ the Baltimore Banner (an online site started after the Alden purchase)‚ CNN‚ The New York Times‚ and The Washington Post‚ it seems like journalists would rather the paper die all together than be run by someone who’s not a leftist. An initial AP story said Smith told staffer “he will focus on local news and investigations‚ and he plans to use video and social media to attract new subscribers”‚ but a follow-up warned Smith was not to be praised and instead scorned since Smith’s “an active contributor to conservative causes” (click “expand”): A local buyer taking over a struggling newspaper in the 21st century is normally cause for some celebration. But The Baltimore Sun’s newly announced owner has a very specific political background‚ and some are concerned about what the 187-year-old publication could become. David D. Smith‚ executive chairman of the Sinclair broadcasting chain and an active contributor to conservative causes‚ has bought Baltimore Sun Media from the investment firm Alden Global Capital. The purchase price was not disclosed. (....) In a Sun story announcing the sale a day earlier‚ Smith said that he was in the news business because he believes “we have an absolute responsibility to serve the public interest.” He also criticized the city’s “mainstream media” while acknowledging that he began reading the paper regularly only a few months ago. (....) The Sinclair-owned Fox station in Baltimore frequently airs coverage blaming the city’s Democratic mayor‚ Brandon Scott‚ for gun violence and failing schools. And Smith has become a prominent player in local politics. In 2022‚ he helped finance an effort to impose term limits for some Baltimore officials. Tax records show Smith’s foundation has donated to the conservative group Project Veritas‚ which is best known for making hidden camera stings on media and liberal figures. (....) History is replete with media owners who have strong political opinions; Rupert Murdoch is only a recent example. What resonates is whether they use their products to push those views. (....) While the region certainly has people with conservative views‚ turning it into a rigid conservative publication would not seem a wise business decision‚ said Medill’s Franklin‚ who was editor-in-chief of the Sun from 2004 to 2009. “One of the most important rules is to know your audience‚” Franklin said‚ “and Baltimore is not a conservative area.” CNN reacted the way you’d expect. Oliver Darcy‚ their deranged liberal media hall monitor‚ whined in his media newsletter that it’s a “deal that has set off alarm bells” since Smith’s local stations around the country “has previously inserted right-wing editorial segments into its local news broadcasts.” Writing on Threads and X‚ NPR media writer and former Sun reporter David Folkenflik huffed that “Smith was dismissive of the Sun's journalism” and “deflected questions about his own political activities.” He also seethed that “Smith has been a major funder of GOP candidates; more recently he has funded far-right outfits like Project Veritas and Turning Point USA &; financed local ballot initiatives.” Folkenflik made sure to take a swipe at Sinclair stations: “Sinclair...has pulled the news coverage and commentaries on those stations markedly to the right‚ ultimately becoming quite supportive of Trump.” “Unclear what the current moment holds‚” he added. The Banner story reeked of scorn. “In a tense‚ three-hour meeting with staff Tuesday afternoon‚ new Baltimore Sun owner David Smith told employees he has only read the paper four times in the past few months‚ insulted the quality of their journalism and encouraged them to emulate a TV station owned by his broadcasting company‚” the story began‚ written by former Sun reporters Cody Boteler‚ Lee Sanderlin‚ and Giacomo Bologna. Two paragraphs later‚ they shined that Smith said back in 2018 that print journalism was “so left-wing as to be meaningless dribble” and that he dared to stand by that statement in a meeting with Sun reporters. They were just getting started with the bitterness‚ backed by anonymous sources (click “expand”): Smith is a major political player in the region‚ having donated heavily to campaigns. He recruited candidates to run against Mayor Brandon Scott and funded ballot initiatives that altered the city charter. The in-person meeting ran nearly three hours and was full of tense exchanges‚ people at the meeting said. Smith was noncommittal about both the long-term continuation of a print edition and retention of current staff. Smith seemed to try and pit reporters against each other‚ asking them to rank who was the best in the newsroom. Several times throughout the meeting‚ he said he has “no idea what you do.” Asked about people’s job security‚ Smith said everyone “has a job today” and said he would not make wholesale changes until he better understood the operation. One newsroom member characterized the meeting as “bleak.” Another called it “very bad‚” and another said it left them feeling sick. Smith’s company owns the local station Fox45‚ and he praised its Project Baltimore‚ which focuses on the shortcomings of Baltimore City schools‚ as an example Sun reporters should follow. Oh‚ the horror! How dare a news outlet focus on the failure of a major city’s public school system! A second story was cartoonish in nature‚ down to the headline: “Meet The Baltimore Sun’s new owner: the conservative TV mogul who embraces controversy and profit.” The nearly 3‚000-word item dripped with disgust and conspiratorial zeal. The one new find? Smith gave $121‚000 to....gird your loins...Moms for Liberty! Cue the suspense sounds effects! Despite years of the profession blasting Alden as far-flung vipers‚ they flocked to a journalism professor at the University of Maryland to argue that‚ “local ownership is not always good” and “the values and the intention of the owner” are what actually matter‚ “not where they live.” Over at The New York Times‚ they warned that Sinclair stations “drew backlash” for a 2018 segment “when anchors at its stations were ordered to read an editorial about media bias.” The Post was similarly dismayed‚ claiming reporters are “wondering how involved he plans to be in editorial decision-making — especially considering his well-known support of conservative causes” and more so after having spent hours “press[ing] him on questions involving journalism ethics and how he plans to increase revenue.” “Sinclair has repeatedly defended the independence and objectivity of its local TV news reporting‚ which has a distinctive conservative flavor‚” reporter Rachel Pannett warned.

The Daily Wire host Michael Knowles laid out the stakes of pursuing diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) in the airline industry. As expected‚ they are very high.  During the Jan. 16 edition of The Michael Knowles Show‚ Knowles made clear that embracing DEI always means sacrificing “candidate quality” and “merit” to other considerations‚ thus making it harder for employers‚ universities and other institutions to do quality work. “DEI in restaurants means that you value diversity more than your dinner. DEI in universities means that you value diversity more than your education. That’s not good‚ that’s a little scary. DEI in the cockpit means that you value diversity more than your life. And I do not‚” Knowles warned. He further referred to DEI initiatives in the airline industry as “actual suicide.” United Airlines CEO promises diversity in the cockpit. This is why you should be worried: pic.twitter.com/4IJyUfXr7E — The Michael Knowles Show (@MKnowlesShow) January 16‚ 2024 Knowles played some footage of United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby pledging his support for DEI to a passionately woke interviewer‚ before expressing his concern about DEI in the airline industry. “I don’t care what this man does to his C-suite. I don’t care if he fills it all with a bunch of lesbian‚ pigmy‚ Muslim Zoroastrians. I don’t care. The cockpit worries me‚” Knowles explained.‚  “DEI is necessarily opposed to quality‚ necessarily. Because what DEI says is‚ ‘We’re going to make you use diversity‚ equity and inclusion standards to deprioritize merit when you hire someone‚ or admit someone into your university‚ or bring someone into your club. We’re going to deprioritize merit because we’re boosting sex or race or sexual behaviors or whatever.’” Knowles’ comments follow an airline disaster where a door fell off a Boeing jet mid-flight. Near-miss air collisions have risen 63% during the DEI-obsessed Biden administration’s time managing the Federal Aviation Administration.  Knowles panned the “logically impossible” arguments that DEI “accentuates quality and merit.” He insisted that this was not possible because DEI initiatives specifically subordinate quality and merit to other factors.  Instead‚ Knowles referred to diversity initiatives as “radical leftist politics” and “degrading to everyone.” Returning to the implementation of DEI initiatives in the airlines‚ Knowles cautioned “I certainly don’t like [diversity] more than I like my life. This is madness. This is actual suicide… I am certain that DEI policies will lower the candidate quality of the pilots and I don’t wanna on those planes.” While Knowles said that he does not personally fly on United Airlines‚ he jokingly recommended that the rest of us commend ourselves to God.  Conservatives are under attack! Conservatives are under attack. Contact ABC News (818) 460-7477‚ CBS News (212) 975-3247 and NBC News (212) 664-6192 and demand they report on the dangers of leftist DEI ideology infecting corporate America

With President Trump’s historic win in Iowa and President Biden’s sagging poll numbers‚ the liberal ladies of ABC’s The View were in a panic on Wednesday. Unfortunately for Vice President Kamala Harris‚ she was the point person for all of their angst and nervousness as they pelted her with pleas for the Biden campaign to perform better so that Trump didn’t get elected president again. After getting a pillow of a question tossed at her from moderator Whoopi Goldberg‚ Harris got her first frantic question from co-host Sara Haines. Haines wanted them to ditch their doom-and-gloom messaging about democracy being in peril because it wasn’t working‚ and stick to kitchen table issues: The President has made saving democracy the center of his campaign‚ and many of us‚ I think every one of us at this table understands the damage and the fear of January 6th and all that happened. But it's been three years since then and a lot of minds are already made up. Attacks on Trump are not moving the needle. In fact‚ 91 indictments are not moving the needle. Voters want to hear about issues affecting their lives like the economy and the border. Should the campaign be pivoting on its messaging? Harris refused. “I would not separate that from the issue of what is at stake in terms of our democracy and‚ frankly‚ I think most people don't think of it in the context of democracy so much as freedom‚” she proclaimed.     Surprisingly‚ co-host Joy Behar had a pretty serious question about the “heavy-hitting Democrats [who were] sounding the alarm behind closed doors” about the Biden reelection effort: President Obama reportedly has said that he thinks the Biden campaign is too complacent when it comes to Trump. Representative Jim Clyburn has said the campaign isn't breaking through the MAGA wall. Michelle Obama says she's terrified‚ as we are‚ about the potential outcome of the election. “Now‚ are you scared‚ first of all‚ what could happen if Trump ever became‚ God forbid‚ president again and what are you going to do to stop the crazies?” a concerned Behar wanted to know. Faux conservative Alyssa Farah Griffin fired off this zinger at Harris that left her a bit speechless for a short time: “In head-to-head matchups in a number of battleground states‚ Donald Trump edges you and President Biden out. What does it say that the party is struggling to compete with an unfit man who is likely going to jail?” But don’t be mistaken‚ Farah Griffin’s question wasn’t a spiking-the-ball moment in favor of Trump. She’s staunchly anti-Trump and it came from a place of drilling into the heads of the Biden campaign action is needed to stop the bleeding. Of course‚ staunchly racist and anti-Semitic co-host Sunny Hostin’s question came from the far-left and was essentially a demand that Biden abandon Israel to sure up support from the extremists in the “Democratic voter base”: Many say that one of your many strengths as a surrogate is your connection to young people. I believe that to be true. Now‚ voters between 18 and 29 years old stand out as disapproving of the way the Biden administration is handling the Israel-Hamas war. They do not support sending weapons and money to Israel. They are advocating for a humanitarian cease-fire. How does the administration respond to the concerns of this very important part of the Democratic voter base? One of the biggest issues the Biden campaign was struggling with was his advanced age and failing mental state. “I've met him many times. He seems very robust. He told me he works out every day. I see him on television. I'm the same age‚ so I resent that remark‚” Behar bloviated in his defense. “But besides that‚ the other side seems doddering to me. He’s eating cheeseburgers‚ he’s overweight‚ he's always in a golf cart. I mean‚ why is Biden getting the bad rap and not Trump? I don't get it‚” she exclaimed. Much of the interview‚ which took up most of the show‚ was essentially a campaign brainstorming session put on by ABC. And embarrassingly‚ the network actually played Harris off at the end of the show as she delivered another word salad of a response. The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: ABC’s The View January 17‚ 2024 11:18:05 a.m. Eastern (…) SARA HAINES: Well‚ madam Vice President‚ thank you for being here. VP KAMALA HARRIS: Of course. HAINES: The President has made saving democracy the center of his campaign‚ and many of us‚ I think every one of us at this table understands the damage and the fear of January 6th and all that happened. But it's been three years since then and a lot of minds are already made up. Attacks on Trump are not moving the needle. In fact‚ 91 indictments are not moving the needle. Voters want to hear about issues affecting their lives like the economy and the border. Should the campaign be pivoting on its messaging? HARRIS: So‚ there's no doubt that one of the first issues that anyone will think of is the issue they think of when they're at their kitchen table trying to pay their bills‚ which is how is the economy treating them? So‚ there's no question whatsoever that that is an important issue‚ which we have been in the process of addressing. We still need to do more. I would not separate that from the issue of what is at stake in terms of our democracy and‚ frankly‚ I think most people don't think of it in the context of democracy so much as freedom. (…) 11:22:05 a.m. Eastern JOY BEHAR: Let's talk a little about how you're going to go after the other side. Because some heavy-hitting Democrats are sounding the alarm behind closed doors. President Obama reportedly has said that he thinks the Biden campaign is too complacent when it comes to Trump. Representative Jim Clyburn has said the campaign isn't breaking through the MAGA wall. Michelle Obama says she's terrified‚ as we are‚ about the potential outcome of the election. Now‚ are you scared‚ first of all‚ what could happen if Trump ever became‚ God forbid‚ president again and what are you going to do to stop the crazies? (…) 11:24:14 a.m. Eastern ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: Off of that‚ Donald Trump is facing 91 felony counts across four different indictments for a variety of crimes‚ yet‚ ABC's latest poll has President Biden's approval rating at 33 percent‚ behind Donald Trump’s. In head-to-head matchups in a number of battleground states‚ Donald Trump edges you and President Biden out. What does it say that the party is struggling to compete with an unfit man who is likely going to jail? (…) 11:31:42 a.m. Eastern SUNNY HOSTIN: Many say that one of your many strengths as a surrogate is your connection to young people. I believe that to be true. Now‚ voters between 18 and 29 years old stand out as disapproving of the way the Biden administration is handling the Israel-Hamas war. They do not support sending weapons and money to Israel. They are advocating for a humanitarian cease-fire. How does the administration respond to the concerns of this very important part of the Democratic voter base? (…) 11:42:30 a.m. Eastern BEHAR: So‚ people are saying that Biden is too old. We hear it constantly. I've met him many times. He seems very robust. He told me he works out every day. I see him on television. I'm the same age so I resent that remark. But besides that‚ the other side seems doddering to me. He’s eating cheeseburgers‚ he’s overweight‚ he's always in a golf cart. I mean‚ why is Biden getting the bad rap and not Trump? I don't get it. (…)

These Cornbread Muffins are easy to make and have a wonderful flavor. It’s a great addition to any meal and delicious with butter. You know we love our cornbread‚ and these are the original cornbread muffins. This recipe has been in our family for years and years. ❤️WHY WE LOVE THIS RECIPE It’s easy to...