DERP

Several right wing sites are already parroting the latest “Obama wants us all to die of Ebola” conspiracy theory, led by the irrepressible stupidity of Jim Hoft, aka Gateway Pundit, aka DMOTI, aka SMOTI: Report: Obama Administration Pressured News Outlets to Not Report Suspected Ebola Cases | the Gateway Pundit.

Ebola be Gone!

At the urging of the Obama Administration, the Associated Press and other news outlets have agreed not to report on suspected cases of Ebola in the United States until a positive viral RNA test is completed.

The administration and liberal activists were upset with coverage in the run-up to the midterm elections.

Who said political hack Ron Klain was not a good pick for Ebola czar?

In case you haven’t noticed… Media outlets are no longer reporting on suspected Ebola cases at the urging of the Obama administration.

Really, the media are suppressing stories about Ebola at the urging of the Obama administration? That sure doesn’t sound like the media I know.

But let’s investigate, shall we? Hoft links to a site named Downtrend, one of those cookie cutter right wing blogs about hating Obama and everything and everyone around him, where they breathlessly inform the masses: Obama Regime Puts Lipstick on a Pig: Election Day Scrubbed of Ebola - Downtrend.

There is a reason why Obama didn’t pick an Ebola Czar with any actual medical experience when he tabbed longtime Democrat party hack Ron Klain who is a lobbyist. The real danger was never that the foolish policies of Barry and the boys were exposing Americans to Ebola but rather the political implications of it all. So the sudden departure of Ebola stories from the state-corporate media doesn’t pass the smell test. Interestingly the website of Forbes has a story that reports:

The Associated Press and other press outlets have agreed not to report on suspected cases of Ebola in the United States until a positive viral RNA test is completed.

That damning line is buried deep in the article so anyone can be excused for not noticing it - they aren’t supposed to.

We notice already that the quote on which they’re hanging the conspiracy theory that Obama’s hiding the truth about Ebola doesn’t actually mention Obama or the Obama administration.

So here’s that Forbes article and guess what? That paragraph has apparently been removed now.

However, if you scroll down to the comments you’ll find that the author posted a comment, replying to a reader who challenged him to “prove this” by linking to a statement made by the Associated Press about their policy for Ebola coverage: Advisory on Ebola Coverage | the DEFINITIVE SOURCE.

In an advisory to editors at member and customer news organizations, The Associated Press outlined the careful steps it is taking in covering the Ebola story.

EDITORS:

We’re increasingly hearing reports of “suspected” cases of Ebola in the United States and Europe. The AP has exercised caution in reporting these cases and will continue to do so.

Most of these suspected cases turn out to be negative. Our bureaus monitor them, but we have not been moving stories or imagery simply because a doctor suspects Ebola and routine precautions are taken while the patient is tested. To report such a case, we look for a solid source saying Ebola is suspected and some sense the case has caused serious disruption or reaction. Are buildings being closed and substantial numbers of people being evacuated or isolated? Is a plane being diverted? Is the suspected case closely related to another, confirmed Ebola case?

When we do report a suspected case, we will seek to keep our stories brief and in perspective.

The AP

So to recap, the story being pushed out there by Jim Hoft, that the Obama administration is “pressuring news outlets” not to report suspected Ebola cases, is absolute drivel. Nobody from the Obama administration is pressuring any news outlets.

This started with a simple policy statement from the Associated Press about responsible reporting of suspected Ebola cases, mentioned in a single paragraph at Forbes, picked up by a far right website where they insinuated Obama was involved, finally winding up at Jim Hoft’s House of Dumb with a raving, utterly false headline: “Obama Administration Pressured News Outlets to Not Report Suspected Ebola Cases.”

No, they didn’t. But now it will be a right wing meme, forever and ever.

The author of the piece at Forbes, David Kroll, has now added a correction:

**CORRECTION: This piece originally and inadvertently suggested that The Associated Press and other news organizations were in agreement “not to report on suspected cases of Ebola in the United States until a positive viral RNA test is completed.” I regret this misinterpretation. In fact, AP is in no agreement with other outlets regarding news coverage. AP’s own position is that it will still report some suspected cases of Ebola if they cause enough disruption, even if there’s no confirmation the person has Ebola.

To be fully clear, I am providing both the link to the October 17 AP advisory and the full text of the advisory, as follows:

EDITORS:

We’re increasingly hearing reports of “suspected” cases of Ebola in the United States and Europe. The AP has exercised caution in reporting these cases and will continue to do so.

Most of these suspected cases turn out to be negative. Our bureaus monitor them, but we have not been moving stories or imagery simply because a doctor suspects Ebola and routine precautions are taken while the patient is tested. To report such a case, we look for a solid source saying Ebola is suspected and some sense the case has caused serious disruption or reaction. Are buildings being closed and substantial numbers of people being evacuated or isolated? Is a plane being diverted? Is the suspected case closely related to another, confirmed Ebola case?

When we do report a suspected case, we will seek to keep our stories brief and in perspective.

The AP