WTF MSM!? AP discovers Notre Dame is a religious site; today’s word is ‘impeachment’; Game of Elmo; and more

WTF MSM!? is a newsletter that puts a dose of sunlight on the mainstream media and exposes how the media twist facts, selectively report, and outright lie to advance their left-wing agenda. You can signup for WTF MSM!? newsletter here.

They can't be this stupid … After the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral this week, there have been a lot of hot takes, some celebration by deranged people, and steadfast resolve. But this ridiculous headline was not expected. Ted Cruz's national security adviser Omri Ceren noticed that the Associated Press titled a story "Tourist mecca Notre Dame also revered as place of worship." Were there people who didn't realize this?

Undaunted by the criticism, the AP has left the story up — headline intact. Has the culture become so secular that it takes an explainer by a news organization to let you know that the place you snapped a cool Instagram selfie at after grabbing a baguette last summer is actually a house of worship?

Not to be outdone by this story, the New York Times wrote about the heroic French priest who saved the "Crown of Thorns" relic and the "Body of Christ" from the burning cathedral. At the Free Beacon, Alex Griswold writes that the Times thought the "Body of Christ" was a "statue of Jesus."

To the more than a billion Roman Catholics in the world, the "Body of Christ" is the Blessed Sacrament, the actual presence of Christ on earth. To Catholics, the priest didn't save a "statue of Jesus" — the priest saved the physical presence of Jesus from flames. The Times has since corrected its error, but like the AP article it shows an utter disregard for people of faith.

'Impeachment, Impeachment, Impeachment' … Thursday marked a milestone in the coverage of the Trump presidency by the mainstream media. As I noted yesterday, the media switched gears toward hyping obstruction in coverage yesterday. That led to what the media really want: impeachment.

NewsBusters' Bill D'Agostino captured the 309 times members of the media said "impeachment" during coverage yesterday. The montage is both hilarious and sad at the same time.

Appearing on CNN, Mary Katharine Ham cut right through the media B.S. Ham told her CNN co-panelists that she hoped it was "leg day" because they were going to need to be strong to keep "carrying these goal posts."

That's exactly what the media has been doing to conservatives for generations, not just since Trump ran for office — carrying the left's water and acting as the left's attack dogs.

Elmo teaches respect … In a recent cross-promotion, HBO had "Sesame Street" star Elmo travel to Westeros to teach Tyrion and Cersei Lannister about respect. It's really well done. Elmo seems to have really gotten through to Cersei.

The promo clip also reminded me that one of the perennial arguments against eliminating federal funding for PBS — "save Big Bird" — is now shot. Remember the old PBS tagline? "If PBS doesn't do it, who will?" In 2019, the "who" is HBO.

Edelweiss … Anybody who's ever watched "The Sound of Music" knows that the song Edelweiss is sung as a protest of the Anschluss, the Nazi takeover of Austria. The Von Trapp family patriarch sings the song as a defiant act just before fleeing the Nazis who want to force him into service in the Navy. But to the New York Times' Maggie Haberman, Trump playing the song at the White House has a sinister meaning.

If Haberman were a millennial who first heard the song at the opening of the alternative history drama "Man in the High Castle," it might be understandable, though that song is sung in hushed tones referring to a protest as well. But Haberman is 45 years old, and should know better.

Trump Derangement Syndrome is very real.

More links …

• Roundup: The most hilarious media meltdowns over AG Barr's press conference and the Mueller report's total lack of collusion evidence
• Seriously? MSNBC's Neal Katyal questions why AG Barr used the word "collusion," claims "only Trump uses that term"
• Chuck Todd complains that Trump and Barr's "buzzwords" will "neuter" the impact of Mueller's report
• MSNBC's Brian Williams dubs Barr "Baghdad Bill Barr"
• MSNBC's Chris Matthews says, "The way to get to the truth is an impeachment exercise"
• John Solomon: The Lesson of Mueller: An innocent man's defense can look like a guilty man's obstruction
• Philip Klein: Mueller report reveals those surrounding Trump protected him from his own worst instincts
• Charlie Sykes gives NeverTrump response in The Bulwark: Mueller report is "devastating" for Trump, "reads like an open invitation to Congress to launch impeachment proceedings"
• Kellyanne Conway absolutely thrashes the media and the Left after the release of the Mueller report

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