THE DAILY NEWSLETTER  - TUESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2020 ❄

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
Tucker Carlson

The last few weeks have been tough on Fox News in the ratings race. The network's audience dropped in the wake of the presidential election, for a few reasons: Trump lost, for starters, and the losing team tends to tune out for a few weeks. But also fringe news networks like Newsmax TV and OAN offered something for Trump supporters that Fox would not: the fantasy that Joe Biden did not actually win the election.

Granted, Fox News opinion hosts did indulge in election conspiracy theories, a deeply embarrassing chapter that forced the network to air a segment on several shows debunking its own news coverage (see our Loser column for more). But the network was, as an institution, accepting of Biden's clear win.

The ratings suffered as a result, with CNN beating Fox in the weeks after the election and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow frequently landing first in cable news.

But that trend appears to have been a brief one: Fox News host Tucker Carlson was back on top Friday night, drawing the most viewers in cable news, with 3.21 million. Sean Hannity was right behind him, at 2.54 million, just edging out Maddow.

Don't get too excited for Fox, though: CNN's Chris Cuomo won in the all-important demo, drawing a whopping 415,000 younger viewers.

We'll keep an eye on these fluid numbers.

MEDIA LOSER:
Sebastian Gorka

Live television isn’t easy. Sometimes your interview subject pushes wild conspiracy theories. For Sebastian Gorka, hosting on Newsmax Monday night, that wouldn’t normally be an issue. After all, Gorka (and Newsmax TV as a whole) has giddily embraced insane conspiracy theories about the 2020 election in order to claim it was stolen from President Donald Trump.

But spreading misinformation becomes harder when you are faced with serious legal threats. 

Smartmatic and Dominion, two voting systems companies that have been the subject of frenzied conspiracy theories aired on Newsmax, OAN and Fox News, are threatening those networks with legal action

Fox News and Newsmax are taking the threats seriously. This week, both networks aired stunning and incredibly embarrassing “fact-checks” of their own news coverage regarding the 2020 election.

Hours after Newsmax aired its own fact-check, Gorka interviewed Mike Lindell, the owner of pillow company MyPillow and a staunch Trump supporter. Lindell, who apparently didn’t get the memo, began pushing claims about the voting companies — and Gorka was forced to shut him down, in a cringeworthy moment in which he cited a desire to avoid “minutiae” as the reason for silencing his guest.

We call censorship!

Mediaite’s Most Influential in News Media 2020


See the reporters, anchors, correspondents, executives, and expert analysts who made this year's list.

The A-Block

Public Health Experts Get the Shot

NIAID director Anthony Fauci, HHS Secretary Alex Azar and NIH Chief Francis Collins all received Covid-19 vaccinations — courtesy of Moderna — on Tuesday.

"We can see the light at the end of the tunnel from this dark period," Azar said during the display, which was aired on cable news networks.

CNN senior medical correspondent Dr. Elizabeth Cohen gushed over the moment of Fauci getting the jab.

“It was amazing to watch it,” Cohen said. “I smiled when I saw that he was asked ‘do you have any questions or concerns,’ which is, of course, the protocol and absolutely should happen. This is the man who probably knows more about this vaccine than almost anyone on Earth.”

Pat Robertson to Trump: Move On

Pat Robertson thinks that President Trump is being “erratic” and needs to move on from his “alternate reality” about the election.

Yes, that Pat Robertson. Even Pat Robertson thinks this is going too far.

The 700 Club host, who previously predicted wars if Trump was not re-elected, added that he thought it would be a bad idea for Trump to run again in 2024, saying that bid would be a "mistake" and a "sideshow." Ouch.

Trump to America: No

The president shows no sign of abandoning his quest to overturn the election. He issued an all caps tweet on Tuesday morning, falsely claiming the election was rigged via the dumping of "HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF BALLOTS."

Trump's stubborn stand presents a problem for his most loyal lieutenant: Mike Pence.

The vice president will have to certify the results of the 2020 election before Congress on January 6. That ceremony, typically pro forma, has become controversial given Trump's position.

And according to new reporting, the president believes such a move would be "the ultimate betrayal" by Pence.

A Look to History

Mediaite's Tommy Christopher took a look back through history to see how five vice president's have handled the certification of their opponents' election victories.

The Interview, Episode #013 - Rachel Maddow
ICYMI: Rachel Maddow appeared on the latest episode of Mediaite podcast The Interview. Listen to the full episode now...

Must See Clip

Merry Partisan-mas

In a harbinger for what the next four years might hold, President-elect Joe Biden and Sen. Lindsey Graham — once friends in the Senate — are engaged in a bitter war of words.

Biden said last week he was "personally disappointed" that the South Carolina Republican was refusing to acknowledge his election win, instead backing Trump's conspiracy theory the election was stolen.

Graham fired back in a interview on Fox & Friends Tuesday, calling for a special counsel investigation of Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden.

“What happened here is that Hunter Biden took advantage of his position of being the vice president’s son," Graham said. "I’m disappointed that Joe Biden let this happen. He obviously is pretty much clueless."

Watch that here...

Links We Like

Arthur Sulzberger Jr., the publisher of the New York Times, hands over the thriving paper to his son
- The Guardian
Guy Fieri says negativity is not his jam
- Grub Street

Olivia Nuzzi wrote 5,000 words on Four Seasons Total Landscaping
- New York Magazine

A pardoned felon, a QAnon believer, and the former lover of a Russian agent walk into the White House
- The Washington Post
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