Get the latest BPR news delivered free to your inbox daily. SIGN UP HERE
CHECK OUT WeThePeople.store for best SWAG!
Left-wing zealots, many of them members of the “objective” press, fell over themselves Friday in their rush to share yet another false narrative about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
This particular narrative was constructed by the Miami Herald, which ran a report titled “Florida COVID update: 901 added deaths, largest single-day increase in pandemic history.”
The report wound up being picked up and shared by all the usual “fake news” spreaders, from MSNBC’s Chris Hayes to members of the disgraced but still active Lincoln Project.
Look:
My godhttps://t.co/v9ko3My1Qp
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) August 26, 2021
With a nod of (bitter) thanks to @govrondesantis – #Florida COVID update: 901 added deaths, largest single-day increase in pandemic history https://t.co/4Ji7HoosaC #FloridaCovid
— Ana Veciana-Suarez (@AnaVeciana) August 27, 2021
#DeathSanitis needs to be voted out of office as soon as possible. It does not have to be this way in FL https://t.co/lY8L5k3thm
— Jordan (@JordanChariton) August 26, 2021
901 Covid deaths in Florida, the largest single-day increase in pandemic historyhttps://t.co/bFWnZH5zp7
— Chris Jansing (@ChrisJansing) August 26, 2021
Florida adds 901 COVID deaths, largest single-day increase in pandemic history https://t.co/k7lU4bQ5VC
— Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) August 26, 2021
It’s going GREAT for Governor Freedumb. https://t.co/kCtadm2Wcr
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) August 26, 2021
Notice how Lincoln Project member Wilson, aka Mr. “Dirty Boys and Paddles,” mocked DeSantis’ concern about liberty by referring to freedom as “freedumb.”
There are tens of thousands of additional tweets just like the ones above — the majority from everyday, non-verified left-wing Americans who’ve also fallen hook, line and sinker for this false narrative. And it is indeed a very false narrative.
In fairness to the author of the Herald’s piece, Devoun Cetoute, he did provide a little context within the piece itself.
“All but two of the newly reported deaths occurred after July 25, with about 78% of those people dying in the past two weeks, according to Herald calculations of data published by the CDC. The majority of deaths happened during Florida’s latest surge in COVID-19 cases, fueled by the delta variant,” he wrote.
In other words, the 901 deaths occurred over the course of a month, meaning an average of 32 deaths per day. Big difference.
But the problem is what Cetoute wrote next: “It is the largest single-day increase to the death total in the state’s COVID pandemic history.”
He again gave the false impression that all the deaths occurred on a single day. What actually happened is that all 901 deaths were officially RECORDED in one day.
Despite this false framing, Cetoute sought to defend himself on Twitter:
It’s alarming how many people interacted with this tweet
Reading the story and our transparency note would explain so much
CDC reports 901 more deaths to FL death total = single day increase
Death data is now by when people died not when FL reports it.
All explained in story. https://t.co/Mo9Qc5iJiM
— Devoun Cetoute (@devoun_cetoute) August 27, 2021
However, critics weren’t impressed.
Look (*Language warning):
Or you could just tell the fucking truth and skip the clickbait headlines.
— Pete D’Abrosca (@pdabrosca) August 27, 2021
Your headline was purposely misleading.
— Jeremy Redfern (@JeremyRedfernFL) August 27, 2021
It’s alarming how many people ̶i̶n̶t̶e̶r̶a̶c̶t̶e̶d̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶t̶w̶e̶e̶t̶ are on to your gas lighting attempts.
— Moe Fine (@fine_moe) August 27, 2021
“It’s alarming when people believe in how our article headline was framed”
— T (@tatatatyler) August 27, 2021
Wordsmithing a headline to obfuscate the story is the oldest trick in the book. Knowing damn well that in the social media age 75% or more of the people interacting with the tweet won’t read the story makes it even more dishonest.
— clbisbee (@clbisbee) August 27, 2021
C’mon, man.https://t.co/xAbzC2BJNj pic.twitter.com/VXajzet1rT
— Amy (@AmyA1A) August 27, 2021
People are still falling for it though: pic.twitter.com/k8eJjw2y8T
— Amy (@AmyA1A) August 27, 2021
In fairness to Cetoute, he didn’t necessarily write the piece’s headline.
(The problem is many times the reporter isn’t the one writing the headline- some editor does it. However, the reporters name is on the byline, putting them on the hook for it.)
— Walter Watson (@crazywalt77) August 27, 2021
But on the other hand, he did go out of his way to defend the false framing. Plus, the media have been concocting false narratives about DeSantis for months now.
“This is yet another example of why most Americans do not trust the mainstream media, and many Floridians feel that Miami Herald crosses the line from a newspaper to a Democratic PR firm in most of their reporting on Governor DeSantis,” the governor’s press secretary, Christina Pushaw, noted in a statement to Fox News.
“It’s sensationalistic and dishonest to imply that 901 people died in a day when was actually a culmination of several weeks of data being reported at once,” Pushaw told Fox News. “By the same logic the Miami Herald used in its misleading headline, the liberal media could also say ‘New York reported 12,000 deaths in a single day,’ but of course they will not,” she added.
Why won’t they treat New York the same? Because left-wing states like New York have been imposing draconian coronavirus restrictions such as mask mandates and vaccine mandates on their citizens. Conversely, DeSantis refuses to do the same, and the media can’t stand that.
But the evidence suggests these mandates are having no substantive effect.
Here’s how the situation in Florida is currently looking:

Now take a look at the situation in Oregon, a far-left state that boasts less than 20 percent of the population Florida has:

It appears the death curve in Oregon — a far-left state with some of the most restrictive coronavirus mandates in the country — is virtually the same as the curve in Florida.
Yet the rules are so strict in Oregon that you can’t even go outside without a mask even if you’re vaccinated.
Oregon mandates outdoor masks regardless of vax status as de Blasio touts ‘carrot and stick’ for humans https://t.co/aTMxQLUBDQ pic.twitter.com/qPOyvtLKHZ
— Conservative News (@BIZPACReview) August 26, 2021
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
- Biden snubs Netanyahu thus far after big election win, but call expected ‘soon’ - November 6, 2022
- RNC chair flips CNN ‘election denier’ narrative: Dems are ‘inflation deniers… crime deniers’ - November 6, 2022
- Tudor Dixon goes scorched earth on Stephen Colbert after ‘apology’ for doubting Muslim parent is real - November 6, 2022
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.