'Original Sin' Co-Author Speaks Out: Media Missed the Mark on Biden's Cognitive Decline and White House Cover-up
Media analyst from The Washington Post acknowledges flaw in scrutinizing Biden-related news coverage following the 'Where's Jackie' blunder.
Axios' Alex Thompson, co-author of 'Original Sin,' discusses the media's reluctance to dive deep into Joe Biden's suspected cognitive decline and the behind-the-scenes White House cover-up in a candid interview.
In a recent article, Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple admitted to his own oversight in scrutinizing the press coverage of Biden's cognitive decline, following the infamous "Where's Jackie?" blunder.
As the media grapples with its handling of Biden's mental acuity before the disastrous 2024 debate performance, Wemple penned a scathing piece, questioning the legacy media's integrity, using the catchy headline, "Did legacy media fail in its Biden coverage? Not if you ask them!"
He revisited an episode from a September 2022 event at which Biden called for the late Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., who had passed away in a car accident days prior. Despite releasing a statement acknowledging her death and honoring her memory at the event, Biden still made the now-viral remark, "Jackie, are you here? Where's Jackie?"
*BIDEN BOOK COLLABORATORS CRITICIZE MEDIA OVERPASS ON COGNITIVE DECLINE SCANDAL*
Responding to Wemple's piece, Thompson admitted that neither CNN nor MSNBC offered any coverage of the "Where's Jackie" comment, highlighting the media's shortcomings in tackling that sensitive issue.
In his lengthy critique, Wemple chided news organizations, particularly on their unwillingness to delve deeper into the story of Biden's cognitive decline. While acknowledging a few exceptions, such as the investigative efforts by Thompson, Annie Linskey, and Siobhan Hughes of the Wall Street Journal, Wemple accused the media of generally struggling to get to the bottom of it sooner.
"Why," Wemple wrote, "White House coverage must involve more than observing the president in action and writing up analysis pieces about his comings and goings. It needs to include a muckraking component detailing behind-the-scenes strategies, conflicts, and debates over all manner of issues, particularly those relating to the president's mental acuity. An adjacent question relates to whether Biden himself was fully abreast of and in charge of day-to-day decisions."
Without a robust investigative component that probes beyond the public gaze, the media may have missed critical information about the president's ability to lead effectively. Given the gravity of the role and the potential consequences for the country, Wemple argued that it's essential for journalists to expand their focus and approach stories more rigorously.
*JOURNALISTS DISSECT MEDIA'S COVER-UP OF A WEAKENED PRESIDENT*
"It's on these fronts that major media organizations fell short," Wemple wrote. "Though Biden's declining faculties were clear to all, they never ignited one of those glorious mainstream-media investigative frenzies that colonizes television and radio broadcasts."
CNN anchor Jake Tapper, Thompson's co-author on 'Original Sin,' echoed Wemple's sentiments, saying there should be "soul-searching" within the legacy media for their handling of Biden’s obvious problems.
In the midst of the media landscape undergoing a reckoning following bombshell disclosures about the magnitude of Biden's in-office cognitive decline, it's crucial for journalists to reassess their roles and responsibilities and strive for more thorough coverage.
- The co-author of 'Original Sin', Alex Thompson, and CNN anchor Jake Tapper, both critics of the media, have called for an examination of the media's handling of President Biden's suspected cognitive decline, questioning if there was a cover-up by the White House.
- Politicians, policies, and investigations surrounding Biden's cognitive decline have taken center stage in the general news, with Wemple's article questioning the media's integrity in their lack of in-depth coverage, particularly in comparison to the investigative efforts by journalists like Thompson, Linskey, and Hughes of the Wall Street Journal.
- The media's purported failure to address Biden's cognitive decline, exemplified by the "Where's Jackie" blunder, has been brought under scrutiny, with critics arguing that the media may have missed critical information about the president's ability to lead effectively and the potential consequences for the country.
- As justice and crime-related stories, such as car accidents and political scandals, frequently dominate headlines, there is a growing consensus among media critics that legacy media organizations must reassess their roles and strive for more thorough, investigative journalism, focusing on behind-the-scenes strategies and conflicts, particularly when it comes to the president's mental acuity.
