How Media Are Lying Now, Helene Victim-Blaming Edition

Of all the excuses the Kamala-Biden administration could offer for its piss-poor response to the horrifying southeast United States wreckage caused by Hurricane Helene, it should be regarded as the Eighth World Wonder that they settled on, “It’s the victims’ fault for believing lies.”

It’s also unclear whether the national media know they don’t have to repeat such a brazen, counterproductive insult to thousands of fellow Americans who lack food, fresh clothes, and clean water. But they have, and with the utmost enthusiasm.

The New York Times on Sunday ran the headline, “Another Hurdle in Recovery From Helene: Misinformation Is Getting in the Way,” with an accompanying article authored by four reporters. “As thousands across the Southeast grieve the deaths and damage left by the Category 4 hurricane that made landfall on Sept. 26, a torrent of conspiracy theories, rumors and lies threatens to undermine efforts to provide accurate information and crucial resources,” the story said. “Disinformation has been particularly rampant in Georgia and North Carolina, and the sheer number of falsehoods has alarmed officials and experts.”

On CNN the next day, anchor Dana Bash hosted a segment wherein she claimed former President Trump was “falsely accusing federal relief agencies of maliciously withholding and misusing aid.” During the show, reporter Priscilla Alvarez told Bash, “When I have been talking to my sources about what the former president is saying, the ultimate concern is that people will not apply for assistance … because they believe there is no money.” Bash concluded the segment with the helpful claim, “A lot of the people who are believing these lies are Trump voters who are not getting help because they are believing conspiracy theories coming from the top of the ticket.”

The offensive coverup originated with administration officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris. This week they have been faulting victims of the storm for the woefully slow and inept federal assistance in Tennessee and North Carolina, where Helene had the most devastating impact.

On CBS’s “The Late Show,” Harris told Stephen Colbert Tuesday, “There’s a lot of misinformation” stunting the government response. Earlier in the week, White House press secretary and voodoo doll Karine Jean-Pierre declared that “disinformation and misinformation” means victims “may not want to ask for the help that they need that is there for them.” Federal Emergency Management Agency Deanne Criswell said remarks by Trump about the government response are “hurting” people, who are now “afraid to apply” for aid.

There isn’t a shred of evidence that anything Trump has said about the Kamala-Biden administration’s handling of the disaster is either false or discouraging victims from seeking federal assistance. He’s said the administration claims to be lacking emergency funds (true), that FEMA has allocated millions of dollars to care for illegal aliens this administration permitted to be in the country (true), and that the federal government continues to send money for overseas affairs while hurricane victims languish (true).

Rather than address those facts and confront the Kamala-Biden administration with them on behalf of thousands of Americans whose lives are in jeopardy, corporate media are blaming those very victims for the administration’s neglect. In short, the administration is lying and the media are helping them lie by repeating their lies.