Russians Slam CNN For Reporting ‘Lie’ Of School Closing

"... have again spread false information ..."

h/t Dave Cottrell

CNN came under fire from Russian officials Friday for reporting “fake news” in connection with Russia’s response to sanctions slapped upon it by President Barack Obama.

On Thursday, Obama ejected 35 Russian intelligence operatives, closed two diplomatic compounds and banned several intelligence-related individuals, agencies and companies in response to the hacking of Democratic National Committee emails.

As the world awaited Russia’s response, CNN reported that “Russian authorities ordered the closure of the Anglo-American School of Moscow,” and cited as its source “a U.S. official briefed on the matter.”

The Washington Post caused a mild social media stir Friday when they posted a story alleging that the Russians had hacked the U.S. power grid via a utility company in Vermont.

In a story boasting the ominous headline, “Russian hackers penetrated U.S. electricity grid through a utility in Vermont, officials say,” the Post said the following:

A code associated with the Russian hacking operation dubbed Grizzly Steppe by the Obama administration has been detected within the system of a Vermont utility, according to U.S. officials.

While the Russians did not actively use the code to disrupt operations, according to officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a security matter, the discovery underscores the vulnerabilities of the nation’s electrical grid. And it raises fears in the U.S. government that Russian government hackers are actively trying to penetrate the grid to carry out potential attacks.

However, by late Friday night, after The Burlington Electric Department was finally contacted and could release a statement — something the Post didn’t obtain before publishing their piece — the headline had changed to something less ominous due to the utility company’s statement.

The Daily Caller reports that the statement read as follows:

“Last night, U.S. utilities were alerted by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of a malware code used in Grizzly Steppe, the name DHS has applied to a Russian campaign linked to recent hacks,” a spokesman for the Burlington Electric Department said. “We acted quickly to scan all computers in our system for the malware signature. We detected the malware in a single Burlington Electric Department laptop not connected to our organization’s grid systems.”

The Vermont Public Service Commissioner Christopher Recchia told The Burlington Free Press, “The grid is not in danger.”

The Post has since changed the headline of their piece to read, “Russian operation hacked a Vermont utility, showing risk to U.S. electrical grid security, officials say.”

http://www.theblaze.com/news/2016/12/31/fake-news-the-russians-did-not-hack-the-u-s-power-grid/

The dominant story pushed by the mainstream media in the last few weeks of 2016 has been the harm caused by “fake news.” Indeed, a simple Google search reveals countless stories centering around the topic of fake news, its harmful effects, and what people (or the government) should do to fight it.

But while mainstream media consternation over fake news draws nearer to peak hysteria with each passing day, looking back at 2016, there were plenty of times the mainstream media itself spread blatant falsehoods as “news.”

Here are seven of the worst media lies from 2016.

1. Ted Cruz stole votes from Ben Carson

What was reported: Ted Cruz’s campaign launched a “dirty trick” in the Iowa caucuses by intentionally spreading a false report that Dr. Ben Carson had dropped out of the race. Caucus goers were then told that a vote for Carson would be a wasted vote. Ted Cruz won the Iowa caucuses by cheating.

The facts: The Ben Carson suspension rumor in February originated with a CNN report that gave many, many people the impression that Dr. Carson was returning home to Florida after the caucus, presumably to drop out after his fourth-place finish. They gained this impression because Carson did return home — apparently to do laundry — rather than continue on to the New Hampshire or South Carolina contests.

One of those people who believed Carson’s dropout was imminent was Congressman (and Ted Cruz supporter) Steve King, R-Iowa (B, 81%), who tweeted: “Carson looks like he is out. Iowans need to know before they vote. Most will go to Cruz, I hope.” By this time, CNN had tweeted a second time: “After the #IAcaucus, @RealBenCarson plans to take a break from campaigning.”

Following that report, a Cruz staffer told precinct captains, “Breaking News. The press is reporting that Dr. Ben Carson is taking time off from the campaign trail after Iowa and making a big announcement next week. Please inform any Carson caucus goers of this news and urge them to caucus for Ted Cruz.”

Now, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. (C, 74%)’s campaign aggressively pushed that narrative as well. But Ted Cruz’s campaign bore the brunt of the blame for “lying,” as CNN vehemently denied that they had suggested Carson was dropping out. CNN “fact-checkers” stuck to accusing Cruz of spreading a falsehood.

The media was complicit in characterizing Cruz as a dirty sport, and Donald Trump seized on the controversy to label Sen. Cruz “lyin’ Ted.” The Cruz campaign never fully recovered from the fallout of the Carson debacle, and, in this writer’s opinion, this distorted media narrative in all likelihood cost Ted Cruz needed momentum from his Iowa win and ultimately the Republican nomination.

2. Trump supports a “Muslim ban” … and that would harm Muslim Americans

What was reported: Donald Trump called for a “total and complete” ban on Muslims entering the United States.

The facts: The actual text of Trump’s proposal read, at the time: “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on.”

That is, by plain reading, a temporary restriction on Muslim immigration. As Trump would later clarify:

Nevertheless, the fearmongering Huffington Post (of anti-Trump editor’s note fame) insisted in a recent piece, “The comment was an unequivocal and alarming pledge that threatened to impact the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims, but today, it’s unclear what the fate of Muslim Americans will be in a Trump administration.”

First, Trump’s proposal wouldn’t affect 1.6 billion Muslims; it would exclusively apply to migrants attempting to enter the U.S. who are from hotbeds of terrorism. Such a policy has been previously implemented by the Obama administration, and tighter restrictions are supported by a majority of Americans.

Second, the “fate of Muslim Americans” is not thrown into question under a policy that restricts immigration, because … they are already in the country.

Media fearmongering on Muslim ban = lie.

3. Orlando nightclub terrorist used an “AR-15”

What was reported: “AR-15 Rifle Used in Orlando Massacre Has Bloody Pedigree,” (NBC); “Orlando Shooting Puts Spotlight on AR-15 Rifle,” (Newsweek); “The history of the AR-15, the weapon that had a hand in the United States’ worst mass shooting,” (Washington Post).

The facts: As TheBlaze’s Jason Howerton dutifully reported in the aftermath of the Orlando nightclub terror attack in June, jihadist Omar Mateen did not use an AR-15 rifle in carrying out his massacre of 49 people at the Pulse gay nightclub. Mateen used a Sig Saucer MCX carbine, which have virtually “no major parts that interface with AR-15s in any way, shape or form,” as Bearing Arms’ Bob Owens explained.

The media excitedly launched a blind crusade against the AR-15, pushing for Obama’s executive actions on gun control. Democratic lawmakers eventually joined in on the frenzy, launching a sit-in protest that inspired fawning coverage from the media and ridicule from conservatives.

4. Anyone can legally buy a gun; easily

What was reported: During the Orlando jihad (gun control) hysteria, CBS News reported it took “38 minutes and $1,030 for our @CBSNews producer to buy an AR-15 and walk out legally armed in Virginia.” Additionally, terrorists can easily use the “gun show loophole” to purchase firearms without background checks, The New York Times told America.

The facts: First thing’s first: CBS had to issue a correction because the reporter did not purchase an AR-15. Next, it is not so easy to buy a gun. You have to pass a background check, which the CBS producer, Paula Reid, did because she didn’t have a criminal record. Well … she didn’t until she broke federal law by purchasing that gun under false pretenses.

You see, Reid told the gun store’s general manager that she intended to purchase the firearm and “undergo training” with a “NRA-certified instructor.” The actual story, however, revealed the purchase was for their story and that they had transferred the firearm to a “federally licensed firearms dealer and weapons instructor in Virginia, just hours after we bought it.” The gun store owner, after gaining knowledge of the report, alerted the ATF of a potential “straw purchase” — a federal crime.

As RedState’s Streiff wrote, “All this segment did was demonstrate that if someone is intent upon violating the law, the technical term for people like this is “criminals”, then they will violate the law. If the dealer acts in good faith and does all the appropriate checks and is deceived their is very little else one could expect them to do.”

As for the whole, so-called “gun show loophole”? As CRTV contributor Steven Crowder has demonstrated, that is a myth.