News Round-Up: August 8, 2019

Some guy...

Some news items you might have missed:

• #TBT: The above photo was from one of my last headshot sessions while I was still an actor. I hated having to take headshots. I remember early on in New York City, I was sitting for one photographer. He told me, "Turn away, then look at me and think 'SEXY.' I turned away and then shifted back to the camera...but there was no click as the photographer said, "Umm, no..." And there you have it LOL.

• Splinter: Friends say the Dayton shooter's slain sibling was transgender.

• The Hill: House Republicans in the Illinois delegation are calling for President Trump to not commute the prison sentence of former Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who is serving 14 years on federal corruption charges.

• Advocate: Donald Trump attacked another gay journalist. This time out Fox News anchor Shepard Smith, one of the few Fox personalities willing to criticize him, as worse than “Fake News CNN.” Trump has previously denounced CNN's Don Lemon calling him "dumb."

• Axios: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote a letter to President Trump on Thursday asking him to use his Article II powers to call the Senate back into session in order to consider gun control legislation passed in the House.

• Web Series: Funnymen Matthew Wilkas & Dan Gordh are back with Season two of their absurdist sketch series, Matt & Dan. The comedy duo promises more guest stars, bigger wigs, and more twisted, uncomfortable situations.

Premiering August 15, the eight episodes in Season 2 will include a zombie apocalypse, surviving a plane crash in the Himalayas, and stripping at a bachelorette party.

Fox News' Shepard Smith: "Our Opinion Programming Is There Strictly To Be Entertaining"

Fox News' Shepard Smith

File this under "Infighting is funny."

Fox News' Shepard Smith told TIME Magazine recently that Fox News' evening opinion shows are meant to be "entertaining," not "news."

Via The Hill:

Fox News anchor Shepard Smith says opinion programming on his network doesn't "really have rules" and exists "strictly to be entertaining," in an interview published Thursday.

"Some of our opinion programming is there strictly to be entertaining," Smith told Time Magazine's Daniel D'Addario in a piece titled, "Shep Smith Has the Hardest Job on Fox News."

“We serve different masters," Smith, 54, added when discussing the difference between the opinion side of Fox News, including shows such as "The Sean Hannity Show," and the network's news division. "We work for different reporting chains, we have different rules. They don’t really have rules on the opinion side. They can say whatever they want. If it’s their opinion."

The interview comes as the network announced today it is re-signing the veteran anchor to a multiyear contract as Fox's chief news anchor and managing editor of breaking news.

And then Sean Hannity slapped back on Twitter:

While Shep is a friend with political views I do not share, and great at breaking news, he is clueless about what we do every day. Hannity breaks news daily-Warrant on a Trump assoc, the unmasking scandal, leaking intel, Fisa abuse, HRC lawbreaking, dossier and more REAL NEWS! 9p https://t.co/zJpnnyFTtP

— Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) March 16, 2018

However, Hannity has pointedly said many times in the past that he is NOT a journalist, he's a pundit. So - which is it, Sean?

Nutjob Fox News pundit Laura Ingraham also chimed in:

Always liked Shep, but his comments were inconsiderate & inaccurate. The hard working team at the Ingraham Angle does real reporting, develops impt sources and scores big interviews. Very proud of them. https://t.co/3aR1EHAK3Z

— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 16, 2018

Fox News' Shep Smith: Trump's Attack On Libel Laws Is "A Word Salad Of Nothingness"

Fox News host Shep Smith was not having Donald Trump's not-even-thinly-veiled attack on author Michael Wolff when the Trumpster announced he wants his administration to explore a possible overhaul of "very unfair" libel laws.

“For clarity, because we’re in the position to report facts here, all of that about libel laws––that was just a word salad of nothingness, because none of that means anything, except ‘look over here’. He couldn’t change the libel laws if he wanted to change the libel laws, he couldn’t change ’em if he got the Congress in there. These are state laws.

"He’s not a dictator. He’s not a king. He can’t change the libel laws. That’s preposterous.”

As Shep rightfully points out, the president can't change laws. Only Congress can.

And Congress can only change federal laws. Libel laws vary state to state.

Lord, can someone inform Trump about such issues before he goes off half-cocked and says these stupid things?

Watch below.

Wild And Wilder: White House Alleges UK Spied On Trump For Obama, UK Slaps Back

Donald Trump's allegation that President Obama ordered "surveillance" on Trump during the presidential campaign continues to get even more unbelievable.

On Thursday, during a White House press briefing, spokesman Sean Spicer cited comments by Fox News contributor Andrew Napolitano asserting a British spy agency was involved in the alleged surveillance of Donald Trump during the presidential campaign.

Napolitano had stated on-air that President Obama had asked Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters, the intelligence collection agency known as the GCHQ, to surveil Mr. Trump.

Said Sean Spicer:

“Three intelligence sources have informed Fox News that President Obama went outside the chain of command. He didn’t use the N.S.A., he didn’t use the C.I.A., he didn’t use the F.B.I., and he didn’t use the Department of Justice. He used GCHQ. What is that? It’s the initials for the British intelligence spying agency. So simply, by having two people saying to them, ‘The president needs transcripts of conversations involved in candidate Trump’s conversations involving President-elect Trump,’ he was able to get it and there’s no American fingerprints on this.”

The British government immediately denied the allegation on Thursday in a statement issued by the spy agency, labeling the assertions “nonsense” and “utterly ridiculous.”

Today, President Trump was asked about the kerfuffle at a press event with German Chancellor Angela Merkel by a German reporter. Trump answered, “We said nothing. All we did was quote a certain very talented legal mind who was the one responsible for saying that on television. I didn’t make an opinion on it. You shouldn’t be talking to me. You should be talking to Fox.”

Shortly after Trump's comments, Fox News' Shepard Smith issued this strongly worded statement from his network: “Fox News cannot confirm Judge Napolitano’s commentary. Fox News knows of no evidence of any kind that the now president of the United States was surveilled at any time in any way, full stop.”

.@ShepNewsTeam responds: "Fox News cannot confirm judge Napolitano's commentary."

Back to you, @PressSec and @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/z9UamLkkRP

— Tom Namako (@TomNamako) March 17, 2017

CNN's Jake Tapper has clearly had just about all the BS he can handle from Trump. Tapper opened his show on CNN thusly:

“In a fevered effort to try to force this outlandish claim into something remotely resembling - passably, perhaps, maybe - the truth, the White House appears actually willing to repeat another wild accusation that potentially could alienate our nation’s most important ally.

"Does smearing British intelligence make your family more safe? No? So why is the White House doing it? What is the White House defending here? Because it damn sure isn’t national security or American credibility before the world.”

How does any of this "make America great again?"

Watch Tapper below:

"What is the White House defending here? It damn sure isn't national security or American credibility before the world." - @jaketapper pic.twitter.com/3LSUKZT5hj

— Colin Jones (@colinjones) March 17, 2017

Fox News On Kellyanne Conway: "We Don't Quote (Conway) Much Anymore Because, Well, History..."

At the top of his newscast today, Fox News’ Shep Smith had this to say about White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway:

”Kellyanne Conway, whom we really don’t quote much anymore because, well, history…”


That was in reference to Conway's claim yesterday that microwave ovens turn into cameras and that's "just a fact of modern life:"

Smith followed with:

"Counselor Kellyanne Conway, who's previous words have been, well, up for debate..."

"Microwaves do not turn into cameras. Fox News can now confirm microwaves heat food. Cameras take pictures. Microphones don't have cameras. And microphones can't turn into cameras. Fox News now confirms."

Watch below:

Shep Smith Defends CNN Again: "CNN's Reporting Is Not Fake News"

Shep Smith

Yet again, Fox News' Shepard Smith took to the airwaves today to defend CNN after White House press secretary Sean Spicer excluded CNN and others from a closed door press "gaggle."

“For the record, ‘fake news’ refers to stories that are created, often by entities pretending to be news organizations, solely to draw clicks and views and are based on nothing of substance.

“In short, fake news is made up nonsense delivered for financial gain. CNN’s reporting was not fake news. Its journalists followed the same standards to which other news organizations, including Fox News, adhere.”

Watch below:

WATCH: For the third time in two months, Fox News' Shep Smith has stood up for a free press. "CNN is not fake news" pic.twitter.com/wbJmy7LMiD

— Yashar (@yashar) February 24, 2017

Fox News' Shepard Smith Defends Media From Trump: 'Demonstrably, Unquestionably, 100 Percent False'

Just goes to show you there are fair and balanced journalists at Fox News.

Of course it would be the gay news anchor :)

The Week has the details:

President Donald Trump praised Fox News during his combative press conference Thursday, but he certainly would not have liked what he saw if he turned on his TV afterward.

Fox News’ Shep Smith did not hold back when tearing into the president after the presser: “It’s crazy what we’re watching everyday,” Smith said. “It’s absolutely crazy. [Trump] keeps repeating throwaway lines that are not true at all and sort of avoiding this issue of Russia as if we’re some kind of fools for asking the question.”

As Smith went on, it appeared to occur to him that the president could be watching. He turned to stare directly into the camera and began to address Trump directly: “No sir,” Smith said. “We are not fools for asking the question and we demand to know the answer to this question. You owe this to the American people.”

All kinds of awesome. Watch below:

Fox News Defends CNN: No Journalists Should Be 'Belittled' By A President

Fox News' Shepard Smith

In a bit of surprise, Fox News' Shep Smith issued a statement today on behalf of Fox News defending CNN for the report it posted last night regarding a collection of what appeared to be "opposition ammo" meant to possibly attack Donald Trump during the presidential campaign. The main point being that CNN's reporting was “distinctly different” from BuzzFeed’s which drew Trump's ire.

CNN’s story, unlike Buzzfeed’s, specifically did not include the unedited dossier of unverified allegations made about Trump’s ties to Russia. Nor did CNN include any "details" of the items from the report. Smith added that no journalists should be treated in the way Trump treated CNN’s Jim Acosta, who got into a brief contretemps with Trump today at the president-elect's first press conference since last summer.

Trump refused to take any questions from Acosta today despite continued requests, and Acosta later shared that Trump’s press secretary threatened to have him thrown out of future press events if he continued to press the president-elect.

Here's part of Smith's statement today:

“President-elect Trump today told CNN’s Jim Acosta that his organization amounts to fake news. CNN’s exclusive reporting on the Russian matter was separate and distinctly different from the document dump executed by an online news property.

"Though we at FOX News cannot confirm CNN’s report, it is our observation that its correspondents followed journalistic standards and that neither they nor any other journalists should be subjected to belittling and delegitimizing by the President-elect of the United States.”

Fox News' Shepard Smith Casually Comes Out

Shepard Smith

Fox News anchor Shepard Smith casually came out as a gay man today in a new interview with Huffington Post.

Addressing a question of whether or not recently ousted Fox News head Roger Ailes ever asked him to stay closeted, Smith was clear and direct.

“That’s not true. He was as nice as he could be to me. I loved him like a father. I trusted him with my career and with ― I trusted him and trusts were betrayed. People outside this company can’t know [how painful that betrayal was]. This place has its enemies, but inside, it was very personal, and very scarring and horrifying.”

Additionally, Smith told the Huffington Post that Ailes had never made homophobic remarks around him.

“He treated me with respect, just respect,” Smith continued. “I wasn’t new in the business when I came here ― I’d been doing reporting for 12 years ― but I wasn’t old in it either, and he gave me every opportunity in the world and he never asked anything of me but that we get it right, try to get it right every day. It was a very warm and loving and comfortable place.”

Rumors have circled for years regarding Smith's sexuality, which has resulted in his being regularly featured in the likes of OUT Magazine's “Power 100” issue.

I'm never one to 'out' another, unless someone is using their position (as some closeted politicians have done) to hurt the LGBT community. So, Smith's sexuality has never been a big story for me here on The Randy Report.

That said, I'm happy to see that Smith feels comfortable enough to live his life authentically. Congrats to Shep Smith!

Fox News' Shepard Smith: States Opposing Same-Sex Marriage Are Many Of The Same Who Opposed Integration

Mediaite shares this clip of Fox News anchor Shepard Smith announcing the news that SCOTUS will take up the issue of same-sex marriage.

Apparently, Tea Baggers are up in arms that Smith points out some of the strongest opposition to marriage equality comes in the same states that opposed integration.

“Not in every case, but in most cases, the same states which were fighting integration are fighting this as well,” Smith said. “Those states which always seem to be behind the curve for reasons which are explainable and understandable. Those are the places where this is going to turn out to be the most difficult, especially if the Supreme Court stays with what has seemed to be a trend toward inclusion and away from discrimination.”

Walks like a duck, quacks like a duck...

Fox News' Shepard Smith apologizes for calling Robin Williams a "coward"

Closeted news anchor Shepard Smith of Fox News

The day the news of Robin Williams death spread throughout the world, closeted Shepard Smith of Fox News spent time discussing the actor's life and legacy.  Smith concluded the segment by contemplating what would lead Williams to end his own life, and in doing so called Williams a "coward."  From the transcript:

"It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? You could love three little things so much, watch them grow, they’re in their mid-20s, and they’re inspiring you, and exciting you, and they fill you up with the kind of joy you could never have known.

"And yet, something inside you is so horrible or you’re such a coward or whatever the reason that you decide that you have to end it. Robin Williams, at 63, did that today."

After an immediate backlash, Smith spoke to Mediaite about his what his intentions had been, and why he called Robin Williams out as a "coward:"

"I spent an entire hour talking about how much this man affected people’s lives and brought greatness to this world. I was just wondering aloud what could have made this man want to end it all. And it reminds us that we all have responsibility as friends and neighbors to help take responsibility to prevent this from happening. There are people who process suicide as a black-and white-issue. I don’t process anything as black-and-white.

"I was sorry to read online the people who see the world in a black-and-white way, and to suggest that they might have a definitive analysis of why he did such a thing. What I wanted to do is celebrate his life and find some meaning in our own lives, since we often do know someone who is reaching out, and we have a responsibility to help that person — maybe a phone call or a door knock is in order.

"But no matter how you process it: Look at what this family is going through. I would never presume to know anything about his private life. And if any of his family members and friends were to have seen me use the word 'coward,' I would be horrified. I would just to apologize to the end of the earth to anyone who might think that I meant to openly call him a coward. To the core of my being, I regret it. It just came out of my mouth. And I’m so sorry. And to anyone and their families who see that, I am sorry."

Rare moment of reason on FOX News as Shep Smith condemns rush to judgement of Bowe Bergdahl

While practically everyone over at FOX News has seemingly tried and convicted recently freed prisoner of war Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, Shepard Smith took time Tuesday to denounce the rush to judgement saying everyone in America deserves due process.

Said Smith:

"If you desert or commit treason, you have to be proved to have done so. We can't just decide because some people come on television and yakety yak, and we've got a report of this and a report of that and that's what happened. As the Army said, as the Pentagon said, you bring them home. You bring them home first, and then you investigate."

(via Media Matters)