I’ve gotten used to conservative outlets throwing shit at the wall and calling it journalism, but the recent headline I saw in the Weekly Standard just illustrates why you have to laugh at this kind of thinking and swat it away like a pesky fly.
President Barack Obama held a fundraiser last night with NBA heavyweights including the G.O.A.T, Michael Jordan, Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning and New York Knicks star forward Carmelo Anthony.
I have no beef with the Standard itself, they have their own audience and readership; my beef is with how their story was presented. The headline reading, “Obama Fundraises with Maker of Pro-Drugs ‘Stop Snitchin’ Video” is not only wrong, but illustrates how inaccurate information can be not only disparaging, but damaging to our country.
It was the same thing when Chicago rapper Common was invited to the White House to perform poetry, and Fox News and other conservative news outlets referred to him as essentially nothing more than the “gangster rapper” who was chillin’ at the White House with Obama.
I understand the spin game, but when the info is flat out wrong, you’re insulting the readers and viewers’ intelligence.
The Standard article tries to throw dirt on Melo’s name, stating that “Anthony helped make the pro-drugs YouTube video called “Stop Snitchin.”
This is false. The truth is, Melo only appeared in the video and had nothing to do with its production or direction.
So Melo wasn’t the “Maker of Pro-Drugs Stop Snitchin” video as the headline suggests.
And if you watch the clip that Melo appears in, he doesn’t respond to any of the comments about violence, drugs or snitching.
At the end of the film, the credits of the DVD include a special thanks to “Melo.” That’s all; it is not written, directed or produced by Carmelo Anthony.
Melo appeared in the video when he was 20 years old; the now 28-year-old is a husband, father and 3-time Olympic medalist who represented the USA, proudly winning gold only a few weeks ago.
Holding Melo’s past against him at Obama’s expense not only isn’t fair, but it’s reckless.
And while we’re bringing up people’s pasts, why is the Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney so afraid to talk about his past when it comes his days at Bain Capital?
At least Carmelo has nothing to hide – unlike Romney. If you think about it, Melo is more American than Romney; he pays his taxes, doesn’t have off shore bank accounts, as far as we know, and never laid off thousands of his own employees.
If the Standard wants to dig into lives of people who had questionable pasts, they should start within their own circle.
Below is the video that had the Weekly Standard’s panties in a bunch: What do you think?
Shaka Griffith is the News/Politics Editor of GlobalGrind.com Follow him on Twitter and send your thoughts, rants and outburst to @Darealshaka
