Stephen A. Smith

The cited FAA tax that you read is real, but the implication that this policy is new or that it stems from efforts that began under President Biden or the Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is demonstrably false. It's been on the FAA's website.

The cited FAA tax that you read is real, but the implication that this policy is new or that it stems from efforts that began under President Biden or the Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is demonstrably false. It's been on the FAA's website.

No, it's on the website, the FAA's website. It was there in 2013. It was there for the entirety of your administration, too. So my question is, why didn't you change the policy during your first administration?

No, it's on the website, the FAA's website. It was there in 2013. It was there for the entirety of your administration, too. So my question is, why didn't you change the policy during your first administration?

Quiet, quiet.

Quiet, quiet.

So Peter Alexander here, who's the MSC news correspondent, does exactly what you're supposed to do. Trump holds this press conference, makes a series of claims that are demonstrably not true. He corrects him on it. Trump runs right over him. And I guess the question is, what value do you see in fact-checking? Is it still an important part of journalism?

So Peter Alexander here, who's the MSC news correspondent, does exactly what you're supposed to do. Trump holds this press conference, makes a series of claims that are demonstrably not true. He corrects him on it. Trump runs right over him. And I guess the question is, what value do you see in fact-checking? Is it still an important part of journalism?

Is it even possible when you have a president who, you're an administration or even a political party right now, who's sort of willing to ignore reality?

Is it even possible when you have a president who, you're an administration or even a political party right now, who's sort of willing to ignore reality?

Yeah, I mean, I guess, you know, as you know, I come from a slightly weird corner of the world. I never really liked the formalized fact checking, like I think journalists job is to get the facts right, and that you shouldn't outsource that to some other often Facebook funded or whatever institution populated by 23 year olds who are learning how to do their jobs.

Yeah, I mean, I guess, you know, as you know, I come from a slightly weird corner of the world. I never really liked the formalized fact checking, like I think journalists job is to get the facts right, and that you shouldn't outsource that to some other often Facebook funded or whatever institution populated by 23 year olds who are learning how to do their jobs.

But anyway, let me bracket that particular rant. No, I mean, I think there's a level of I mean, the media, the news media is weaker than it used to be. It was weaker in 2016 than it thought it was. Maybe it realizes how weak it is now. But like what I mean, I think there's some question of what's like we should get our facts right.

But anyway, let me bracket that particular rant. No, I mean, I think there's a level of I mean, the media, the news media is weaker than it used to be. It was weaker in 2016 than it thought it was. Maybe it realizes how weak it is now. But like what I mean, I think there's some question of what's like we should get our facts right.

We have a responsibility to our readers to tell them what's really going on.

We have a responsibility to our readers to tell them what's really going on.

are we going to disabuse Trump's supporters of things that they believe or, or of things that maybe aren't really being received as facts, but more as political statements or as sort of, you know, like, you know, I don't, it doesn't, it doesn't seem like it doesn't seem like we're, that those fact checks were changing a lot of minds or reaching a lot of people who were looking to have the facts checked.

are we going to disabuse Trump's supporters of things that they believe or, or of things that maybe aren't really being received as facts, but more as political statements or as sort of, you know, like, you know, I don't, it doesn't, it doesn't seem like it doesn't seem like we're, that those fact checks were changing a lot of minds or reaching a lot of people who were looking to have the facts checked.

And so I think that kind of formalized fact checking, like, I mean, I, I'm not sure what it was doing in the end. There's a fair amount of research on media effect and media impact that none of us actually wind up looking at that much. But I think it's often interesting to ask, well, okay, did we do some focus groups where this then changed people's minds and people...

And so I think that kind of formalized fact checking, like, I mean, I, I'm not sure what it was doing in the end. There's a fair amount of research on media effect and media impact that none of us actually wind up looking at that much. But I think it's often interesting to ask, well, okay, did we do some focus groups where this then changed people's minds and people...