Recently we asked if Fox News's Peter Doocy likes getting punched in the dick by White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, after the umpteenth time she calmly took his hand right in front of the whole class and gently walked him through something she had gone over 15 times in the past 15 days. No kink-shaming on our part, but it was just happening every day there for a while, and we were kinda marveling at how deftly she handles that idiot every single day , that idiot who always wears the facial expression of a Trump boy begging for his father's approval.
In a CNN interview, Psaki revealed at least part of her secret, or rather the experience that might have gotten her ready to deal with Fox News idiots and Newsmax idiots in her briefing room, people who are only there to spread propaganda for the consumption of idiots. Psaki said her "best preparation" for folks like that was being the State Department spox, dealing with questions from Russian or Chinese state media. A simple, elegant analogy, really.
The Guardian provides some key quotes:
Joe Biden's White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, has likened reporters from Fox News and other rightwing outlets to "representatives of the Russian and Chinese media asking questions directed by their government … propaganda pushers" to be treated with extreme caution. [...]
"I [...] have a responsibility not to allow the briefing room to become a forum for propaganda or a forum for pushing forward falsehoods or inaccurate information," Psaki said.
"My best preparation for that was actually serving as the state department spokesperson when there were representatives of the Russian and the Chinese media in the briefing room asking me questions that were directed by their government.
"So we see that from time to time in the briefing room, not every single day at all, but I have a responsibility to the public to make sure they're getting accurate information and the premises of questions that are propaganda-pushing are not giving them inaccurate information."
It's funny because it's not even an exaggeration. During the Trump administration, Fox News and Newsmax were quite a lot like Russian state media or Chinese media, or even sometimes the North Korean news lady. (We mostly reserved that designation for Lou Dobbs. ) And now that the Trump assholes are out of power, they may not be acting like state-sponsored media, per se, but the propaganda bullshit fountain just keeps flowing.
To be clear, when Psaki delivered those quotes, she did not mention Doocy by name , and you'll note in the block quote that she clarified that people don't try to turn her briefing room into a forum for their propaganda every day. Just sometimes .
Psaki also explained why she is so very fair and makes sure to call on even the biggest idiots in the entire room, even though they clearly don't deserve it:
"My point of view and more importantly, the president's point of view, is that the story is not about me or a debate with news outlets. The story is about the plans of the administration and what we're trying to project to the American people.
"And when he pledged to govern for all Americans, that means talking to a range of outlets – liberal, conservative, people who have different areas of interest. So that's exactly what I try to do every day."
And if that means she has to humiliate them every single day on TV even where their "Fox & Friends" father Steve Doocy can see them, just failing and failing and flailing around like poor Peter, so be it.
So t here you have it. That is how you handle Peter Doocy and others like him. Draw on your experience with literal state-run propaganda media from authoritarian countries.
And if it comes off on TV like just repeatedly dickpunching them, well, that's just how it comes off.
[ Guardian ]
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Jen Psaki Reveals Secret Of Handling Dorks Like Peter Doocy
Makes total sense and I crush ever so slightly more for Jen Psaki.
'Bless their hearts."