Staff Reports
Another day, another unhinged attempt by mainstream media to take down the conservative champions of America, this time courtesy of Newsweek. The latest debacle involves a completely fabricated 18th-century painting of Donald Trump that had the fact-checking experts at Newsweek working overtime. It begs the question: do they just throw darts at a board labeled “conservative news” to find their targets?
The saga began with a cheeky social media post from an account called “bone,” declaring that a painting from 1721 by the fictitious Deitz Nuützen had predicted a classic Hillary Clinton-level event — a dinner featuring Trump, Elon Musk, and RFK Jr. at McDonald’s. The name “Deitz Nuützen” might have tipped off any rational human being that this was a little joke among friends rather than a serious historical account. But not Newsweek, which seemingly dashed headlong into the farce with the enthusiasm usually reserved for a media scandal. Who knew fact-checking could be this entertaining?
Newsweek Gets Mocked Into Next Week for 'Fact-Checking' Supposed 18th-Century Painting of Trump https://t.co/mj0omCeax2
— Chris Gary 🇺🇸 (@ChristopherGary) November 20, 2024
Newsweek’s daring fact-check essentially read like one of those school science projects where kids misinterpret everything. It didn’t take long for social media to erupt with laughter over their miscue, as even the creators of the joke recognized the absurdity of what had unfolded. One can only feel a twinge of sympathy for the poor reporter enlisted to defend the indefensible claims about a nonexistent artist’s work. It’s like trying to argue the existence of unicorns after being told they were all sold out at the local pet store.
In a world where reality is often stranger than fiction, Newsweek managed to publish a piece attempting to “prove” the existence of a man who never was. The wild claims involving Nuützen’s so-called prophetic works included absurdities like depicting a locomotive long before it graced the American landscape. One can only imagine the editorial meetings at Newsweek as they attempted to dissect the “artistic genius” of a figment of someone’s imagination. Did they really think they could fool anyone with this?
The entire event reflects an ongoing trend in the mainstream media where serious reporting has become a losing game, overshadowed by sensationalism and the clumsy attempt to smear those they don’t agree with. On the flip side, conservative figures like Elon Musk just roll their eyes and keep moving forward while the left continues to trip over its own shoelaces. If this debacle is any indication, it seems that serious journalism is facing a crisis of credibility, and perhaps they should consider checking their own facts before trying to call out others. After all, it’s hard to take seriously anyone who can’t distinguish between a real paintbrush and a bad punchline.
