Ann Romney blasts Democrat for sexist slur

CNN article here.

This is an example of an article that has almost no substance, and merely acts as an echoing chamber for the political figure that the article features. The article starts with quoting Ann Romney's reaction to Nikki Haley's opponent's alleged use of a "sexist slur": "When I first heard about it, it hit me right in my gut," Romney said in a Monday phone interview with CNN. "My nerve endings went haywire. It's so upsetting when you know someone can say something like that about a woman, and not have any kind of reaction. It's so unacceptable. Nikki is a great girl and has been a great governor." This is the first thing the reader sees, with no context presented. First impression is everything, so CNN's decision to present this first already sets the tone for the rest of the article.

The horrible statement in question? ""We are going to escort whore out the door." The slip-of-the-tongue was clearly accidental, and Sheheen immediately corrected himself, saying, "We're going to escort her out the door." But when some in the audience picked up on the verbal faux pas and started applauding, Sheheen grinned and laughed along with people in the crowd. Video of the event went viral." Clearly there is no problem here, as public speakers misspeak all the time, and he even corrected himself. But Ann Romney took the opportunity to turn it into an attack on all women, with absolutely no efforts of actual journalism on CNN's part within the article to actually critique any of her statements. Even tabloid journals offer SOME commentary on what they are reporting, either confirming or refuting statements made by the subject of their article, but that's too much to ask of CNN, apparently. Media outlets need to stop acting as stages for politicians to spew their talking points, and should instead critique them for accuracy and provide context for the readers.