'60 Minutes' Interview With Marjorie Taylor Greene Prompts Backlash

[Mr. Sparkle]

60 Minutes is set to air an interview with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) on Sunday evening—and people across the media landscape are furious. In response to the news, The New York Times Magazine reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones tweeted, “this is the type of normalizing that mainstream media did of segregationists.”

Meanwhile, Adam Kinzinger—CNN senior political commentator—called the decision to conduct the interview “insane.” Greene, a MAGA headliner who has a track record of promoting QAnon conspiracies, was interviewed by Lesley Stahl, whom she praised on Twitter on Saturday morning: “Leslie [sic] is a trailblazer for women in journalism. And while we may disagree on some issues, I respect her greatly.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/60-minutes-to-interview-marjorie-taylor-greene-prompting-backlash-on-social-media

[ancianita]

1. Good journalism doesn't prop train wrecks and mafia politics.

[True Blue American]

38. Thank you!

[SpamWyzer]

2. mtg

is the quintessential fake news event. I wish her a disaster.

[betsuni]

3. "Furious" about what? A TV interview with a member of Congress?

Do they think we're all mindless idiots who'll fall in love with a nutty freak Republican because they're on TV? It's not contagious.

Same as all the attacks on TV hosts who have a variety of guests. Ridiculous.

[Takket]

16. +1

Like it or not this woman can literally vote to declare war and we should not ignore these people. She should be the face of the gop on a nationwide scale.

The gop should not be allowed to hide her. And their refusal to punish her in any way is tacit approval of he lunacy. Make them own it.

[Bucky]

17. Unfortunately, yes, when a loon or demagogue gets publicity, they gain followers

But you're entirely correct. The news media has an obligation to cover the full variety of newsmakers, even the obnoxious ones. It's up to those who oppose her dangerous ideas to "make news" themselves and reduce her support. Shutting up your opponents, censoring or blackballing or suppressing bad ideas instead beating them isn't democracy. The only correct way to beat bad ideas is with good ideas.

[Cha]

87. Like the News media's "obligation"

to Normalize trump leading up to and beyond the 2016 election..

And, Hammering on Hillary's emails?

That new media?

[Ferrets are Cool]

29. IF it is a fluff piece that normalizes her, yes, it is infuriating.

Journalism should be about telling the truth, not attempting to make insurrectionist "look good".
I haven't seen the piece, and wont, but you asked "why furious" and I am attempting to answer.
And, in answer to your second question, this isn't about US. It's about the people who WILL not look any deeper than a fluff piece.

[betsuni]

42. Why would anyone be mindlessly brainwashed by a fluff piece, anyway?

No common sense or brains? Journalists always do fluff pieces on celebrities and everyone thinks, oh bullshit.

What's the big danger here? Why the alarums and warnings?

[Captain Zero]

44. The serious danger is she's nominated for VP

Heartbeat away and all.

[FoxNewsSucks]

47. Ask the audience of Fox "news", OAN or Newsmax

As always , the problem isn't that nutbags like her are given the time, it's that she will be treated like a normal respectable authority figure NOT the idiotic racist nut bag that she is.

I'd love it if she were made to look like a fool, but that's not what corporate media does. They help republicons look good, and save the "gotchas" for democrats.

[betsuni]

53. No, she's not treated like a normal respectable authority figure, anti-establishment conspiracy

theory freak, which is what Republican voters want.

[SMC22307]

69. There are A LOT of people in the middle who don't have a clue about Marge.

Voters aren't all spending time on Twitter to really understand MTG's history. Up 'til tonight she's been relegated to RWNJ media. She'll now be legitimized via 60 Minutes and Lesley Stahl. She'll bat her eyelids and turn on the soft Southern accent and say all the right things. It's apparent from the clips (sitting around the kitchen table admiring family photos - how cozy!) that this is going to be a total puff piece, not hard-hitting journalism.

[Ferrets are Cool]

48. The press normalized tRump. Look where that got us.

Don't think it can't happen again. 'Mericans ain't that smart.

[betsuni]

50. Nothing normal about Trump, he's right-wing hate radio come to life. No "normalizing" because

that means Establishment. He's anti-establishment populist freak show all the way.

[Ferrets are Cool]

52. Mainstream media NEVER emphasized his crazy. He WAS normalized by them and

that is why I am against a fluff piece with Green. I think we have beaten this point into the ground, so have a wonderful day.

[betsuni]

54. No, MSM showed his rallies and interviews in full without telling viewers what to think.

Viewers could make up their own minds. Democrats are only shown in tiny clips of video and media tells viewers what to think about them. Number one word in Hillary Clinton's speeches when she ran for president was "jobs." Did we hear about that? NEVER. Instead every time her name was mentioned it was prefaced by something negative.

[Celerity]

78. Jennifer Rubin: Timid media and GOP figures are again, dangerously, normalizing Trump

We saw throughout Donald Trump’s two presidential campaigns and four years in the White House a symbiotic relationship between mainstream media outlets and Republicans, in which both made Trump out to be a far more normal politician than he was.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/03/06/trump-cpac-media-gop-failure/

https://archive.is/rYGf4

On the one hand, there was Republican denial (Didn’t see the crazy tweet! I’m sure he’s learned his lesson!). On the other, there was the media’s determination to avoid claims of bias and maintain a false balance — which often resulted in their obscuring how loony he sounded. The result: a never-ending Trumpian stream of threats (both policy-related and more personal), absurd conspiracy-mongering, and lies that were never regarded as disqualifying.

Apparently, neither the media nor supposedly sober Republicans have learned anything from the past. Trump gave a bonkers speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, musing about Russia blowing up NATO headquarters, claiming President Biden had taken the border wall and “put it in a hiding area,” and telling the crowd, “I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed: I am your retribution.”

Link to tweet

We do not get headlines acknowledging this is unhinged. Instead, we get from the New York Times: “Trump Says He Would Stay in 2024 Race if Indicted.” And a similar angle from CNN. ABC started its website report this way: “Former President Donald Trump continues to reign supreme over the conservative wing of the Republican Party.” From The Washington Post: “Trump takes victory lap at conservative conference.”

CBS intoned that Trump “aired grievances with his familiar foes: President Biden, the Department of Justice, and the litany of legal fights he is embroiled in.” Politico went with: “Trump ties a ribbon on the most MAGA CPAC yet.” Hmm. From the coverage, you would never understand how incoherent he sounds, how far divorced his statements are from reality, and how entirely abnormal this all is. Talk about burying the lead.

snip

[mountain grammy]

68. Exactly

[Cha]

90. Exactly.. that's what I posted up

thread to Bucky.

[SMC22307]

66. No, not every one thinks "oh, bullshit."

This country is full of gullible idiots with no critical thinking skills. Marg pulled the "I don't recall" demure bullshit in her little pink frock while on the witness stand and the judge ruled in her favor. She'll have Lesley Stahl for lunch She can turn on polite Southern woman then turn into snarlin' gun-humpin' Southern woman on a dime. Which one will 60 Minutes portray to the world? The QAnon Confederate kook who tried to overthrow an election is being is normalized and that isn't healthy for this country.

[Ferrets are Cool]

74. Thanks for expressing it better than I attempted.

[SMC22307]

113. Did you watch? I didn't. LOL

I'm about to hit Twitter for feedback after I finish skimming DU. Corporate Media normalized Sarah Palin and she convinced Idiot America that Obamacare was going to kill Granny. Have we learned nothing?!

[Ferrets are Cool]

114. Not a second.

[mountain grammy]

67. Three answers

Trump trump trump.

[maxrandb]

91. Have you met some of your fellow Americans?

[Cha]

88. Thank you!

[CTyankee]

110. I did see it, with your concerns on my own mind. Leslie tried several times to nail her down. Marj

just didn't answer her questions honestly. She just lied. Period.

She obviously didn't care whether she lied on TV on a show lots of people watch.

Whether we like it or not, whether it is good or not, this is the media we have. I think Leslie tried and I could see her frustration. But maybe it is good to reveal this monstrous person for what she is.

[Marius25]

61. That's exactly what happened to Trump.

Networks like CNN gave him so much free airtime it normalized him to a lot of people. It's very much contagious.

[betsuni]

63. They gave him free airtime for his rallies and didn't tell viewers what to think

about him as they always do about Democrats.

This is an interview. Only the weak are gullible, not contagious.

[Marius25]

65. Most Americans are weak idiots.

This will make Greene more popular and normalize her. It's completely irresponsible of CBS/60 minutes.

[TomWilm]

4. I really look forward to seeing this!

Since this will be an exiting line of blunders, not a praise.

[MiHale]

5. Why not showcase stupid?...

But is Stahl going to give a “soft” interview? Then again, Howler monkeys gotta howl.

[TheRickles]

6. That's the key point - softball questions, or hard follow-ups and staying on task (ie, on target)?

[SouthernDem4ever]

23. From what Greene said about it, it sounds like softball time

Greene is trying to soften her stance with higher aspirations. Unfortunately, an asshole is always an asshole.

[Septua]

51. I would guess Stahl will ask the hard questions...

..but MTG will not do any turnarounds. She won't admit hypocrisy or lack of facts to support her loony positions and statements. It will be same as some other interviews with MAGA kooks, including Trump. They just keep pushing the false narratives and projections. "Oh, there's a lot of people who believe the 2020 election was rigged." "There were a lot of irregularities discovered." And the 'irregularities' amount to a couple of dead people voting or a couple of people voting twice.

That's how propaganda works and the kooks know the 30% crowd isn't interested in the truth. The revelations so far in the Fox/Dominion case illustrate that. Fox started reporting the truth and their audience began a decline.

I will watch the interview...got the DVR set to record.

[Walleye]

7. I don't think she can answer even softball questions without showing her stupidity

[Cha]

92. We'll see IF Stahl calls her out

on them.. the stupid Gaslit replies.

[Walleye]

102. I'm certainly not counting on it

[Cha]

103. Me neither.. I don't

count on anything until it's done.. especially with something like this repulsive bad movie we've seen before.

Like someone said on here.. the tweet EmptyG put out on this sounded like she approved of it.

So again.. we'll see.

[Walleye]

106. It was as we figured it would be. She just elevated MTG

I swear Leslie Stahl made it sound like saying all Democrats are pedophiles is just another political argument

[Cha]

107. It's Already been shown?! Oh yeah

Last edited Sun Apr 2, 2023, 07:57 PM - Edit history (1)

I guess it is late back on the East Coast!

TY CBS 60 fucking minutes should be held accountable for this.

[Walleye]

108. In a strange way it reminded me of Trump elevating Kim and giving him legitimacy by meeting with him

[Cha]

109. Shudder.. you're strong to

be able to watch what sounds like Propaganda from the magat via the US private Corp media.

[Walleye]

111. Morbid curiosity

[Cha]

104. PS.. here it is.. I found it..

Martin Eden (11,997 posts)

12. There is so much BS to call out and pin her down with facts

I have a feeling that's not what happened, since MTG-Q praised Lesley Stahl after the interview.

A journalist should be civil to a guest, but not to the extent of normalizing evil.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=17783340

[Dirty Socialist]

8. PLEASE: No softball questions

Last edited Sun Apr 2, 2023, 12:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Only Nolan Ryan fastball hardball questions. High and tight.

[Martin Eden]

12. There is so much BS to call out and pin her down with facts

I have a feeling that's not what happened, since MTG-Q praised Lesley Stahl after the interview.

A journalist should be civil to a guest, but not to the extent of normalizing evil.

[Cha]

105. Well Put! TY nt

[KarenS]

9. I won't watch it but I will read here on DU

how it went,,,,

[TNNurse]

10. Me too.

I will read about it, but would never willingly watch her.

[bdamomma]

112. I didn't watch

I don't have the stomach for it, some Du'ers can handle arrogance and ignorance. I thank them.

[WVreaper]

11. DON'T WATCH!

[betsuni]

13. WHY NOT?

[ananda]

20. Better yet, WHY?

???

[betsuni]

22. The more you know about enemies, the more likely to defeat them because you know their

weaknesses. Ignorance isn't helpful.

Watching an interview with a nutty Republican isn't contagious. It really isn't.

[Ferrets are Cool]

30. How will it help YOU and I to know more about this deseased person?

We are not ignorant about her and learning more will help nothing.

[betsuni]

33. The more information the better. Who is "we"? It's a TV show. How do you know who is watching?

[paleotn]

31. She's an ignorant loon from North Georgia...

That's really all you need to know.

[betsuni]

34. No, she was voted into Congress. That's really all you need to know.

[paleotn]

37. By equally ignorant and loony north Georgians.

[betsuni]

40. The angry white Republican voters certain people say aren't at all racist

but suffering from the economic anxiety caused by Democrats "ignoring" them.

[Bucky]

55. Representative democracy

You don't get to pick your compatriots. But you do get to argue with them.

[Marius25]

62. Yeah it is actually. It normalizes them, which makes them more popular.

[betsuni]

64. How? You mean they become a celebrity?

[Cha]

93. Agree.. like trump in 2016. The

fucking same media that Hammered Hillary's Emails.

[SMC22307]

70. You're not going to learn much from what I'm guessing will be a total puff piece.

Unless Lesley Stahl:

--shows clips of MTG threatening Democrats with gun violence
--shows clips of MTG with Proud Boys and other violent RW groups
--shows clips of MTG stalking a teenage school-shooting survivor down DC streets
--shows clips of MTG carrying on like a fool through AOC's mail slot
--questions MTG on her role in January 6th
--makes her explain Jewish Space lasers and her statement that she, like many people, fell for misinformation/disinformation on the internet (shouldn't a member of Congress be smarter? have better critical thinking skills?)
--calls out her "good Christian" hypocrisy while shagging dudes at the gym while married
--asks her to explain how red states are going to survive without blue tax dollars during the "national divorce"

(DUers, what would you like to see asked of Marg3Toes during this interview?)

[ananda]

98. Here's the thing. I know enough, and I do not want ...

to enable the rw media by adding to their ratings.

[joshdawg]

14. Would rather have Nicole Wallace do the interview.

I might watch it then.
Wallace would take no prisoners.
Alas, Nicole is not a member of Sixty Minutes. heavy sigh

[ms liberty]

15. I would totally watch that. n/t

[PJMcK]

26. Umm

Stahl is on CBS on 60 Minutes.

Wallace is on MSNBC on Deadline.

One is on network TV while the other is on cable.

See the difference?

[Bucky]

56. Please don't dumb down the conversation. Or at least read the posts you respond to

Obviously the point Josh was making is that it makes a difference what sort of journalist does the interview.

But Josh literally wrote: "Alas, Nicole is not a member of Sixty Minutes. heavy sigh"

[PJMcK]

72. I was writing about the scale of their respective audiences

I’m sorry if that wasn’t clear and I apologize if my response sounded snarky.

I don’t think I was “dumbing down” the discussion, as you wrote. CBS reaches millions of people. MSNBC reaches hundreds of thousands of mostly left-leaning people. That was my point.

One other point: Ms. Stahl has many years of experience. Ms. Wallace has relatively less experience. I still like her, however.

[joshdawg]

58. Did you not read the last sentence of my post?

[PJMcK]

71. Of course I did

My point is cable vs broadcast network. CBS reaches millions while MSNBC is in the hundred thousands.

I meant no disrespect and I apologize if my response came across as snark. Hope you have a good week.

[Evolve Dammit]

18. She has already taken the reins. McCarthy gave her the gavel. And autocracy is on the doorstep.

60 Minutes is cashing in. Just like all of MSM when Orange Julius announced in 2015.

[ananda]

19. I'd pick lint before watching that.

And I don't pick lint.

[Norbert]

21. Not watching. I want the ratings to be lower than her morals

[SouthernDem4ever]

25. Good point

Besides, someone here will tall us all about it.

[The Jungle 1]

46. Well it won't matter if you watch or not.

Nielsen Company tracks what shows viewers watch on television networks through a representative sampling of about 25,000 households that let the company record what programs they watch. Unless you are one of these households you do not affect the ratings.

[Roy Rolling]

24. Prejudice

It means to pre-judge.

I will await the interview to determine its effect. An person/event can mean multiple things to different people. We rely on news media to sort out the differences by providing us facts and context.

Let’s see if “60 Minutes” are real journalists or just political hacks seeking access to nutjobs like Greene. The jury is out.

[paleotn]

36. Legitimizing evil and insanity. That's all I need to know about MTG's "interview."

[dalton99a]

27. Because Greene needs a free infomercial on primetime TV

Last edited Sun Apr 2, 2023, 10:18 AM - Edit history (1)

[Bucky]

57. That's a good point. Maybe if we ignore her, she'll just go away

[sloopdog50]

28. WTF

Please, quit giving these treasonous goobers a platform to spread their shit all over the stars and stripes. The nation, including the media, should be working to remove these insurrectionists from government. The list is long...

[SledDriver]

32. I hope it's not all softball questions with no follow ups

I hope they're not just giving it a platform to spew it's lies and hatred in an attempt to normalize its behavior.

I hope I'm not disappointed.

[paleotn]

35. Who's next for Lesley Stahl? Kim Jong Un? Putin perhaps?

Apparently she has a thing for disgustingly evil excuses for humans. I can imagine her lead in.... "Sure Kim has starved and killed thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of his own people just for kicks. But what world leader hasn't?"

[Six117]

39. Thank you Mehdi Hasan

"It's hard to overstate MTG's threat to America

[Pepsidog]

41. I hope Stahl takes the opportunity to confront the traitorous creep.

[jcgoldie]

43. Giving MTG a feature on 60 minutes

…for waving her arms screaming nonsense daily like a batshit troll is the equivalent of putting the streaker onto the ballfield on television for his antics then doing a background story on him for the media guide…

[Just A Box Of Rain]

76. Exposing extremist members of Congress is in the public interest IMO.

[jcgoldie]

79. She exposes herself everyday

Now youre just giving her a bigger platform.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

80. I entirely disagree.

Joe McCarthy openly spewed his venom in the 1950s.

It took CBS newsman Edward R Murrow to take him down.

Shining a bright light on these extremists is the best response. That's not "platforming," but the opposite.

[jcgoldie]

81. Joe McCarthy didn't have twitter

All putting her on 60 minutes does is normalize the crazy shit… just like every media outlet did with Trump.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

89. Social media's tendency to promote extremism is a huge part of why traditional media's

responsibility to counterbalance such extremism is more important than ever.

They need to take down "bat-shit crazy," while Twitter and other internet outlets do the opposite.

[FoxNewsSucks]

96. That's why presenting "batshit-crazy" as normal is a mistake.

Putting her on any regular media, or anyone of her ilk for that matter, gives the inattentive public the impression that she and her ilk are legitimate people doing serious government work.

If Stahl calls her out on her BS and leads viewers to the correct conclusion that Greene & Co are dangerous criminal traitors who should never been allowed near power I'll gladly eat my words. But I haven't had to yet in this kind of circumstance.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

97. Presenting "batshit-crazy" as normal is a mistake.

Which is precisely why I'm confident that that's NOT what Leslie Stahl and 60 Minutes are going to do.

Let's watch and see.

If it is a puff piece or one that "normalizes" Greene--rather than being a take-down--I'll be the first to say I was wrong.

[The Jungle 1]

45. She is a treasonous slug who wants her state to secede.

Her treason needs to be addressed.

[CTyankee]

49. I shut her down after a couple of sentences, but thanks for posting.

Her behavior does not surprise me. She's just loathsome.

[Marius25]

60. The media's willingness to normalize Nazis is why American media is garbage

[Just A Box Of Rain]

75. What makes you think they will "normalize" Greene?

I guess we will find out tonight.

[Marius25]

82. Because that's all the media does.

Putting her on a show like that already normalizes her.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

83. What nonsense.

[Marius25]

84. Not nonsense at all. America media is garbage, and they love fascists

because they're good for ratings.

Can you please stop talking to me?

You and I will never agree on anything, so I'd prefer not wasting the time anymore.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

85. I think you're correct that we are unlikely to ever agree on anything.

Whose time it is that's being wasted, is another matter of departure, I'm sure.

[gulliver]

73. I'll watch at least the first part of it to see if Stahl asks tough questions

MTG and Trump thrive on the laziness and cowardly/angry silence of the 80-90% of us who aren't absolutist ideologues. It's not all our fault: the legacy media thrives on the extreme and often hands the mic to fringe fools and troublemakers (who screw up their own positions and those of everyone else). That's what's happening with MTG here, possibly, although I'll give Stahl a chance.

Society hasn't quite figured out how to get the sound equalizer in the loop yet.

[Mysterian]

77. Well, now we know

All you need to do is be a screeching moronic piece of trash and you can be on 60 Minutes.

[Cha]

86. Good on Kinzinger! I didn't know

he got a job at CNN.

TY

[brooklynite]

94. Perhaps the backlash should wait for the actual interviews?

[FoxNewsSucks]

95. Sure.

Care to bet on who will be proven right?

[Just A Box Of Rain]

101. I do.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

100. Or we could just rush to judgement and declare that CBS are fascist enablers

without even watching the program.

[FoxNewsSucks]

115. Nobody said that. You're getting your boilerplate mixed up.

That belongs on the CNN threads.

BTW, we were right.

[Initech]

99. Marjorie Greene represents the worst of us.

She’s literally Q Anon in human form.