WaPo Takes 3 Weeks To Report Biden Sex Assault Allegation, Then Uses Article To Focus on Trump Instead
The establishment media have flexible standards for reporting on the alleged sexual misconduct of political figures, based largely on ideology.
This has been apparent from the conspicuously scant coverage of recent allegations against presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden.
Tara Reade, who worked on Biden’s staff when he was in the Senate, gave a podcast interview on March 25 in which she alleged Biden pushed up her against a wall and sexually assaulted her in 1993.
The new allegation followed Reade’s statements in an April 2019 interview with The Union that Biden had touched her inappropriately.
On Sunday, The Washington Post, following criticism for ignoring the story, finally published an article on the sexual assault allegation — but the story seeks to undermine Reade and shift the focus to President Donald Trump.
Appearing almost three weeks after the allegations were made, the timing of the piece did not suggest a sense of urgency.
The article attempted to explain the delay by stating The Post has been “examining the allegations of Reade over the past three weeks.”
Three weeks is a lot longer than the newspaper has taken to examine allegations in the past against conservatives.
In 2019, when E. Jean Carroll made absurd and uncorroborated allegations against Trump, The Post published a story that same day.
The Post attempts to poke holes in Reade’s story, saying that although she did accuse Biden of inappropriate touching last year, she “did not mention the alleged assault or suggest there was more to the story.”
The article also suggests the timing of her allegations is suspicious — an issue The Post refused to consider in its 2018 coverage of the allegations against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
On Sept. 16, 2018, the newspaper reported the accusations against Kavanaugh as relayed by his accuser, Christine Blasey Ford. The Post published her statements in graphic detail, without addressing the gaping holes in her story or any of her political motivations.
In the case of Reade, The Post was happy to point out political ties that might induce her to be less than honest in her allegations against Biden, writing that “since January, Reade has been a vocal supporter of Biden’s former rival Bernie Sanders.”
The Post focused much of the article not on Biden but on Trump.
“President Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. and his campaign manager, Brad Parscale, sought to inject Reade’s allegation into the presidential campaign on Saturday by accusing the media on Twitter of not covering it,” the article said.
Both Trump and Parscale had tweeted about the media’s utter refusal to acknowledge the story.
The Washington Post:
Christine Blasey Ford: 100+
Tara Reade: 0The New York Times:
Christine Blasey Ford: 90+
Tara Reade: 0MSNBC:
Christine Blasey Ford: 100+
Tara Reade: 0CNN:
Christine Blasey Ford: 100+
Tara Reade: 0?♂️
— Brad Parscale – Text TRUMP to 88022 (@parscale) April 11, 2020
You would think there would be wall to walk coverage of this… but of course you’d be wrong because today’s media works for the DNC.
I’m sure it’s totally improbable given that Joe is only creepy as hell 90/95% of the time. https://t.co/cCBthwEN3p
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) April 11, 2020
Perhaps instead of seeking to “inject” Reade’s allegations into the campaign, the president’s son and campaign manager were pointing out the media’s willful silence on the topic to make a larger point.
The treatment of the allegations against Biden perfectly illustrates the double standards Trump frequently accuses the media of holding.
Not only does The Post take issue with statements calling out its obvious hypocrisy, but the article also jumps at the opportunity to regurgitate allegations against Trump that arose during the 2016 campaign.
The rehash of Trump’s comments in the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape and the subsequent claims by several women of sexual misconduct comes in a piece ostensibly published to take a serious look at allegations against Joe Biden.
The Trump presidency has continually exposed media bias and hypocrisy. Throughout his first term, Trump has been opposed every step of the way, not only by the Democratic Party but also by the media establishment.
As seen in the case of Kavanaugh, media bias creates a backlash.
The media’s double standards and bias have been on full display in the Tara Reade case, further eroding the public’s diminishing trust in the fourth estate.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
