Ben Shapiro says NY Times and far-left Media Matters are ‘strong-arming’ YouTube to silence conservatives

Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro accuses New York Times of working with far-left advocacy group Media Matters to America He posted screenshots of a reporter stating that he was working with the progressive organization to silence anyone who opposed Vice President Kamala Harris on YouTube.

Media Matters, founded in 2004 by longtime Clinton ally David Brock, is often cited by legacy news organizations as a media watchdog. He gained notoriety for organizing pressure campaigns against conservative voices he opposed, including boycott movements. Shapiro took social media To reveal that he might be the group’s next target.

“If you’re wondering what the legacy media is planning for the October surprise, wonder no more: it’s here. Today, I received the following text from a reporter at @NYTimes,” Shapiro wrote in the caption of a text message he received Monday. New York Times reporter Nico Grant.

Media Matters Received Millions from Democrat Megadonors, Leaked Donor List Revealed: Report

“I wanted to give you the opportunity to comment on an upcoming article examining how political commentators are discussing the upcoming election on YouTube. We rely on analysis conducted by researchers at Media Matters for America,” the Times reporter wrote.

Grant asked Shapiro for a comment by the end of the day Tuesday before laying out “the points we plan to include.”

Read on the Fox News App

Based on the images in the text message posted by Shapiro, Media Matters identified “286 YouTube videos between May and August that contained election misinformation, including narratives that were debunked or unsupported by credible evidence,” Grant wrote.

Elon Musk Describes Media Issues as ‘Evil Propaganda Machine’ Ahead of Trial

“Investigators have identified videos you posted over these four months that contain misinformation about the election. We bring you a clip that tells you: ‘… Your party rigged many of the voting rules ahead of the election to ensure an extraordinary number of mail-in ballots were sent out. ballot collection,” Grant continued. “I have a few questions.”

Grant then asked Shapiro if he was a “member of the YouTube Affiliate Programs,” and if so, “how often does YouTube monetize his videos,” and whether YouTube had sent messages, emails, or notifications about “misinformation” in his content in the past year . .

Shapiro said the Times “used research from Media Matters, a radical left-wing organization whose sole purpose is to destroy conservative media (see below), to pressure YouTube to demonize and punish all conservatives” a week before the presidential election. .

“That’s the whole game here,” Shaprio said. “Publish an article in America’s ‘most trusted newspaper’ declaring that nearly every major conservative is a purveyor of ‘misinformation’ on YouTube, thereby strong-arming YouTube into taking action against conservatives.” ,” Shaprio wrote.

“This is not about ‘election misinformation.’ Frankly. As pretty much everyone knows, I have always assumed that Joe Biden won the 2020 election,” he continued, accompanied by headline footage from FiveThirtyEight and CBS News. “And if pointing out that voting rules for the 2020 election have been ‘rigged’ is ‘election misinformation,’ resulting in mass mail-in voting and ballot harvesting, then the NYT may want to talk to the NYT and CBS.” News for starters.”

Texas Attorney General Launches Investigation into Media Matters for ‘Potential Fraudulent Activity’

Shapiro added: “And by the way, even if someone thinks Joe Biden didn’t win the election, that’s still protected speech under the First Amendment… But here’s the thing: You don’t have to spread ‘misinformation’ Just support Trump to be a target It is necessary.”

“This is completely scandalous. In 2020, legacy media stopped the Hunter Biden laptop story from spreading and whitewashed the claim that this was all Russian disinformation to get Joe Biden elected,” Shaprio wrote.

Shapiro said the Times “can’t get away with this” and called the paper “part of the Democrat-Media Human Centipede” before commenting to the reporter.

“Here’s my comment: please, fuck yourself,” Shapiro wrote.

Other conservative media personalities posted similar messages, noting that the same Times reporter approached them with data compiled by Media Matters.

Media Matters is funded by some of the largest Democratic megadonors in the country. Critics criticized Media Matters for gaining tax-exempt status despite being an openly political organization. He was ridiculed when he received a federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan in 2020 Between “1-2 million dollars” Despite constant criticism from the Trump administration of Trump’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including the PPP.

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.

Original article source: Ben Shapiro says NY Times and far-left Media Matters are ‘strong-arming’ YouTube to silence conservatives