Campaign Reporters Criticized for ‘Going Shopping’ with Kamala Harris to Put ‘Out Glowing Tweets’
Campaign reporters from NBC, CNN, CBS were heavily criticized on Saturday after they posted tweets about presidential candidate and Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) trying on and buying an “amazing rainbow coat.”
Judging from the tweets, it appeared the reporters had actively participated in Harris’ shopping, raising questions on if they could fairly cover the candidate.
“We kind of forced @kamalaharris to try on this awesome oversized rainbow sequin jacket … She snapped it up. @alivitali perfectly named it as “the Mardi Gras Jacket,” CNN reporter Maeve Reston tweeted.
We kind of forced @kamalaharris to try on this awesome oversized rainbow sequin jacket … She snapped it up. @alivitali perfectly named it as “the Mardi Gras Jacket” #2020 #SouthCarolina #CampaignFashionReport pic.twitter.com/2G0NFRkKL6
— Maeve Reston (@MaeveReston) February 16, 2019
“When the campaign trail takes you to a boutique, and @MaeveReston spots a great sequined jacket for @KamalaHarris to try on,” CBS’ Caitlin Huey-Burns also tweeted.
When the campaign trail takes you to a boutique, and @MaeveReston spots a great sequined jacket for @KamalaHarris to try on. #campaignfashionreport pic.twitter.com/38bYJKqjRI
— Caitlin Huey-Burns (@CHueyBurns) February 16, 2019
.@KamalaHarris trying this amazing rainbow coat (to me this screams Mardi Gras coat!), inspired by an inquiry from @MaeveReston of #campaignfashionreport fame. pic.twitter.com/iAvcYN9l5i
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) February 16, 2019
“Update: she bought the jacket,” NBC’s Ali Vitali tweeted with a star and rainbow emoji.
People asked if this is the kind of “glowing” coverage Democratic candidates will receiving going forward:
This is just embarrassing. So now journalists are going shopping with Harris, helping pick out clothes and then putting out glowing tweets about it. https://t.co/RX2IY0B8JL
— Brit Hume (@brithume) February 16, 2019
This would be fun if it were three friends out shopping. The fact that this is two reporters and the candidate they’re covering is just embarrassing. https://t.co/eK4hYke6fo
— Cam Edwards (@CamEdwards) February 16, 2019
Twitter is a disaster for journalists. Before Twitter, the public would just read the reports and assume a bias, but not have such absurd proof. https://t.co/0rBohJqhwe
— Steve Krakauer (@SteveKrak) February 16, 2019
This is kind of cute and kind of revolting.
I can’t even imagine someone like Mitt Romney getting this kind of fawning coverage from a CNN reporter. https://t.co/Kp09Y0b0xb— PoliMath (@politicalmath) February 16, 2019
Brave firefighters putting their lives on the line for the truth https://t.co/zw9ufsDG5o
— Currently between fraudulent suspensions (@jtLOL) February 16, 2019
I just don’t understand why conservatives have a hard time believing NBC’s political reporting. https://t.co/cervUkNCrf
— Arthur Schwartz (@ArthurSchwartz) February 16, 2019
Is @KamalaHarris the new #ImWithHer campaign @NBCNews reporters are promoting now?
Ali, “to me Screaming Mardi Gras” kinda’ shows your enthusiasm for either fashion, Mardi Gras, or Kamala.
Guess we can expect more bias and #FakeNews for 2020 elections. https://t.co/vGqem61C3y
— Jessie Jane Duff (@JessieJaneDuff) February 16, 2019
Others, mostly left-leaning, defended the trio:
Nobody seemed to have a problem when the candidate was @ScottWalker and the activity was motorcycle riding
Or @MittRomney riding jet skis on vacation
Or skeet shooting with @LindseyGrahamSC
I’m all for female candidates expanding the list of campaign activities https://t.co/KgIgxnNW5x
— Kasie Hunt (@kasie) February 16, 2019
The most prominent Fox personality literally did a campaign rally with Trump. That’s what’s embarrassing. https://t.co/JQiSo9Kpel
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) February 16, 2019
Huey-Burns then defened the interaction to Brit Hume:
Hi @brithume. Harris was on an a tour of small businesses, including this boutique, in Columbia that we were covering as part of several campaign stops.
— Caitlin Huey-Burns (@CHueyBurns) February 16, 2019
I specifically asked her about Beto O’Rourke calling for the barrier to come down at the border and whether she’d support that in her home state of California, which also shares a border with Mexico. It’s a policy question, and one Republicans have been asking all week @brithume
— Caitlin Huey-Burns (@CHueyBurns) February 16, 2019
With Fox News host Sean Hannity being brought up, as he did appear at a rally for President Donald Trump, Hume said the comparison was apples to oranges:
And he was rebuked by management for doing so. And he’s not the guy actually covering Trump. He’s not a correspondent, he’s an opinion host. Lame comparison. https://t.co/UZ0r3eYWNb
— Brit Hume (@brithume) February 16, 2019
Images via @CHueyBurns/@MaeveReston
