Multiple MSNBC personalities shared a photo of crowds in Miami Beach breaking coronavirus guidelines but were subsequently slammed by social media commenters who quickly pointed out the photograph was from 2019.
“That literally looks like a microscopic image of a petrie dish,” MSNBC host Joy Reid captioned a tweet with a photo of a crowded beach.
That literally looks like a microscopic image of a petrie dish… ??? https://t.co/XLg5H1ygXR
— Joy-Ann Pro-Democracy & Masks Reid ? (@JoyAnnReid) March 22, 2021
MSNBC analyst Fernand Amandi also shared the photo and said, “Today’s center of the #COVIDIOTS universe is Miami Beach, Florida.”
If you insist on being #COVIDIOTS please #WearAMask for our sake. pic.twitter.com/f4gvJZrztd
— Fernand R. Amandi (@AmandiOnAir) March 21, 2021
“This is why schools won’t open again this fall,” MSNBC contributor Jason Johnson tweeted.
This is why schools won’t open again this fall https://t.co/EaUFL1zTEc
— Dr. Jason Johnson (@DrJasonJohnson) March 22, 2021
Commenters soon pointed out that the photo they circulated was from a 2019 Sun Sentinel article reporting on unruly spring breakers.
“A professor and MSNBC analyst with 95,000 followers shared a photo from a beach in 2019. He’s racked up over 10,000 shares in the process. Nothing will happen to this account for knowingly spreading disinformation,” political commentator Stephen Miller tweeted in response to Amandi.
A professor and MSNBC analyst with 95,000 followers shared a photo from a beach in 2019. He’s racked up over 10,000 shares in the process. Nothing will happen to this account for knowingly spreading disinformation. https://t.co/1mXBFMaU4N pic.twitter.com/ep6UfsxAXg
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 22, 2021
This tweet by an MSNBC person is a flat out lie, using an image from 2019 and pretending it is current.
Proof (which others found) is below. https://t.co/w1GZOPyO1m pic.twitter.com/KhC9j9ACfO
— Andrew Follett (@AndrewCFollett) March 22, 2021
Misinformation just flows through MSNBC like water.
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) March 22, 2021
This pic is from 2019. If you’re gonna try to make a point, make sure it’s accurate and cite your sources. https://t.co/ydhQMVpUED
— Vic Micolucci WJXT (@WJXTvic) March 22, 2021
2,500 RTs and 10,000 likes for a photo that’s from 2019. Blatant disinformation.
You okay with this, @MSNBCPR and @TwitterSupport? I don’t even want to get started on the Ben Collins, Olivery Darcy, Brian Stelter, and Brandy Zadrozny crowd. I’d bet good money on them not caring. https://t.co/vKqaPbsxWv
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) March 22, 2021
I can’t believe this crowd was gathering in 2019… knowing a pandemic was only a year away. https://t.co/1WjN0rVo7B
— Joey Jones (@Johnny_Joey) March 22, 2021
“Schools won’t open this fall because of misleading tweets of photos from 2019? Bad news if true,” political pundit Ramesh Ponnuru asked Johnson, pointing out the error.
Johnson did not acknowledge the misleading photo, only saying: “You aren’t prepared for this conversation. Please stop now. I don’t want to make time for you today.”
You aren’t prepared for this conversation. Please stop now. I don’t want to make time for you today…. https://t.co/H7GOmwZWUr
— Dr. Jason Johnson (@DrJasonJohnson) March 22, 2021
Amandi eventually addressed the misleading photo in a follow-up tweet but said it shouldn’t distract from the thousands of spring breakers who are partying in the city this week.
“It has come to my attention that the picture in the original tweet isn’t from this week, but that does not change the fact that Miami Beach has been overrun by thousands of maskless Spring Breakers who are not abiding by the CDC pandemic guidelines as these recent photos confirm,” he tweeted.
The tweets come as SWAT teams and a military-style vehicle were seen on the streets of Miami Beach this weekend, when local police worked to enforce an 8 p.m. curfew on spring breakers stemming from virus concerns.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Pepper balls used on Spring Break partygoers along South Beach after new curfew passes with little cooperation,” one social media user posted of what unfolded in the city on Saturday evening.
Pepper balls used on Spring Break partygoers along South Beach after new curfew passes with little cooperation. https://t.co/iuInzDbpEq pic.twitter.com/owwLeNDYEA
— Parker Branton (@ParkerWPLG) March 21, 2021
MSNBC did not immediately return the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
