MSNBC’s Katy Tur understands perspective and statistics about as well as she understands politics — which is to say, not at all.
The cable news host scored a viral hit on social media this week when she noted, presumably with a furrowed brow and grim look on her face, that people in the United States are dying of COVID-19 even as President Trump holds emergency White House press briefings.
“Keep in mind,” Tur tweeted. “Americans are dying during these briefings. During yesterday’s briefing, between 5:30 and 7:45, there were 93 reported deaths.”
She added, “According to [NBC News’s] medical unit: 4 deaths in Alabama. 42 deaths in California. 6 deaths in Delaware. 16 deaths in Georgia. 7 deaths in Kentucky. 5 deaths in New Mexico. 5 deaths in South Carolina. 8 deaths in Washington.”
Keep in mind, Americans are dying during these briefings.
During yesterday’s briefing, between 5:30 and 7:45, there were 93 reported deaths.
— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) April 14, 2020
Naturally, this observation was shared far and wide by members of the national press, including New York Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones and CNN’s Brian Stelter, who called her remarks a bit of “painful perspective.”
As of this writing, Tur’s first tweet has been shared by more than 14,000 Twitter users.
But what even is her point? Is she suggesting that Trump’s press briefings are killing people? Or that there would be fewer deaths without the White House press conferences, during which Trump actually speaks less than Drs. Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx?
Who knows?
My best guess is that she is trying to say that the White House news conferences are not being treated with the gravity they deserve. This is mostly true given that large portions of the briefings are just Trump fighting with reporters. But I would add that it takes two to tango. Perhaps some of that “painful perspective” should be applied to the reporter who asked Surgeon General Jerome Adams at a recent briefing to respond to “some people online” who were supposedly angry he used the term “big momma” or the reporter who asked Fauci whether he was being made to speak against his will.
Yes, people are dying during these press briefings. That is because there is a pandemic in the U.S. — and we would not be having these news conferences if there was not.
People are also dying during the news conferences held by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. People are also dying during every episode of Tur’s MSNBC show.
I am not sure any of this actually means too much.
