An out-of-context viral clip, presented in a misleading way, making spurious accusations of bigotry against a political opponent. An internet pile-on that starts on X and bleeds into media discourse and the halls of Congress. Facts that later come out and debunk the original narrative, but few ever hear about it or bother to update their statements.
Sound familiar?
No, we’re not talking about the infamous smearing of a Covington Catholic student or one of the other countless examples of “woke” cancel culture run amok that tore society apart over the last decade. We’re actually talking about the latest Republican crusade against Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) — yes, seriously.
It all started when Newsom, as part of a “book tour” that’s clearly part of a pre-presidential campaign strategy, spoke at an event in Atlanta moderated by the mayor. Then, the right-wing Twitter account “End Wokeness” pulled a 38-second clip of Newsom speaking, cropped out the question he was responding to, and framed it as follows to the 52+ million people who have since seen the tweet: “Gov. Newsom to a black crowd in GA: ‘I am like you. I’m a 960 SAT guy. I can’t read.’” (In the actual attached video, he says he can’t read speeches, not that he can’t read.)
The pile-on was swift and severe.
New MAGA icon Nicki Minaj seized on the clip to say, “His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can’t read.”
Right-wing media star Megyn Kelly boldly concluded, “This clip will haunt him forever.” (Because if the Trump era has taught us anything, it’s that one racially insensitive comment is a political career-ender.)
In my personal favorite, the serial plagiarist turned MAGA YouTube sensation Benny Johnson similarly claimed that Newsom had “ended his career” with this blatant racism. Johnson even used AI to make a thumbnail image that depicted Newsom holding a watermelon and fried chicken while surrounded by angry black people.
You kind of have to see it to believe it:
Donald Trump Jr. got in on the pile-on, calling Newsom “insane and racist beyond belief.”
Even members of Congress, such as Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL), took this random X account’s narrative at face value and joined in on this condemnation.
Now, if Newsom really told a room full of black people that he was just like them because he got low test scores and can’t read, that kind of racially inflammatory and condescending remark would justify at least some degree of this viral backlash. And, to be clear, I come at this entire story as a longtime critic of Newsom, who has bashed him for everything from his horrific and hypocritical pandemic policies to his failed liberal economic agenda to his insane embrace of transgender activism and beyond. But I also try to be fair — and the claim that he engaged in any kind of racism in this viral clip falls apart under even the most cursory scrutiny.
First, the entire claim that Newsom was racist relies on the assertion that he was speaking to a “black audience.” He was not. Yes, Atlanta’s population is roughly half black, which may have prompted this assumption, but, as both photos and videos show, the actual audience at the event was mixed race, perhaps even majority white.
The idea that Newsom was engaged in racist condescension instantly falls apart, given that he never said anything about race and that he was speaking to a mixed-race audience.
To be clear, he’s still engaged in disingenuous pandering — most of us aren’t multimillionaire celebrity governors who married into money — and trying to milk his dyslexia for relatability points. But none of that is racist.
What’s more, the full context of the clip, which the “End Wokeness” deceptively omitted, makes it clear that the question asked was: “What do you want the reader [of your book] to know about you?”
As a result, there is no reason to believe that when Newsom said, “I’m just like you” and then cited his low SAT score, he was exclusively or specifically referring to black people, rather than the general public.
What’s more, Newsom has made very similar statements in many past interviews, so it’s not like this is just a line he trots out for (supposedly) black crowds. Putting this all together, the entire “racism” accusation is meritless, and yet, almost none of those who lobbed it have taken it back or updated their perspective.
THE U.S. HOCKEY TEAM KNELT AND THAT’S WHAT MATTERS
The takeaway here is clear. Republicans and conservatives quite rightly condemned liberals and liberal media for their ideological weaponization of baseless bigotry accusations for years. But in this latest viral pile-on against Newsom, they have exhibited the same toxic tendencies and fallen for the same tribal impulses — when they’re supposed to be the ones who know better.
Brad Polumbo is an independent journalist and host of the Brad vs Everyone podcast.
