Former cable news host Bill O’Reilly has been one of the foremost critics of mainstream media outlets in recent years. He believes that the job isn’t as difficult as some make it out to be.
Last week, a false social media post claiming that a juror told a family member that former President Donald Trump would be found guilty in New York went viral. The post was found to be a hoax, but received widespread media attention before the truth was uncovered.
Bill O’Reilly argued it’s the latest in a long line of media members running with a story before validating it.
“If I feel that somebody is being blatantly dishonest, then I go after that person. But this was just an example of how many media people in this country do not do their jobs well. It’s as simple as that,” he said during his No Spin News program. “You got to check all this. You can’t be lifting stuff off the internet and reporting it. I can’t even lift stuff off the Associated Press or Reuters news services anymore. I got to check everything.”
He continued that “propaganda” from both presidential campaigns makes the job slightly more difficult, though.
“But it’s really hard to be an honest journalist in this country today,” he said. “Because the deception factor is huge. But these people don’t care. And worst of all, their companies don’t hold them accountable.”
