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The term “fake news” has become attached to some of America’s major news outlets. Now a YMCA in Valparaiso, Ind., has decided to ban CNN from its TVs after customers complained the news network falsifies stories.
“In order to eliminate perceived political bias associated with national news outlets, the Valparaiso Family YMCA will only be showing local news channels in the future,” the Valparaiso YMCA said in a statement.
Chicago Tribune reporter/columnist Jerry Davich said he asked Valparaiso YMCA CEO Robert Wanek to elaborate on why the decision was made, and Wanek responded, “I cannot pinpoint the change origins, only to add that we get dozens of requests to change channels every day from numerous interest groups.”
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“We just want the Y to be a haven for wellness where people come together and have a sense of belonging, gain new relationships and achieve their personal goals,” Wanek added. “We will display local news moving forward.”
Davich complained that “the Y’s decision to remove all national news outlets from its televisions says more about its leaders than its members. You’d think this story would be just another example of fake news. Sadly, it’s not.”
He said he wondered if the company was “simply exercising its right to appease as many members as possible, or is the new Donald Trump-led America already flexing its muscles?”
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YMCA member Greg Quartucci told CBS Chicago the decision to remove CNN from wellness center TVs was made shortly after Trump confronted CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta, calling his network “terrible” and “fake news.”
The day before Trump’s confrontation with Acosta, CNN reported on an unsubstantiated intelligence document accusing him of scurrilous conduct.
Trump often complained during the presidential campaign that CNN was biased in favor of his opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, often calling it the “Clinton News Network.”
Some on Twitter celebrated the YMCA’s move.
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#Banning @CNN from all public places is a great first step in bringing #America around. I sincerely hope others follow #YMCA. #tcot #MAGA
— Anna Teresa Arnold (@HomerWhite) January 20, 2017
YES!!! Keep Speaking Out!
Indiana YMCA Removes #CNN from TVs Over Complaints About '#FakeNews' https://t.co/5SBcn4B2Sd#TrumpInauguration
— Amy Mek (@AmyMek) January 19, 2017
Quartucci, however, said he disagreed with the decision. “To me, it’s blatant censorship that I find very surprising,” he said.
It was reported Thursday that CNN is currently on the lookout to hire a journalist who will cover “fake news.”
A Turner job advertisement said it wanted someone with six years of writing and reporting experience who gets “angry every time they see an inaccuracy.”
The ad states: “This writer should live on the Internet, and be intimately aware of its darkest corners. They should be capable of doing a quick news story, and of spending days or weeks obsessing about a subject.”
