CNN – Consider The Source

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Darrell Castle talks about the arrogance of the news media and CNN’s attack on the free speech and privacy rights of Mr. Han A. Solo and by implication all Americans.

Transcript

CNN—CONSIDER THE SOURCE

Hello this is Darrell Castle with today’s Castle Report. Today is Friday July 21, 2017 and on Today’s report we will be talking about the incredible losing streak CNN has been on for the last couple of weeks and  what the Cable News Network has done this time.

But first let’s talk about some of the things that have been happening in the world since I talked to you last week. My wife and I flew to Los Angeles immediately after posting last week’s report to see our daughter and son-in-law. She had quite a weekend planned for us with some interesting people. We saw Tony Bennett at the Hollywood Bowl. Tony is in his 90’s now but he still puts on a great show.

Meanwhile, in Europe, Hamburg Germany hosted the G-20 summit which also turned out to be quite a show. Tens of thousands of protesters, estimated 30-40 thousand, poured into the streets These Antifa or Anti-Fascists are becoming more fascist by the day it seems. Antifa mobs burned cars, attacked police, and attacked anyone they considered to be not one of them. They also burned and looted businesses. The mayor of New York City, Bill DeBlasio, was right there with them strutting through the streets of Hamburg, hating the police, hating America, and most of all hating Donald Trump.

The protesters reserved their strongest hatred for capitalism which they blamed for causing the things they hate namely prosperity and liberty. Capitalism is the greatest engine of prosperity for the greatest number of people that has yet existed therefore they hate it. Why would these people burn and loot businesses; because they are Communists and Communists are thieves. They are totalitarian thieves but they usually want to legitimize their theft by the use of what they call democracy. This year, 2017, is the 100^th anniversary of the rise of communism in the Soviet Union with its roughly 100 million deaths it is not something to march in the streets in support of.

Fortunately that is not what we are here to report today. We have something far more interesting to discuss and that is The Cable News Network (CNN). For the last few weeks CNN has been making more news than it has been reporting.  First, the network had to back away from a couple of stories linking Trump officials to Russia, and a few executives were fired as a result.

Here’s a little background on the real story of today’s report in case you haven’t heard it. Several years ago, long before he became president, Donald Trump did a professional wrestling show with Vince McMahan, the head of the professional wrestling organization that put the show on. It was billed as the battle of the billionaires and Mr. Trump was supposed to fight or wrestle Vince McMahan. Mr. Trump was the winner and McMahan took quite a beating. It was all for show of course and everyone knew it.

Fast forward until present day when a clever internet user took the fight video and superimposed CNN’s logo over Vince McMahan’s head so that it looked like President Trump was pummeling CNN. When President Trump saw it he sent it back out through his own social media account and it went, as they say, viral.

Instead of just laughing it off with a comment about how clever it was the arrogant and self righteous people at CNN took it upon themselves to hunt down a private citizen who was well within his legal rights and apparently blackmail or coerce that person into a groveling apology. The internet user went under the name HanA…Solo. The letter A was actually the common term for rectum but I will refer to him as Han A. In case you haven’t watched a movie in the last 50 years or so, Han Solo is a character from the Star Wars series of movies.

A CNN official named Andrew Kaczynski took it upon himself to hunt down HanASolo and discover his real name so he could unleash CNN’s minions upon him.. They did find and identify him and did contact him by email, text, voicemail or some such method. HanA then called CNN before they actually spoke to him but not before they contacted him. Mr. Solo, fearing for his and his family’s well being, and possibly even his life apologized. He knew what would happen if CNN sicced it’s mob of fanatics on him.  He would have people harass him and his neighbors, his boss would get a call, his wife’s boss would get a call, his kids’ teachers would get a call, etc.

So he apologized in a very groveling fashion. CNN issued a statement saying it would not publish his real name because he is a private citizen and he had apologized and agreed to take down the offending post and to never do such a thing again. He also agreed to advise others not to do such a thing in the future. CNN reserved the “right” to publish his identity should his promise be broken.

That, of course, is the real reason for CNN’s behavior, i.e. a chilling effect on the free speech and privacy rights of all Americans. HanASolo is not just one clever guy with a computer; he is every person in America with a computer; he is the internet, he is all of us. So the message is no one should dare laugh at or make fun of the great and powerful Cable News Network again. I wonder if Mr. Andrew Kaczynski consulted his legal team before he went after HanASplo because what CNN did is quite possibly a felony. To use threats, intimidation, or coercion to prevent someone from doing what he is legally entitled to do is possibly criminal in Georgia where CNN is headquartered, in New York where Mr. Kaczynski  is located as well as Federally.

Apparently Mr. Kaczynski is unfamiliar with the Gawker case from 2016 in which a Florida jury awarded wrestler Hulk Hogan a.k.a. Terry Bollea a 115 million dollar verdict against Gawker Media for publishing a sex tape showing Hogan having sex with his friend’s wife. Hogan’s lawyer said “Gawker was playing God with my client’s privacy”. The case seemed to separate the public persona of Hulk Hogan from the private life of Terry Bollea just as in CNN’s case it might be able to separate the public HanASolo from whoever he actually is. Gawker Media went bankrupt auctioned off all its assets and closed.

That might be a fitting end for the arrogant and despicable CNN. Ted Turner’s dream of a 24 hour news service has turned from a dream to a nightmare. The company needs to learn that if it abuses the rights of private citizens through threats, intimidation, and or coercion it will be held accountable. Something along the lines of the Gawker verdict might be in order. Even though what CNN did was possibly criminal we know that there are now two sets of laws and no rule of law so no prosecution will likely happen.

A civil lawsuit, however, has real possibilities. A civil lawsuit against CNN, Mr. Andrew Kaczynski personally as well as anyone else, who reviewed, edited or approved the action just might get their attention. Mr. HanASolo if you listen to this or read the transcript, I would love to discuss what really went on between you and CNN representatives. Just email me at my published email address and we’ll talk.

Free speech and privacy are important folks; important enough to fight for. The media’s arrogance toward private citizens needs to be curtailed when it causes damage. Politically correct prosecutors may not be willing to do their jobs but a civil jury just might, especially if the case could be brought in the right jurisdiction. Perhaps Mr. HanASolo lives and was contacted in Florida or Mississippi. That would be nice wouldn’t it?

At least that’s the way I see it.

Until next time folks,

This is Darrel Castle

Thanks for listening.