Wisconsin Senate debate highlights: Barnes, Johnson face off
Democrat Mandela Barnes and Republican Ron Johnson squared off in a tense second Wisconsin Senate debate Thursday.
The New York Times tweeted out a rhetorically charged description of Wisconsin's U.S. Senate race candidates that led to familiar charges of bias against the liberal outlet.
Leading into the Thursday night debate, the Times sent a tweet that labeled Republican Sen. Ron Johnson as a "leading peddler of misinformation" and Democratic candidate Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes a "rising star."
"Senator Johnson, a leading peddler of misinformation, will debate the lieutenant governor Barnes, a liberal Democrat, who has been touted as one of the party's rising stars. The two will debate at 7 p.m. E.T.." the tweet read.
U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., left, and his Democratic challenger Mandela Barnes shake hands before a televised debate, Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
The paper's preview earned a flurry of negative reaction from conservatives, who criticized the loaded language.
Journalist and former GOP House candidate Matthew Foldi called it a "mask off moment" for the paper.
"This one sided editorializing by NYT is…insane and unprofessional, but also totally expected," he remarked.
The New York Times was criticized for how it described Wisconsin's two U.S. Senate race candidates. (iStock)
"The New York Times is a leading peddler of misinformation," quipped NewsBusters executive editor Tim Graham.
NewsBusters analyst Alex Christy asked, "I don't know why nobody trusts the media. Anybody got any theories?"
RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway simply reacted to the Times tweet with, "Clowns."
"Mostly neutral press," Breitbart News Pentagon correspondent Kristina Wong sarcastically tweeted.
Investigative Researcher for the Capital Research Center, Parker Thayer, couldn't believe it was real: "This is a joke right? I mean I know media is always going to have some bias, but look at this chyron…. geez…" He added, "@nytimes do better."
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The Times did not immediately return a request for comment to Fox News Digital.
The paper has often been called out for showing political bias in its tweets.
In May, the paper earned backlash after it deleted, and then resent, with softer language, a tweet talking about the passing of a left-wing domestic terrorist.