CBS News scrubs headline panned as Dem 'activism' on report promoting 'fight' against Georgia election law
The original headline was '3 ways companies can help fight Georgia's restrictive new voting law'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CBS News is being slammed for a report on the controversial new Georgia voting law that some critics called "partisan advocacy."
On Friday, CBS tweeted out a report headlined "3 ways companies can help fight Georgia's restrictive new voting law," which outlined how corporations could combat the GOP-backed law.
It triggered a furious reaction from conservatives on social media.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"LOL this tweet is outright partisan advocacy," Washington Examiner reporter Jerry Dunleavy reacted.
"I missed the announcement that CBS is now a Democratic SuperPAC," RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway quipped.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Putting aside that the premise here is a lie, on what planet is it acceptable for a news organization to engage in this type of activism and then expect to be taken seriously?" conservative writer A.G. Hamilton asked.
On Saturday, not only did CBS News delete the tweet, but it also reframed the report to downplay its advocacy.
"Activists are calling on big companies to challenge new voting laws. Here's what they're asking for," the headline now reads.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The report did not include an editor's note explaining the change.
The rest of the report, written by CBS Money Watch reporter Khristopher J. Brooks, appears to have remained intact, including the three steps that outlined the activism as the original headline promised.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"1. Do not donate," Brooks wrote. "Activists said companies should immediately stop making donations to Barry Fleming and Michael Dugan, the Georgia Republicans who co-sponsored the voting changes."
The CBS reporter then shamed companies like Coca-Cola, Delta, Home Depot and UPS for their various donations to Fleming and Dugan since 2018.
"Ending political donations is one of the most immediately impactful steps a company can take to sway lawmakers," Brooks explained, echoing voter rights activist Nse Ufot.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The second step, which was to "spread awareness," urged companies to produce ads that "help stamp out efforts nationwide to pass voting laws similar to Georgia's," pointing to Arizona and Texas as the next potential targets.
"Activists say it isn't enough for companies to issue tepid public statements in defense of voting rights," Brooks wrote, this time echoing Black Voters Matter executive director Cliff Albright. "Instead, companies should launch television and social media ads that oppose efforts in Georgia, Arizona, Texas and other states considering voter restrictions."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The third step was "fight for federal law," which championed the "election law overhaul known as the 'For the People Act.'"
"If passed, the act would create same-day and online voter registration nationwide. It would also require states to overhaul their registration systems. The act seeks to expand absentee voting, limit the states' ability to remove people from voter rolls, increase federal funds for election security and reform the redistricting process," Brooks explained.