One of the biggest winners of the 2024 election season has got to be CNN commentator Scott Jennings, the rare sane voice on a network packed with rage-filled leftists. Jennings’ funny takes on the election, including his “me no understand words good” take on Democrat vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, gave conservatives some comic relief during the stressful months leading up to the election.
And things haven’t slowed down for Jennings since Donald Trump’s win on November 5th. As RedState has been reporting, Jennings continues to have a great time dunking on his leftist colleagues for their ridiculous hot takes on Trump while also offering sage advice to the right after moments like Matt Gaetz removing himself from consideration as Trump’s attorney general.
Scott Jennings takes the issues seriously, but doesn’t take himself too seriously — something deeply lacking in the leftist-controlled media of 2024 — and that makes him relatable to viewers.
It also makes him a hot commodity for those few media elite who are actually taking stock of their failings and at least nominally trying to address them. Shortly after the election, Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong indicated he would be overhauling the entire operation, including the editorial board, to make sure “all voices are heard.”
“If it’s news, it should just be the facts, period,” Soon-Shiong explained to “Fox News @ Night” host Trace Gallagher Thursday. “And if it’s an opinion, that’s maybe an opinion of the news, and that’s what I call now a voice. And so, we want voices from all sides to be heard, and we want the news to be just the facts.”
And Soon-Shiong has made good on that promise by adding none other than Scott Jennings to the LA Times editorial board. Jennings took to X to confirm the news:
It’s true – I’ve accepted @DrPatSoonShiong invitation to join the editorial board of the @latimes. I’ve written columns for the paper over the last few years and was honored to do so under such a storied and important masthead. I love newspapers and believe in strong journalism… https://t.co/GrMa44T6en
— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) November 29, 2024
The text of Jennings’s announcement:
It’s true – I’ve accepted @DrPatSoonShiong invitation to join the editorial board of the @latimes. I’ve written columns for the paper over the last few years and was honored to do so under such a storied and important masthead. I love newspapers and believe in strong journalism and strong opinion pages that represent a wide array of views. I approach my commentary jobs by starting with the truth and then providing my honest opinion based on my conservative values and experience. I think Dr Soon-Shiong is doing something important and groundbreaking and am honored he asked me to play a role in that. Roughly half (or more) of the country often feels like legacy media doesn’t care what it thinks and has little interest in fairly representing its views and values. I plan to represent those Americans who believe they are often ignored or even ridiculed in legacy media and applaud Dr Soon-Shiong’s move to bring balance to the editorial board. My other professional obligations won’t be impacted by this new opportunity.
It’s a smart move. Scott Jennings, although he offers his words on mainstream sites like CNN and the LA Times, understands the changing media landscape and offers an approach that uses humor while coming from a place of truth. With trust in the media at an all-time low, the entire industry needs an overhaul and would do well to follow Jennings’ lead. He’s not mean, and he’s not hateful, but he is direct, and he lands his rhetorical punches using facts.
Right on cue, however, the left has announced it is irate at the thought of a conservative voice being elevated.
On X, liberals have been responding in outrage over the move to appoint Jennings, some saying they had cancelled their subscriptions to the California paper.
One person wrote: ‘If he thinks Jennings is in any way “thoughtful” or “balanced,” he is stupid or ignorant.
‘More likely, he’s pandering to Trump. I’m even happier now that I canceled my 60-year subscription.’
Another added: ‘Sadly, Scott Jennings is being added to the LA Times editorial board. I hope that pushes the LA Times out of business and into bankruptcy!’
The joy is gone, you all. What they don’t see, and apparently never will, is that fair coverage of Donald Trump is not “pandering” — it’s called journalism. And journalism needs voices like Scott Jennings to return a modicum of trust to their profession.
We’ll leave you with this tweet, which sums things up nicely:
It’s so rare for a newspaper to hire a conservative that it made national news. pic.twitter.com/OvJmBiwQCs
— Jon Gabriel (@exjon) November 30, 2024
