If the name Mara Gay doesn’t instantly ring a bell, don’t berate yourself. Her “fifteen minutes” came two weeks ago when she appeared on air with MSNBC anchor Brian Williams. Gay shared a tweet she had read that claimed Michael Bloomberg could have used the $500 million he spent on his campaign to give each American $1 million. As numerous people pointed out, the tweet writer’s basic math skills left much to be desired. Ditto for Gay and Williams, both of whom were impressed not only by the flawed arithmetic but by the writer’s “logic.”
Now Gay, whose day job is editor for the New York Times, is in the news again. Another tweet is involved, but this time Gay is the author. The tweet, which follows, links back to a Times article that makes the same claim: that Donald Trump, in a conference call with the nation’s governors, told them they were “on their own” when it comes to obtaining much-needed equipment to fight the coronavirus.
Trump told governors this morning they are on their own:
“Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment — try getting it yourselves,” Mr. Trump told the governors during the conference call, a recording of which was shared with The New York Times. https://t.co/K0sont7MBc— Mara Gay (@MaraGay) March 16, 2020
Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Unfortunately for Gay, an audio clip of the conference call is available, enabling readers to hear the unabridged version of the president’s message, which follows:
Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment — try getting it yourselves. We will be backing you, but try getting it yourselves. Point of sales, much better, much more direct if you can get it yourself. [Emphasis added]
By the way, both a transcript of the call and the above sound file can be found at a source near and dear to gay: the New York Times.
At a time when the nation needs all the information it can get in dealing with a health crisis, it behooves the media to put aside politics and work toward the greater good.
