Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro accused The New York Times of working with far-left advocacy group Media Matters for America in order to get anyone who opposed Vice President Kamala Harris silenced on YouTube, supplying screenshots of a reporter who noted he was working with the progressive organization.
Media Matters, founded in 2004 by longtime Clinton ally David Brock, is often cited by legacy news organizations as a media watchdog. It has built a reputation for organizing pressure campaigns against conservative voices it opposes, including boycott movements. Shapiro took to social media to reveal that he might be the group’s next target.
“If you were wondering what the legacy media would plan for its October surprise, wonder no longer: it’s here. Today, I received the following text from a reporter at @NYTimes,” Shapiro wrote to caption a text message he received on Monday from New York Times reporter Nico Grant.
“I wanted to give you an opportunity to comment for an upcoming article that takes a look at how political commentators have discussed the upcoming election on YouTube. We rely on analysis conducted by researchers at Media Matters for America,” the Times reporter wrote.
Grant asked Shapiro to provide a comment by the end of the day on Tuesday before noting “points we plan to include.”
Media Matters identified “286 YouTube videos between May and August that contained election misinformation, including narratives that have been debunked or are not supported with credible evidence,” Grant wrote, according to images of the text message posted by Shapiro.