NPR’s Nina Totenberg Commits Journalistic Malpractice

There’s an old saying in journalism: It’s nice to be first, but it’s more important to be right. Or something like that. Hey, it’s been nine years since I spent my days in the company of beard tuggers who spouted moth-eaten maxims, so forgive me if I got this one wrong.

That, however, would be a small mistake. An understandable one.

The error NPR’s Nina Totenberg made on Tuesday amounts to journalistic malpractice.

She should be fired, although at age 82 it’s unclear why she still has a job. That’s NPR for you.

Here’s what happened: Shortly after the Supreme Court opinions were released on Tuesday, NPR’s Totenberg broke the “news” that Justice Samuel Alito announced his retirement.

Leave it to NPR. Even when they get it wrong, their bias shows. In all his years on the bench, the only thing notable about Alito to the lefties in public broadcasting was that he penned the Dobbs decision. Abortion really is sacred to these leftists.

Minutes after her “scoop” went live, it became apparent that Totenberg’s got it wrong. Alito had NOT announced his retirement.

NPR took down the fake story without explanation, leaving it to the worst journalist in America to try to explain what happened.

Later, tail between her legs, Totenberg sent this implausible explanation to Alito:

"Dear Justice Alito, there are no words to adequately apologize for today's error in reporting your retirement. It was entirely my fault. I rushed out of the courtroom after the opinion announcements, and when I realized that the usual rush of folks after a few minutes had not happened, I asked somebody was going on inside, to which the answer was, 'retirement announcements.' I didn't hear the 's' on 'announcements,' and I assumed something no reporter should ever do, that you were retiring. It was the worst professional mistake of my more than 50 years in journalism. I could go on, but I don't know what else to say, except that I am so, so sorry."

This is the most bizarre, unbelievable excuse ever offered for a phony story. We’re supposed to believe that this Supreme Court reporter with a half century of experience overheard some randos talking and rushed to get it in print?

Sorry, Nina, not buying it. I think you’ve been way too chummy with some of the justices over the years and one of them leaked this to you prematurely.

Maybe, just maybe, Alito is still upset about the leak in the Dobbs case, which put all of the conservative justices lives at risk. I’d be willing to bet he planted this story with the person he suspected of leaking the news that Roe v Wade was about to be overturned in a brilliant canary trap.

Alito may now know who did the leaking at the court. Perhaps the rest of us will also know soon.

Later that day, in an appearance on “All Things Considered” Totenberg called her fake story “a rookie mistake.”

Absurd. Any rookie who peddled an entirely made up story would be fired on the spot and filing for unemployment the next day.

Look, there has been speculation for the past two years that Justice Alito, 76, wants to retire while Trump is in office to avoid being replaced on the court by another leftie midwit like Ketanji Brown Jackson should a Democrat win in 2028.

Many outlets have file stories written about all of the justices in the event one should die suddenly or retire. (Just as news outlets had Mitch McConnell’s obit ready in case he leaves us soon.)

Come to think of it, at 82 Nina Totenberg is the Mitch McConnell of journalism. Old, barely functioning with terrible judgment.