When NBC aired its coverage of former President Donald Trump’s New York conviction, the scenes they chose to depict were a little off-kilter as it turns out. The network showcased footage of an ‘outraged’ Trump supporter, who happened to be Tony Barbieri, an actor employed by Jimmy Kimmel, staging an exaggerated portrayal of a Trump supporter.
Barbieri’s stint wasn’t something new; he’s well known for his character “Jake Byrd” on Jimmy Kimmel Live! where he masquerades as an exaggerated conservative and travels the country stoking political humor. This wasn’t Barbieri’s first rodeo either. In 2022, CNN unknowingly featured him as a Herschel Walker supporter.
While reporting on Trump’s conviction, Laura Jarrett of NBC described the supposedly heated atmosphere among Trump supporters around her. However, the spectacle that was Barbieri’s performance should’ve raised a few eyebrows. His “Free Father Teresa” sign, a jest on a comment Trump made during the trial, should’ve tipped off NBC about his true persona.
Gaining quite some traction for his act, Barbieri managed to get featured in a Spanish news outlet, TV3CAT. His chosen answer to the reporter’s question “why are you here today?” laid bare his comedic pretense. He responded, “It’s not that we think Trump is innocent. It’s that we don’t care.”
When CBS showed the conviction’s footage, Barbieri’s antics were seen in the background. All the while, the correspondent reported on the nationwide anger and frustration of genuine Trump supporters. Barbieri even got to share his ‘pearls of wisdom’ with a British reporter, questioning the meaning of ‘fraud’ and nonchalantly declaring Trump ‘not guilty’ when the crime was explained to him.
This incident serves as a comedic learning curve for various news outlets, including Mediaite, the Guardian, and even Fox News, that need to be extra cautious before jumping to conclusions or choosing their ‘representative’ voices. Ensuring the people they feature truly represent their cause is an integral part of journalistic credibility. Don’t let loosely lurking Barbiaris fool you, folks.
This incident is a clear case of media outlets ignoring red flags for the sake of capturing a sensational moment, falling basically for a well-known actor disguised as a riled-up supporter. Readers and viewers need to critically examine the news they are served. Don’t let the misrepresentations fool you. Keep your eyes peeled for the real story behind the headlines.
