A letter allegedly from a top-rated talk show host, Rush Limbaugh, is going viral on social media Friday and Saturday and is found on numerous Conservative Media outlets.
“My days on earth are numbered; But before I fade away, there is something important I need to say. It may not be important to anyone else, but it’s important to me. Win, lose, or fraud, President Trump, I want to thank you for the last four years.
Thank you for making it cool to be an American again. Thank you for showing us that we don’t need to be under China’s thumb anymore economically or any other way. Thank you for one of the strongest economies we’ve ever experienced in my lifetime,” the alleged letter from Limbaugh starts.
As many Limbaugh fans are praying for his recovery and anxious to hear from their favorite broadcaster, it is understandable how such a post is known as “Open Letter to President Trump, From Limbaugh” would go viral. Understandably, people would be searching for comfort or updates about Limbaugh’s prognosis since he has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
For those same reasons, it is also why people should be suspicious of emotionally charged posts about Limbaugh.
The letter has not been validated, the author has not been identified, and we as consumers of media must learn how to determine authentic news sources. Everyone makes mistakes, but media outlets should be leery of this post, which obviously lacks credibility.
Nowhere is there any proof this letter came from Limbaugh, and in fact, Reuters published a fact check, which as painful as it is to admit, proves the letter going viral is not a recent letter from Limbaugh.
“A Google search of the quote brings up the letter on multiple websites and blogs, often not directly attributed to Limbaugh. It was published by the Florida Times-Union as a guest column here on Jan. 17, 2021, and The Bakersfield Californian as a letter to the editor here on Jan. 13, 2021. Both were attributed to different residents, but not Limbaugh.
According to CrowdTangle, a social media monitoring and research tool, the letter first appeared on Facebook here on Dec. 24, 2020, with no attribution, and on Jan. 22, 2021, with attribution to Limbaugh here.
A spokesperson for Premiere Networks, which syndicates The Rush Limbaugh Show, told Reuters via email that “These are not Rush Limbaugh’s words.”
As citizen journalists and even as average posters on social media, we need to be better than CNN and Mainstream Media, who post unsourced gossip.
In the coming weeks and months, with an impeachment show trial, Supreme Court Trials, and Washington DC’s apparent militarization, we need to know we are gathering and posting facts and not gossip.
The left enjoys watching the right fall for fake news, and they often float false stories that are heavy with emotional triggers, like this letter from Limbaugh, to make us react.
And falling for a bad story has happened to most of us. Let’s all pledge to each other to do better, so we can clean up our own side.
Trust but verify all information you post going forward; let’s try to protect each other.
FACT CHECK ON LIMBAUGH LETTER
Sorry Y’all, that letter did not come from Rush Limbaugh. Let’s all use this opportunity to ‘level up’ and do better. I will as well.
Kari is an ex-Community Organizer who writes about Cultural Marxism, grassroots activism, music, IndyCar racing and political campaigns. @Saorsa1776
