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Right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson, known for plagiarism and falsehoods, receives White House support and access, despite his history of spreading misinformation.
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{ "tone": "informative", "perspective": "critical", "audience": "general", "credibility_indicators": [ "data_cited", "expert_quotes", "police_records" ] }
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Johnson, a right-wing podcaster, has enjoyed rare access and promotion from the Trump administration.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson has enjoyed rare access and promotion from Trump administration", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888de-52dd-4514-a3ce-d4a1d783e26a", "text": "Benny Johnson, a podcaster, was invited by the White House to sit in the new media area at the administration\u2019s press briefing in August.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson was invited to White House press briefing in August", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888df-5bb7-4851-8c6b-3c3e81c94cdf", "text": "The privilege includes being called on first by the 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"simplified_text": "Police records show nobody murdered since 2017 on Benny Johnson's block in Washington", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e2-2e15-4cb7-ac23-175981e9de8d", "text": "his home was not burned, though his next-door neighbor\u2019s house was \u201cintentionally set\u201d on fire, according to the city\u2019s fire department.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson's home was not burned neighbor's house was intentionally set on fire", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e3-2508-4f26-9dd1-751db15a8b7a", "text": "Mr. Johnson left Washington permanently in 2021.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson left Washington permanently in 2021", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e4-17ee-4f70-a628-873486d61db4", "text": "Since taking office, Mr. Trump and his aides have routinely excoriated traditional news outlets for what they call misleading and dishonest reporting about the administration.", "simplified_text": "Trump administration has excoriated traditional news outlets for misleading reporting", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e5-1d50-46d6-95b7-9d5c31d9ef28", "text": "The White House has had no such reservations about right-leaning influencers, figures such as Mr. Johnson, who have a documented history of playing fast and loose with the facts.", "simplified_text": "White House has no reservations about right-leaning influencers like Benny Johnson", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e6-177c-441c-9c15-90c85dbe155c", "text": "These new media personalities enjoy rare access and support from the administration.", "simplified_text": "New media personalities enjoy rare access and support from Trump administration", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e7-1435-4048-bc55-0b66bd62877f", "text": "They, in turn, give the White House unwavering cheerleading for the administration\u2019s agenda, blasted out to millions of followers on social media.", "simplified_text": "New media personalities give White House unwavering cheerleading for its agenda", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e8-10ab-46bc-b1d4-0231e49f7ee3", "text": "Among them is Jack Posobiec, who in 2017 helped spread the debunked \u201cPizzagate\u201d conspiracy theory and last year stated that his goal was to \u201coverthrow\u201d democracy", "simplified_text": "Jack Posobiec helped spread Pizzagate conspiracy theory in 2017 stated goal to overthrow democracy last year", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e9-03e3-4b16-bede-341fdc191dc8", "text": "Tim Pool, a podcaster who last fall was revealed to have been paid indirectly by Russia as part of a secret political influence operation", "simplified_text": "Tim Pool was revealed to have been paid by Russia last fall", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888e9-f5f3-44fb-ac7e-d99acc35bc5c", "text": "Julie Kelly, a right-wing journalist who helped start the false narrative that the Jan. 6, 2021, riots were an \u201cinside job.\u201d", "simplified_text": "Julie Kelly helped start false narrative that Jan 6 riots were inside job", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ea-e549-496c-a651-946f95713414", "text": "Over the years, he has been fired from one job for plagiarism and suspended from another for publishing an article containing an unfounded conspiracy theory about Barack Obama that was later retracted.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson was fired for plagiarism suspended for conspiracy theory about Barack Obama", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888eb-e39a-4e61-8eb1-0a1063a3cfc2", "text": "He has been accused of repeatedly propagating false election information and, like Mr. Pool, produced videos that had been secretly funded, via a seemingly legitimate media firm, by Kremlin operatives.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson accused of propagating false election information produced videos funded by Kremlin operatives", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ec-e437-4224-a951-fd0b5da21c63", "text": "Mr. Johnson has repeatedly been given access to high-level Trump administration officials and invited to take place in numerous events, including sitting on a Justice Department panel titled \u201cForum on Big Tech Censorship\u201d a few months ago and occupying the coveted new media seat on an important day for the White House.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson given access to Trump administration officials invited to events", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ed-e30c-4332-af5a-f3f0b0e00aa7", "text": "Americans\u2019 trust in the mass media is at its lowest point in more than five decades.", "simplified_text": "Americans' trust in mass media is at lowest point in five decades", "claim_maker": "Davis Ingle", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ee-dc2d-4928-8509-706f2f7daba9", "text": "That\u2019s why the White House has embraced new voices across the political spectrum with significant and growing audiences to better reflect the media habits of the American people in 2025", "simplified_text": "White House has embraced new voices to reflect media habits of American people in 2025", "claim_maker": "Davis Ingle", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ef-d4cd-47fc-a7ff-487af4cac616", "text": "Mr. Johnson, 39, a father of four who is originally from Iowa, got his start in media in 2011 at The Blaze, the right-of-center website started by the former Fox News host Glenn Beck.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson started in media in 2011 at The Blaze", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f0-e200-4b93-b75f-93265bf08b29", "text": "He jumped to BuzzFeed News in 2012, but was fired two years later, after the publication found instances of plagiarism in 41 of his articles.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson jumped to BuzzFeed News in 2012 was fired for plagiarism in 41 articles", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f1-d7a7-416c-aaf1-d716296a1ef0", "text": "Three years later, while at the Independent Journal Review, a conservative news site, he was accused of plagiarism again.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson was accused of plagiarism again at Independent Journal Review", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f2-be48-49e9-adcb-7e492935e328", "text": "Shortly after that, he was suspended and demoted after assigning an article that falsely implied that Mr. Obama had influenced a federal judge\u2019s ruling that adversely affected Mr. Trump.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson was suspended demoted for article falsely implying Obama influenced judge's ruling", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f3-b911-457e-8b83-89ed6db12103", "text": "Later, Mr. Johnson wrote an article that was retracted because it contained social media posts falsely attributed to the antifascist antifa movement.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson wrote article that was retracted contained posts falsely attributed to antifa", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f4-a9c7-45bb-8d47-de77b0f1ba43", "text": "Last fall, federal prosecutors revealed charges against two Kremlin operatives who had paid $10 million to a company called Tenet Media to produce video content as part of an influence operation.", "simplified_text": "Federal prosecutors revealed Kremlin operatives paid $10 million to Tenet Media for influence operation last fall", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f5-a1ce-4834-b2c5-baa80936ca23", "text": "Mr. Johnson was one of the influencers contracted by Tenet to make that content.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson was contracted by Tenet to make content", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f6-8c1a-4d6f-b2d3-dcb038764ea3", "text": "More recently, Mr. Johnson drew scrutiny for gaining 2.5 million new subscribers to his YouTube channel from April to July of this year, a huge spike that nearly doubled his already large following on the platform.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson gained 2.5 million new YouTube subscribers from April to July 2025", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f7-7fc6-49a1-8b5c-2e506e5d6e83", "text": "But over that same period, total monthly views of his videos decreased by more than 40 million, according to data from the analytics firm Social Blade.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson's monthly video views decreased by 40 million from April to July 2025", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f8-765b-4e84-b7cb-1f2db3ac4910", "text": "Nicole Bell, a YouTube spokeswoman, said Mr. Johnson had paid for advertisements meant to drive subscriptions on the platform.", "simplified_text": "Nicole Bell said Benny Johnson paid for YouTube advertisements to drive subscriptions", "claim_maker": "Nicole Bell", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888f9-6b4c-4367-902c-033491cd83fd", "text": "The company\u2019s public tool for searching ads on the site shows three such spots, far fewer than the hundreds that many other YouTube accounts buy to build their brands.", "simplified_text": "YouTube's public tool shows three Benny Johnson ads", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888fa-647f-4584-9de1-3c7b1d7a12e9", "text": "Ms. Bell said YouTube \u201cdid not find any evidence of inauthentic traffic, including inauthentic channel subscriptions or views,\u201d on Mr. Johnson\u2019s account.", "simplified_text": "YouTube did not find evidence of inauthentic traffic on Benny Johnson's account", "claim_maker": "Nicole Bell", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888fb-4897-41af-a776-8baa6a1fcbe8", "text": "On any given day, Mr. Johnson cranks out three or four YouTube videos, a two-hour podcast, an Instagram story or two, and a dozen posts on X, covering a variety of topics but unwavering in its support of Mr. Trump\u2019s agenda.", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson produces content daily supporting Trump's agenda", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888fc-44db-4094-b4b7-56350a7e66ac", "text": "Early this month, after a Department of Government Efficiency employee was bloodied in a late-night assault, Mr. Trump posted to Truth Social about crime in Washington, calling it \u201ctotally out of control.\u201d", "simplified_text": "Trump posted about crime in Washington after assault on government employee", "claim_maker": "Ken Bensinger", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888fd-362a-42ac-a8f2-f9e054c37c7a", "text": "Mr. Johnson soon jumped into the conversation, posting a video the next morning saying that the topic \u201chits near and dear to my heart\u201d and that \u201cmy family nearly died.\u201d", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson posted video saying topic hits near to his heart his family nearly died", "claim_maker": "Benny Johnson", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888fe-2c16-409f-850d-cc45d81294f7", "text": "He added that \u201cmy home was burned to the ground\u201d and that \u201cpeople were murdered in my front yard.\u201d", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson said his home was burned to the ground people were murdered in his front yard", "claim_maker": "Benny Johnson", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null }, { "uuid": "9fc888ff-2492-4d23-8cb9-aaaa0ea6a517", "text": "Several days later, he posted footage on X from a security camera outside his former home that he said showed \u201cwhat life was like for a family living in DC.\u201d", "simplified_text": "Benny Johnson posted security camera footage from former home showing life in DC", "claim_maker": "Benny Johnson", "claim_subject_tags": [ "General" ], "confidence": 0.5, "context_type": "Website Article", "similarity_found": false, "linked_to": null, "similarity_score": null } ], "improved_author": null, "suggested_reeval_at": "indefinite" } }
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<html lang="en" class="story nytapp-vi-article nytapp-vi-story story nytapp-vi-article " data-nyt-compute-assignment="fallback" xmlns:og="http://opengraphprotocol.org/schema/" data-rh="lang,class"><head> <meta charset="utf-8"> <title>Benny Johnson Was Fired for Plagiarism. At the White House, Heβs Embraced. - The New York Times</title> <meta data-rh="true" name="robots" content="noarchive, max-image-preview:large"><meta data-rh="true" name="description" content="Benny Johnson, a right-wing podcaster, has enjoyed rare access and promotion from the Trump administration."><meta data-rh="true" property="twitter:url" content="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/30/business/media/trump-benny-johnson.html"><meta data-rh="true" property="twitter:title" content="Benny Johnson Was Fired for Plagiarism. At the White House, Heβs Embraced."><meta data-rh="true" property="twitter:description" content="Benny Johnson, a right-wing podcaster, has enjoyed rare access and promotion from...
He Plagiarized and Promoted Falsehoods. The White House Embraces Him. Benny Johnson, a right-wing podcaster, has enjoyed rare access and promotion from the Trump administration. By Ken Bensinger Aug. 30, 2025 The day after President Trump announced the federal takeover of law enforcement in Washington, the White House invited the podcaster Benny Johnson to sit in what is called the new media seat at the administrationβs press briefing. The privilege includes being called on first by the press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. Mr. Johnson took the opportunity at the briefing to recount what he claimed was his own experience with crime in the nationβs capital in recent years. He said that he had recorded murders on a camera outside his home, and that his βhouse was set ablaze in an arson.β Any claims that Washington wasnβt dangerous, he said, were βlies.β βThank you for making this city safe, because no parent should have to go through what my family went through,β Mr. Johnson told Ms....
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