A ‘Columbo’ Moment ⇥ vice.com

Anna Merlan, Vice:

On cross-examination, though, things got far stickier for [Alex] Jones, especially when plaintiffs’ attorney Mark Bankston informed him that 12 days ago, Jones’ attorneys accidentally sent him an entire digital copy of Jones’ cellphone, which they then failed to declare as privileged. That means Bankston has wide latitude to ask Jones about anything he found on the phone that conflicts with things Jones has said in his testimony.

This is personal to me. For lots of very boring reasons, Jones has unfortunately been a lurking figure in the back of my brain for about twenty years. The impact he has had on my life is certainly a tiny fraction of the degree to which his broadcasts have played a role in harming the lives of those connected to the mass murder at Sandy Hook. Still, it was immensely satisfying to watch the moment Bankston told him what he obtained.

Update: Parker Molloy:

I am asking people in media to understand that their editorial decisions, from who gets invited to appear on talk shows to what topics we actually hear about in the news (and how often), are not value-neutral. Want to invite the next Tomi Lahren or Alex Jones to appear on your show? Fine. But just know that you’re not “exposing” their bad ideas or “showing the public who they really are;” you’re giving them an opportunity, which they will be lucky to have (even if they pretend to be upset about it, as Jones did about his Megyn Kelly interview.

In short: make good choices.

Commentators are pointing to this factor as among the biggest problems with a new documentary about Jones.