On Could 26, Vice President JD Vance introduced that the Trump administration’s anti-fraud activity power had recovered $160 billion in COVID-19 aid funds, scholar support, and small-business loans.
That is taxpayer cash that was alleged to go to deserving recipients however as a substitute went to scammers and con artists.
Sadly however not unpredictably, this main announcement was not lined by any of the Massive Three networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) on their night or morning information packages.
A number of high-profile instances unfolded throughout the previous month, but additionally drew little or no protection:
The sentencing of Aimee Bock — the previous chief of the Feeding Our Future nonprofit in Minnesota — to 42 years in jail for “orchestrating a $250 million pandemic aid fraud scheme.”
The seize of Minnesota fraud suspect Muhammad Omar, who jumped from a constructing whereas fleeing arrest.
MRC analysts examined ABC, CBS, and NBC night and morning information packages from Could 1 by June 1 and located that the Massive Three networks devoted a scant 7 minutes and 12 seconds of protection to tales involving arrests and/or sentencing of fraud suspects.
ABC was the worst offender, providing only a 28-second transient on the Bock sentencing that aired on the Could 21 version of World Information Tonight. NBC was not a lot better, airing just one 104-second phase on the Bock sentencing and Omar arrest on the Could 21 version of NBC Nightly Information. CBS spent probably the most time on taxpayer-fraud tales throughout the month, totaling 5 minutes.
The Could 21 version of CBS Night Information and the Could 22 version of CBS Mornings lined the Minnesota instances. Moreover, the Could 14 version of CBS Mornings featured a report on Vice President JD Vance and Medicare Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz asserting that they have been “deferring $1.3 billion” in Medicaid reimbursements to California as a result of the state had not performed sufficient to crack down on fraud.
Whereas the newly-fired and remaining workers CBS’s ‘60 Minutes’ proceed to scream I AM SPARTACUS at editor-in-chief @BariWeiss, @CBSMornings saved up its ongoing dedication to spotlighting entitlement fraud, particularly in Gavin Newsom’s California.
Correspondent Adam Yamaguchi… pic.twitter.com/O2u7CFKnZa
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) June 1, 2026
On June 1, CBS Mornings correspondent Adam Yamaguchi profiled California fraudster Paul Randall, who pleaded responsible this 12 months to submitting greater than $270 million in fraudulent Medi-Cal claims. The story famous that Randall had spent taxpayer cash on “a dozen Ferraris, Lamborghinis, a Bugatti,” in addition to “Kobe Bryant game-worn sneakers and baseball playing cards of Jackie Robinson and Mickey Mantle.”
For this research, MRC analysts examined the printed night newscasts (ABC World Information Tonight, CBS Night Information, and NBC Nightly Information) and morning information packages (Good Morning America, CBS Mornings, and Immediately) from Could 1 by June 1.
