Mainstream media vilifies DeSantis for vaccine rollout, while Cuomo gets a pass: 'Journalistic malpractice’

The mainstream media has vilified Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over coronavirus vaccine distribution issues in Florida while New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has largely received a pass for his state's problems and critics have taken notice.  

"The difference in media coverage of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is journalistic malpractice," Media Research Center vice president Dan Gainor told Fox News.

DeSantis was recently called "an ass" by an anchor on CNN, the same network that has famously glossed over a variety of coronavirus-related issues related to Cuomo – whose younger brother, Chris Cuomo, is a primetime host. CNN’s Cuomo has even admitted on air that he isn’t objective when it comes to his brother.

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Dr. Nicole Saphier feels that DeSantis, who has partnered with supermarket chain Publix to help distribute vaccines, has made it much easier for residents of the Sunshine State to get the vaccine.

"One of the moves in Florida that I do support is, they’re really cutting that red tape. They’re being less restrictive on where they’re sending the vaccines to, who is able to administer it and who is actually able to receive it. That’s why you’re seeing people lined up to get this vaccine, as opposed to other states, such as New York, where you’re only seeing certain health care systems receive the vaccine," Dr. Saphier said Friday on "Fox & Friends."

While Saphier feels that the lines of people are a sign of progress in Florida, a CNN reporter used the same issue as the impetus to criticize DeSantis during a fiery exchange at a recent press conference. CNN reporter Rosa Flores shouted during a press conference Monday: "Governor, what has gone wrong with the rollout of the vaccine that we’ve seen phone lines jammed, websites crashing?"

DeSantis responded that there is "a lot of demand," as the CNN reporter continued to speak over him and demanded a chance to add to her question.

"To complete it for you, governor, we’ve seen websites crash, and also, senior citizens waiting overnight for the vaccine," Flores said.

DeSantis criticized the CNN reporter for not researching her question. He said that the coronavirus vaccine was distributed to hospitals and the hospitals decide how to dispense it, but CNN’s Flores quickly accused DeSantis of not having a plan to ensure senior citizens don’t have to wait in long lines for the vaccine.

Meanwhile, in New York, a sizeable chunk of health care workers are refusing the vaccine and there isn’t a plan for anyone to receive the unused doses, according to Saphier. 

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"All of a sudden, you have this supply but you don’t have the demand so these doses are just sitting on a shelf," Dr. Saphier said. "They need to cut back that red tape, they need to start opening up, they need to have more of a targeted approval and they need to make sure every dose sitting on the shelf is being put into the arm of someone who wants it, so it should not be so restrictive on who is able to get it."

DeSantis was recently called a "catastrophe" by the Washington Post columnist Lizette Alvarez. "The Republican governor’s response to the pandemic, in other words, has been a disaster," she wrote.

Another Washington Post opinion piece last year that touched on some of New York’s coronavirus issues opened by referring to Cuomo as "a pandemic superstar," offering an example of how the mainstream media goes easy on the Democrat even when offering rare criticism. The New York Times was criticized last year for treating him with kid gloves.

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"The news media have spent months defending and promoting Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s dictatorial response to COVID-19 and covering up the thousands who died in N.Y. nursing homes as a result of his incompetence. Meanwhile, the press has consistently bashed DeSantis who has a far better record on the virus," Gainor said. "If journalists want to promote the vaccine and have people take them seriously, they have to do a more honest job covering which states are doing well and which aren’t."

If the mainstream media needs a specific talking point in order to hold Cuomo accountable, Dr. Saphier feels the New York governor has dragged his feet when it comes to popup centers offering the vaccine around the state.

"The popup centers that Governor Cuomo keeps talking about, Why aren’t they open yet? He said he’s identified over 1,000 sites for popup centers, I don’t understand, we’ve had over a month to prepare for this, they should all be open, it shouldn’t just be a plan at this point. They need to be open and they need to be open now," she said.

New York Republican state Sen. Phil Boyle feels that New York is struggling with vaccine distribution because his state’s governor is preoccupied.

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"Governor Cuomo was thinking about other things, if you think about the chronology, last March and April, we had a huge first surge of COVID here in New York State, and then the numbers went far down in July and August, but we all knew the vaccines were coming and that’s when the governor should have focused on finding distribution sites, creating a real plan for getting these vaccines out," Boyle said Thursday on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

"If you think about, what was he doing? He was creating a poster, he was writing a book, he was arguing at another network with his brother about who their mother liked more, he was not focused on the distribution centers," Boyle said, referring to a series of self-promotional acts by Cuomo.

Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean, whose in-laws died in New York nursing homes from COVID last year, echoed the criticism. 

"I’ve had so many friends tell me their parents/grandparents have been vaccinated in Florida, yet all the mainstream loves to dump on @GovRonDeSantis. Well, considering he didn’t dump thousands of Covid patients into nursing homes and is getting seniors vaccinated, he’s a hero," she tweeted. 

Back in July, Cuomo debuted a poster he designed called "New York Tough" that he suggests captures the journey his state went through while addressing the pandemic. He also raised eyebrows when he took a premature victory lap, writing a memoir about how he handled the outbreak in New York. The book, titled "American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic," was released in October. 

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In a May appearance on his brother’s CNN show, the siblings performed prop comedy instead of addressing the nursing-home controversy that was erupting in New York.

Cuomo has faced intense scrutiny over an order he issued back in late March that forced nursing homes to accept patients who tested positive for coronavirus, despite testing deficiencies for both residents and staff. Cuomo signed an executive order on May 11 reversing the policy, stopping hospitals from sending infected patients back to nursing homes and ramping up testing for staff. 

During that period, roughly 6,326 coronavirus patients were admitted in New York nursing homes, according to the state's own health department. Reports have shown that anywhere between 6,400 and 6,700 nursing home residents have died, but The Associated Press suggested in August that due to underreporting, the actual death toll could be higher than 11,000. But during a late May appearance on "Cuomo Prime Time," the CNN host did not address the debacle during a 25-minute on-air chat.

The banter marathon between the two brothers turned into physical comedy after the CNN anchor played a clip of his brother taking a coronavirus test where a nurse placed a cotton swab up his nostril.

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"Is it true that this was the swab that the nurse was actually using on you?" the primetime host asked his brother while holding a comically overly-sized cotton swab.

He then quickly followed by presenting him an even larger cotton swab, asking the governor if that was the one the nurse used on him. Months later, CNN’s Cuomo finally asked his brother about the scandal with a brief question surrounded by praise and admiration.

The difference in coverage between the governors was even clear last May when the Free Beacon put together a video showing examples.

Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.