Libs of TikTok along with other popular conservative-leaning Twitter users allege a NBC reporter reached out for their comment after an article highlighting them had been posted for several hours.
NBC reporter Matt Lavietes reportedly reached out for comment from Libs of Tik Tok after his article had been live for just under 15 hours, according to screenshots shared by the user.
"Hi there. Hope you're well. I'm writing an article for NBCNews regarding the uptick in what many would call charged rhetoric over LGBTQ issues," said Lavietes in a direct message to Libs of Tik Tok at 6:22 a.m. Tuesday. "I'm going to be quoting a tweet of yours from the other day, which included the word 'groomer' and therefore wanted to reach out to you for comment. Let me know if you'd like to expand on your thoughts on this topic. Looking forward to hearing from you -- Matt."
"Hi Matt, unfortunately you have pronouns in your bio which automatically tells me I can't take you seriously. Good luck with your story!" Libs of TikTok replied shortly after.
"You can't make this up. Matt Lavietes from NBC reached out t0 me for comment 15 hours AFTER the hit piece on me was published," Libs of TikTok said late Tuesday afternoon. The account shared screenshots of the messages that morning along with a screenshot of the Lavietes' NBC article in question showing a timestamp of 3:29 p.m. on Oct. 31.
"This is journalism."
Libs of TikTok noted in a follow up post that Lavietes had updated the article to include her Tuesday morning reply to his direct message.
"I do appreciate though that he updated the story to include my full response!"
The Daily Wire's Matt Walsh, who was also highlighted in Lavietes' article, appeared to corroborate Libs of TikTok's claim by sharing his own experience with the reporter reaching out for comment the morning after the article was posted. Lavietes also reached out to Walsh Tuesday morning and mentioned he was quoting several of the Daily Wire host's tweets discussing his criticism of transgenderism to be featured in the article, according to screenshots shared by Walsh.
"Hi Matt, I see that you've already published your article," Walsh said in response to Lavietes' message. "Time stamp seems to indicate it was published the day before you reached out for comment. Is that correct?"
"Yes, the original version of the story was published yesterday," Lavietes said, confirming Walsh's observation. "We'd appreciate your comment on this topic if you have anything to add."
"I think you understand that it's a bull---- tactic to publish a story, wait until the initial push of traffic has died down, and then ask for comment from the people you've smeared in the article," said Walsh criticizing the NBC reporter. "I don't care if you guys are partisan vultures masquerading as journalists. I'd just prefer it if you didn't insult my intelligence by pretending that you want to hear my perspective for an article you published yesterday."
"My favorite tactic of media smear merchants like @mattlavietes of @NBCNews is when they publish a hit piece about me, wait a day for the traffic to die down, then reach out for comment while pretending that they’re still working on an article that’s been posted since yesterday," said Walsh in a tweet sharing screenshots of their interaction.
Former UFC fighter Jake Shields claimed he also was messaged by Lavietes the morning after his article was published. Similar to Libs of TikTok, Shields also "tested" Twitter's censorship algorithm by sharing a post with the word "groomer."
"Sure it will be a totally fair and balanced article," said Shields.
On Tuesday, night Libs of TikTok noted the "ratio" of Lavietes' article shared in a tweet by the reporter. "Ratio" is a reference to a disproportionate amount of "likes" compared to "comments" on a specific post. A higher amount of "likes" generally suggests an overall agreement of the post in question while a higher amount of comments would suggest disagreement.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Lavietes has restricted access to his Twitter account.
