cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/25116459

A Milwaukee-based CBS affiliate has dismissed one of its weather presenters after she reportedly called Elon Musk a Nazi on social media, over a gesture the tech billionaire made during an inauguration rally for US President Donald Trump.

WDJT-TV (Channel 58), where meteorologist Sam Kuffel had worked since 2019, has confirmed her departure but provided no official explanation in an internal memo to or public comments, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

While the station described the matter as a “personal issue,” Kuffel was reportedly dismissed one day after commenting on Musk’s gesture on her Instagram account.

The TV channel has removed Kuffel’s bio from its website and no longer mentions her in its weather section, but retains articles written by her. Her Instagram account has been set to private, but screenshots purportedly capturing her posts are available online. She has not commented publicly on the incident.

Before her tenure at WDJT-TV, the journalist worked at WAOW-TV (Channel 9) in Wausau, after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a degree in atmospheric science.

The Anti-Defamation League, a US-based pro-Israeli group which monitors anti-Semitism and hate speech, has described Musk’s gesture as “awkward” but did not say it was a Nazi salute. Similarly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the subject of an International Criminal Court warrant on charges related to genocide, has tweeted in support of the X owner, declaring him to be “a friend of Israel.”

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  • SorosFootSoldier [he/him, they/them]@hexbear.net
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    21 hours ago

    Okay first of all this is fucked, we’re seeing the media rally around a literal neo-nazi because it makes them not enemies in the eyes of the current administration. And ALSO it’s fucked how all the comments on rt are antisemitic as fuck, I seriously expected better from a news source standing against anglo imperialism.

    • GalaxyBrain [they/them]@hexbear.net
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      18 hours ago

      You shouldn’t expect better from rt. Don’t let the accusations of libs fool you, we don’t stand by modern Russia in pretty much all but a couple of things and that’s because it’s a better net result overall. It’s still a generally very right wing government and reactionary behavior has been encouraged for a long while now.

    • BeamBrain [he/him]@hexbear.net
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      21 hours ago

      It may be opposing US imperialism, but modern-day Russia is still right-wing and reactionary as hell. I imagine RT also attracts chuds who support Russia to own the libs.

        • GrouchyGrouse [he/him]@hexbear.net
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          19 hours ago

          Step 1: USSR dismantled itself, USA claims victory over communism.

          Step 2: The USA shock doctrines Russia

          Step 3: USA puts thumb on the scale of Russian elections so the neoliberal doctrine can continue

          Step 4: Russia elects strong man with promises to make Russia Great Again, strong man creates oligarchy

          Step 5: New cold war between 2 reactionary nationalist oligarchies

          Shit fuckin sucks ussr-cry

      • darkcalling [comrade/them, she/her]@hexbear.net
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        17 hours ago

        They’re a mixture in my experience. You have the extreme reactionaries who are biting their tongues not to scream about their admiration of historical fascists (or sometimes not and just saying it) talking up nonsense, you have anti-imperialist leftists in some smaller quantity but more commonly found on the more intelligent opinion pieces that are anti-imperialist in nature, and you have some liberals.

    • SkingradGuard [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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      17 hours ago

      Okay first of all this is fucked, we’re seeing the media rally around a literal neo-nazi because it makes them not enemies in the eyes of the current administration.

      We all saw this coming, the only ones who are shocked are libs who are susceptible to our ideas, the rest will pompously ignore the real reasons why any of this is happening.