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Independent journalist Nick Shirley on Thursday teased a second installment of his investigation into alleged Minnesota fraud, suggesting it will make critics in the mainstream media “go insane.”
Shirley upended the news cycle last week with a 42-minute video investigating Minnesota daycare centers that appeared inactive despite receiving millions of dollars in government funding. The shocking video that has been viewed over 134 million times on X alone prompted investigations by federal officials, leading the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to freeze all childcare payments in Minnesota.
In the wake of his investigation’s success, CNN and other legacy news outlets have been accused of attempting to discredit Shirley or downplay his reporting as simply a “viral video.” Journalist Stella Escobedo noted on X that the entire ordeal has been “an indictment” on legacy news organizations, prompting Shirley to respond.
“Just wait until I post part 2, they are going to go insane,” Shirley wrote.
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Shirley previously criticized a CBS News reporter who tried to downplay his reporting, and PBS called him a “right-wing influencer” who claimed Minnesota daycare centers were committing fraud “without proof.”
The New York Times downplayed Shirley’s reporting as a “single viral video,” and NPR interviewed a University of Minnesota media law professor, Jane Kirtley, who focused on her theory that Shirley is simply trying to advance his preferred narrative.
NewsBusters contributing writer Steve Malzberg pointed out that several CNN programs have insisted Shirley previously “shared anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim videos” while failing to elaborate.
CNN was also widely mocked after correspondent Whitney Wild interviewed Shirley in a segment featured on “Anderson Cooper 360” Tuesday night, during which Wild questioned Shirley’s methods of investigating the centers.
After peppering Shirley with questions, the CNN reporter said the network is “looking into” his claims. Wild was then shown calling Minnesota daycare centers via speakerphone, acknowledging many of the centers Shirley visited did not pick up her calls.
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“Only one daycare facility answered and said they are a legitimate business,” Wild told viewers.
The segment was quickly panned on social media, where many suggested CNN was spending more time “investigating Nick Shirley” than the alleged fraud in Minneapolis.
Shirley previously wrote on X, “Mainstream media is more mad at me than they are at the FACT that billions of YOUR dollars are being used for fraudulent business.”
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Minnesota officials have pushed back on Shirley’s video, with Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families Commissioner Tikki Brown similarly saying that past inspections have not uncovered any evidence of fraud.
“We are aware of a video that’s being circulated that has gained local and national attention about childcare centers in Minnesota,” Brown said in a news conference on Monday. “While we have questions about some of the methods that were used in the video, we do take the concerns that the video raises about fraud very seriously.”
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Fox News Digital’s Lindsay Kornick and Marc Tamasco contributed to this report.
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