Hunter Biden's laptop confirmed by FBI, rekindling media criticism

Hunter Biden's controversial laptop, which was initially dismissed as Russian disinformation by many, has been formally confirmed and introduced as evidence by the FBI in his ongoing federal gun crime trial. The laptop, filled with videos, photos and sensitive business communications, was presented to the jury to support the claim that the president's son lied about drug use on a gun purchase form.

When the laptop was first reported in the weeks leading up to the 2020 election, many media outlets dismissed it. Twitter even blocked the New York Post, which first reported the story, claiming the story violated its terms of service with pirated material. Users were also blocked from sharing the story link.

EmmaJo Morris, the former New York Post deputy political editor whose initial report was headlined, said she didn't need the FBI or the mainstream media to confirm the laptop to feel vindicated . He said he knew the story was true despite being dismissed as Russian disinformation.

One of the most memorable media conversations about the story was when Trump appeared on CBS 60 Minutes shortly after the story broke and called the laptop one of the biggest scandals he's ever seen. However, the interviewer, Lesley Stahl, insisted that there was no way to conclude that the laptop or its contents were real. CBS News later confirmed in 2022 through its own forensic investigation that the laptop and its contents were legitimate, prompting many Trump allies to criticize Stahl.

Hunter Biden's trial has rekindled criticism of the veteran journalist. Many journalists hurled slurs at the laptop in an astonishing display of coordination between media technology. The skepticism at the time came from Rudy Giuliani, Trump's lawyer at the time who obtained the materials for the New York Post story, did not give them access to the laptop hard drive so they could verify- nor the content.

The laptop saga began when the New York Post reported on a 2015 email from a Ukrainian energy executive to Hunter Biden thanking him for introducing it to his father. The contents of the laptops included a look at Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings, as well as more sordid material, including homemade sex tapes and videos showing him using illegal drugs. The laptop, which was allegedly left at a repair shop in 2019 by its owner and never recovered, is back in the national spotlight as the president's son faces charges of making a false statement in the purchase of a handgun, making a false statement. relating to information to be kept by a federally licensed gun dealer and the possession of a gun by a person who is an illegal user or addict of a controlled substance.