I think the 24 hour news channels talk first and check their facts a distant 4th. Second, they listen to themselves, and third they pat themselves on their own backs.
They have to fill 24 hours, and on a slow day there isn't much of worth to say, unless they talk about substantive stuff, like the growth of the national debt, and how China has us over a barrel if they stop rolling over their T-bills at the daily debt auctions. So they spew and repeat anything that comes along that sounds good to them.
About 90% of "journalists" as they call themselves are Democrats, and generally far left leaning ones. The big three networks are all majority-owned by massive donors of the Democratic party, along with the nation's most "prestigious" newspapers (according to themselves). They hire out of the left wing ivy league. And, who wants people on staff who will burst their balloons with inconvenient facts, reason, and logic? It would make people too uncomfortable around the office if people were regularly shown up for the over-educated parrots most of them are.
So it should come as no surprise that standards in political coverage keep falling, it is a race to the bottom as they all seek to outdo their peers in pillorying their opponents. It is no longer about good governance. The government is so big nobody can personalize it and relate to it any more. So it has devolved to a sporting event, like a Packers-Bears game. All that matters any more is your team winning.