This was my take on it as well. There's nothing new here, even as far as dirty politics goes. These two dishonorable assholes are simply trying to brazen the whole situation out, and they (and their gutter tactics) couldn't be more obvious, crass, or transparent. Master manipulators, the Fords ain't. And yet, to the meagre extent they're actually managing to drive the media narrative, it's entirely due to our spineless local media refusing to man up and call them out.
And even that is understandable, up to a point. I get that the Fords are "news," even if it's of the prurient, "let's watch the clown make a fool of himself" tabloid style of faux-news. Being on the scene to catch him in the middle of another hair-brained stunt or pratfall translates into ratings, sure. I can also understand that Ford still technically falls under the banner of conservatism, so the local corporate media is going to treat him as gently as they can get away with, even if I don't like it.
All that is to be expected...but only up to a point. And it's a point we've long since passed. At this stage, he simply doesn't deserve any more consideration. Fuck "the long game." They should be hammering him mercilessly. But here we find far right trash like Sue-Ann Levy are still making excuses for him, and now the supposedly more mainstream media is actively covering up for Fatso, if they're electing to tone down the negative response he's getting from the public at large. What the hell is the matter with these people?