Bin Laden = Ashcroft; MRC's Falwell Coverup?; ABC Promoted Amnesty International Critique; Katie Couric Gushed Over Jim Jeffords 1) New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis thinks "certainty is the enemy of decency and humanity in people who are sure they are right, like Osama bin Laden and John Ashcroft." Lewis also made clear he doesn't let reality get in the way of his utopian vision for a socialist Britain: "The health service doesn't work. I'm still for it. But it doesn't work." 2) Newsweek's Jonathan Alter excoriated the Media Research Center for not condemning a post-September 11 remark by Jerry... continue reading
Taxes Cut "As Much As Possible"; 41 Too Far Right; ABM Decision Means U.S. "Going Back on Its Word"; ABC Not Liberal Enough 1) Quote of the Weekend. Time magazine's Margaret Carlson on CNN's Capital Gang: "Taxes have been cut as much as is humanly, or inhumanly, possible." 2) Most Unintentionally Hilarious Exchange of the Weekend. Mike Wallace on 60 Minutes relaying the view of Senator Jim Jeffords that not only is the current President Bush too conservative, but "the elder George Bush had moved so far to the right that he couldn't win re-election." 3) When OMB Director Mitch... continue reading
Still Smarting Over Gore Loss; Clift Has Come to Walker's Defense; Rate Cut Will Be "Crushing" for Retirees; Goldberg Cited MRC 1) Dan Rather again bemoaned how the Supreme Court's Bush vs. Gore decision, "in effect, gave the hotly disputed presidential election to George W. Bush." But unlike a year earlier, he refrained from impugning the justices in the majority as "politically and ideologically motivated." 2) Interviewing Bush and Gore lawyers from the Florida fight, NBC's Katie Couric scolded Gore's lawyer for not asking for a statewide recount, pressed Bush's lawyer about whether there was "something implicitly unfair" in Katherine... continue reading
Ruing No Al Qaeda "In Custody"; Terrorists Protecting Animals; Excusing Anti-Western Rage; Ashcroft's "McCarthyism"; MRC in VRWC 1) The U.S. routed the Taliban and killed many Al Qaeda soldiers, but Peter Jennings on Monday night emphasized the negative: "After two months of war in Afghanistan the U.S. acknowledged today it has no senior Al Qaeda members in custody." 2) CBS discovered environmental and animal rights "terrorists carrying on business as usual right here at home." But Jerry Bowen concluded with the group's justification: "A domestic war being waged by anonymous individuals who see themselves as self-appointed protectors of the Earth... continue reading
Bush Learned from Enron? "Confrontation" on Civil Rights Panel Caused by Bush; CNN's Familiar Slogan: "We Report, You Decide" 1) Newsweek's Eleanor Clift predicted a future presidential pardon for Taliban soldier John Walker. Hillary Rodham for President in 2004? 2) Al Hunt sarcastically suggested Enron CEO Kenneth Lay "may have shared" with President Bush his strategy to stiff "the lowest and average-paid workers" while taking care "of its fat cats." 3) Chicago Tribune columnist Steve Johnson, who quoted the NPR foreign editor as saying he would report the presence of a U.S. commando unit in Pakistan, defended himself against the... continue reading
Today Show's Idea of Balance; Leahy: "Civil Liberties Defender"; Bush Has No Right to Bomb; "Pretty Opinionated" as a Reporter 1) Though, as Tom Brokaw noted, "the Attorney General has public opinion on his side," Dan Rather referred to how "Ashcroft told a Senate panel that the government needs every policy, including the controversial and questionable ones." All three broadcast network evening shows made note of how Democrats accused Ashcroft of hypocrisy for not checking detainees against gun records. 2) Balance as practiced by NBC's Katie Couric: Tell Senators from both parties the dangers of Ashcroft's policies. "In fact, Senator... continue reading
Hamas Not Terrorist to Jennings; "Israelis Have Been on the Attack Again"; Thanks for the Bombing; Military Won't Help Geraldo Rivera 1) In reporting on President Bush's decision Tuesday to freeze the assets of a Texas group, charging that it funnels money to Hamas, CBS, CNN, FNC and NBC directly or indirectly described Hamas as a "terrorist" operation. But not ABC's Peter Jennings. 2) For the second night after terrorist attacks which killed Israelis, ABC's Peter Jennings painted Israel as the violent aggressors. He saw "an explosion of violence in the Middle East" with "Palestinians dead and wounded" because "Israelis... continue reading
"Restrain the Israelis?"; Pat Leahy's View Endorsed; FNC's Idea that War is Good vs. Evil Novel for NYT; Brit Hume in Playboy 1) Israel was the victim of an attack by a terrorist group. But Peter Jennings wanted to know if the Bush administration wished to "restrain the Israelis?" Jennings also referred to Hamas simply as an "organization." CBS's Bryant Gumbel offered Palestinians an excuse: "Is it realistic" for Palestinians to "ever reach some kind of agreement with Ariel Sharon, a man who has done so much to oppose peace efforts in the Middle East?" 2) Rather didn't hesitate to... continue reading
Book Details Bias Inside CBS; NYT's Friedman Scolded Colleagues; Tax Cuts Blamed for Recession; Gumbel Tried to Tie Bush to Enron 1) CBS News insiders are reacting with anger to former CBS reporter Bernard Goldberg's new book about their liberal bias. "Treason," Eric Engberg told Howard Kurtz. Goldberg reported that CBS News chief Andrew Heyward conceded liberal bias, but warned: "If you repeat any of this, I'll deny it." Indeed, Heyward did deny it during a C-SPAN call-in show last year. 2) On Friday's Late Show, New York Times columnist Tom Friedman mocked the European press for focusing on civilians... continue reading
"Home-Grown" as Bad as al Qaeda?; Amnesty International Complaint Highlighted; Objections to Military Trials; Rather with Marines? 1) ABC 20/20's hyperbole: "Since September 11th the word terrorist has come to mean someone who is radical, Islamic and foreign, but many believe we have as much to fear from a home-grown group of anti-abortion crusaders." 2) Amnesty International (AI) as arbiter of war fairness. NBC Nightly News led with the group's complaint as reporter Jim Maceda claimed a prison battle "raises questions of Northern Alliance atrocities against their Taliban prisoners" which led to AI "calling for a UN investigation." ABC's Peter... continue reading