ABC Skipped Gore's Past; Coelho Quashed; Hollywood Helping Gephardt 1) All three broadcast network evening shows relayed Al Gore's new campaign fundraising plan, but only CBS recalled his record. Peter Jennings lamented that whenever reform comes up, "Gore's fundraising in the past comes up as well." Just not on ABC. 2) Al Gore's campaign chairman is under investigation for the misuse of federal funds, but ABC, CBS, MSNBC and NBC ignored the revelation Friday. CNN noted it and FNC offered a full report. 3) Current gas prices, adjusted for inflation, really aren't that high, ABC and CBS noted Monday night... continue reading
E-Mail Bounced by Nets; ABC's Clinton Retraction; Shriver's Edelman Glorification 1) Not a word Friday morning on CBS or NBC about e-mail. ABC's GMA gave it 17 seconds. CBS's Bob Schieffer didn't ask Henry Waxman about it and a federal judge is dubious about the Justice probe. 2) Peter Jennings retracted an ABC story about how much Clinton's sightseeing cost taxpayers: "Mr. Clinton has spent the great bulk of his time trying to...reduce the danger in the region of nuclear war. And his efforts have been very well received." Really? 3) Maria Shriver abused her role as Today co-host to... continue reading
Just Seconds for E-Mail; Catholics & the Holocaust; "I Hope We Kill Bush" 1) White House e-mail scandal brought front and center by House hearing. CNN, CBS and FNC jumped on it Thursday night, ABC gave it 20 seconds, NBC a mere 16 seconds. MSNBC's The News with Brian Williams ignored it, spending 11 minutes with the Ramsey's. 2) The Washington Times reported the e-mail scandal weeks ago and Sam Donaldson actually brought it up on last Sunday's This Week. 3) FNC's Brit Hume uniquely relayed how in the case of Democratic fundraiser Pauline Kanchanalak "the Clinton-appointed judge pushed the... continue reading
McCain's Gore Attack Ignored; 3rd Clinton Term; Clinton's "Hump and Bump" 1) John McCain attacked Al Gore on Tuesday over campaign finance reform, an event FNC's Brit Hume said "disappointed" reporters. Indeed, ABC, CBS and NBC ignored McCain's criticism of Gore. 2) ABC and NBC skipped McCain's attack on Gore, but Tuesday night the networks looked at India's software programmers and potholes back home. Dan Rather honored the Pope, proclaiming he "comes at a time of hope with a message of peace." 3) Bryant Gumbel mused about the appeal of a third term for Bill Clinton. Meanwhile, ratings for The... continue reading
Rather Raved for McCain; Clinton's Nuclear "Healing"; NRA Blamed for Killing 1) "The Straight Talk Express is still rolling," a pleased Dan Rather claimed in using the CBS Evening News to plug an interview with John McCain. Rather's news: McCain will back Bush whether he adopts "McCain's way of thinking about reducing the corruptive influence of money in presidential politics or not." 2) Mary Tyler Moore had hoped McCain would do well on Super Tuesday. Newsweek's Evan Thomas fantasized about him going independent: "If he could ever get Colin Powell to run with him..." 3) Tom Brokaw equated the Pope... continue reading
Bush Scolded for Not Embracing McCain; NBC Quoted LaBella; Geraldo's Back 1) "McCain's friends and advisors were stunned" by Bush's failure to kowtow to McCain, NBC's Tom Brokaw intoned in embracing the loser's spin. David Gregory asserted that "it's the tone of Bush's interview, considered by some dismissive of McCain...that set off a firestorm." But few care about campaign finance reform. 2) Though she didn't utter the name Charles LaBella, NBC's Lisa Myers used his memo as the peg for a full NBC Nightly News story on his charge that the Justice Department went easy on Gore and to recount... continue reading
CBS "Reality Check" on "Carnage" Condoned by NRA; Brokaw's Hero: Pataki 1) The NRA attacks Clinton into order to deflect from the "carnage" of gun violence, CBS's Jim Stewart argued in a one-sided "Reality Check" on the evils of the NRA. ABC's John Cochran undercut the NRA's point about the lack of federal prosecutions. 2) Tom Brokaw trumpeted: "For a Republican Governor, Pataki's proposals are 'revolutionary,' as one gun control advocate put it. Pataki prefers to call his plan 'common sense.'" 3) CBS quoted from Bush's reply to Gore's e-mail but failed to explain his reference to the LaBella memo... continue reading
Sudden Wealth Syndrome; NRA Out of Context; Admiring Bradley; "Chug-a-Lug" Bush 1) The upcoming campaign "could be the most expensive, nastiest presidential campaign yet," warned Dan Rather. Forget the campaign, NBC Nightly News explored "Sudden Wealth Syndrome." 2) Network stories left out the support for NRA claims that Clinton is "willing to accept a certain level of killing to further his political agenda" and "when what you say is wrong, that's a mistake. When you know it's wrong, that's a lie." 3) On Today Matt Lauer demanded that the NRA's Wayne LaPierre justify his criticism of Clinton but asked Clinton... continue reading
NBC: 4 Seconds for Hsia, 6 for LaBella; Bush Sold "His Soul to the Wrong Group" 1) Four seconds on Maria Hsia and six seconds, sort of, on the LaBella memo in the middle of a NBC Nightly News story Monday on how Gore's team thinks campaign finance reform can be "a winning issue for them." 2) MRC's Tim Graham appeared on FNC's The O'Reilly Factor Monday night to discuss why the networks are avoiding the LaBella memo. 3) Dan Rather focused on how Bush is supposedly being hurt by "cozying up to the self-described religious right." Reporter Richard Schlessinger... continue reading
LaBella Memo Snubbed; Hsia's Shunning Shown; Imus Zinged Brokaw 1) The LA Times disclosed Friday that the LaBella memo charged Gore got special treatment from Reno, but ABC, CBS, MSNBC and NBC ignored it. CNN and FNC pounced, but broadcast viewers instead learned about "the living wage" and restaurant meal inflation. 2) ABC and NBC ignored LaBella Saturday night too. On Sunday, ABC featured a story on how Al Gore is painting himself as a champion of campaign finance reform, but still refused to mention LaBella. 3) FNC's Sean Hannity highlighted CyberAlert numbers on how little time Maria Hsia's conviction... continue reading