Killing Health Rights; Hockenberry Gun in Mouth; NBC Repeats Starr Bashing 1) CBS and NBC Thursday night portrayed the GOP as taking away rights in rejecting the Democratic HMO plan. Tom Brokaw lamented how you can't sue your HMO "if something goes terribly wrong," yet Republicans "made sure that remains the case." 2) Hillary referred to a man as having been "murdered," though he was sitting in front of her. All but GMA ignored the gaffe as Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer commiserated over the error. 3) Contrary to initial denials, WGBH and other PBS stations have now admitted they... continue reading
GOP Killing Patient Rights; NBC: Sports Bra = Title IX Success 1) Network coverage of the "patient's bill of rights" has stressed how Republicans are killing all the wonderful "rights" Democrats want to provide. CBS attributed the GOP position to insurance money but ignored how trial lawyers will reward Democrats. 2) Bushwacked. MSNBC jumped on a George W. Bush "slip-up" but couldn't find it. CNN highlighted the racial covenant in his deed. 3) Those paying more in taxes would get a bigger tax cut than those paying less, complained CNN's Brooks Jackson in compliantly relaying numbers from an unlabeled Citizens... continue reading
PBS Finds FNC Biased; Limbaugh as Model; Soccer Team Too Sexy? 1) The networks gave a warm reception to the NAACP's lawsuit against gun manufacturers as it led CBS Monday night. NBC's Lisa Myers countered GOP concerns on HMO reform, contending that in Texas "those horror stories have not come true." 2) Al Gore's gun control measures don't go far enough to satisfy ABC's Charlie Gibson, but CBS's This Morning actually hit Gore from the right on gun control. Meanwhile, an ABC News promo spot proudly highlights Gibson pleading for gun registration. 3) PBS's NewsHour assessed the cable news networks... continue reading
Dreaming of Senator Rodham; Her "Celtic Mist"; Rivera Loves Rather 1) Fox's Brit Hume suggested Hillary may be "able to skate through this whole campaign...completely unscathed" on scandal questions. CBS illustrated the point Sunday night by positively portraying how "the First Lady tries to empathize with the Empire State." 2) Senator Hillary Rodham, "crazy stuff" like Republicans backing campaign finance "reform" and Bill Clinton as a Sheriff living above the jail. All from the dreams of CBS's Bob Schieffer. 3) Time's Lance Morrow fawned over Hillary's importance: "I think I see a sort of Celtic mist forming around Hillary as... continue reading
Surprised So Many Object to Hillary; News Chief Tried to Mute Drudge 1) Hillary Clinton may now support moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, but only CNN's Bruce Morton recalled her advocacy of a Palestinian state. CBS stressed how "she is not flip-flopping." 2) Clueless in Manhattan. By 70 to 30 percent those answering an ABCNews.com poll opposed Hillary's candidacy. "I am really surprised...by the size of that majority," admitted GMA's Gibson. 3) Liberal New York columnist Jimmy Breslin told CNN's Bernard Shaw that Hillary's "strength comes from a lot of people on television or in newspapers that just write... continue reading
Avoiding Hillary's Sleaze; Rebuking Rudy & Equating Him to Hitler 1) A Fox reporter asked Hillary about the billing records and turning $1,000 into $100,000, but only FNC showed how she dodged in replying. NBC's Andrea Mitchell worried: "The adulation is great, but is she prepared for whatever Giuliani can dish out?" 2) Trying to shame Giuliani into silence? NBC's Andrea Mitchell characterized a mild comment about Hillary as being "in her face" and played a soundbite from an opponent comparing him to Hitler. 3) GMA's Charlie Gibson portrayed Hillary as a victim about to be set upon by a... continue reading
Pouncing on Bush's Guard Preference; CAFé More Deadly Than SUVs 1) ABC and NBC hopped on a Los Angeles Times story about how George W. Bush got preferential treatment to join the National Guard, but the same networks ignored the Times piece on Chung. 2) ABC conceded "most people don't seem to care that much about campaign finance reform," but that didn't stop the network from promoting "Granny D's" gimmick to push liberal "reform." 3) ABC claimed "SUVs are dangerous to smaller passenger cars" and CBS tagged them "killers of the road," but USA Today documented how CAFé rules have... continue reading
CBS's "Good Thought" to Restrict Free Speech; Another Spy Case? 1) CBS anchor John Roberts lamented that "for all of the talk of campaign finance reform," Bush set a record. Bob Schieffer said "that's a good thought" to McCain's case for banning soft money. 2) The national media in Washington don't care, but an Alabama editorial writer is out in front on the fresh revelations of an Energy agent: "Whistleblower's Tale May Detail Another Spy Case." 3) On CNN Howard Kurtz pressed Dan Rather about the contrast in how he approached Bush in 1988 versus Clinton in 1999. Rather claimed... continue reading
Medicare Plan Doesn't Spend Enough; Clinton's Killer Fundraiser 1) ABC and NBC focused on Medicare beneficiaries, not taxpayers. ABC's John Cochran hit the Clinton plan from the left, arguing it doesn't transfer enough money to the recipients. 2) Katie Couric endorsed Clinton's plan: "It sounds like a no-brainer. Seniors spend billions of dollars on prescription drugs every year, often putting them in terrible financial situations." 3) FNC's Carl Cameron surprised the Energy Dept. counter-intelligence chief with information. Cameron also uniquely revealed a probe at Defense for abuse of a whistleblower. 4) NBC's Lisa Myers reported that "Starr does not yet... continue reading
ABC Pushed UN Report on Guns; Nets Ignored How China To Test Missile 1) All but FNC led Monday with the surplus announced by Clinton which Dan Rather credited to the "zooming, booming U.S. economy." Only FNC noted that the Starr/Hubbell plea deal could be bad news for Hillary Clinton since Hubbell admitted "covering up" for her. 2) ABC promoted a UN report: "As increasingly restrictive gun laws are enacted in major industrial countries, gun-makers around the globe are flocking to the biggest and least regulated gun market in the world -- the United States." 3) "China is making final... continue reading