Armey's Harsh Name-Calling; Clinton's Communion Not News; Latest NQ 1) Dick Armey's suggestion Clinton is "shameless" branded as "harsh" or "name-calling." Tuesday night only CNN and FNC bothered telling viewers about who appeared before the grand jury. 2) Clinton taking communion in a Catholic church is no big deal to reporters. A few seconds on ABC & CBS. Zilch on CNN & NBC. 3) Mary Bono tagged as conservative by ABC's Good Morning America, but her Democratic opponent goes unlabeled. 4) April 6 edition of Notable Quotables. Jonesboro feedback, pushing liberal reform and it's Starr who mimics Nixon not Clinton... continue reading
Reporters Buy the Champagne; Starr the Peeping Tom of Salem 1) CBS complained that independent counsels hurt the innocent; for weeks the networks ignored how taxpayers are picking up the tab for Clinton's personal lawyers, then NBC's John Palmer obligingly relayed the White House spin blaming GOP arsonists. 2)In Senegal last week, Clinton aides celebrated the Jones decision with champagne. Champagne bought by reporters. 3) Newsweek's Jonathan Alter suggested Paula Jones "get a life" and that Ken Starr "will go down in history as the Peeping Tom prosecutor." Not quite how he assessed things in 1991. 4) Eleanor Clift hailed... continue reading
Tying Conservatives & Scaife to Hale; Starr's Cost Rises by the Minute 1) CBS painted Ken Starr as out of control in obsessing on Clinton's "private life" now that the underlying case is gone. CBS and CNN highlighted charges that Starr's probe is tainted by payments from conservatives to David Hale. 2) Starr's investigation has cost $29 million. No, more like $35 million. Actually, $40 million. On CBS the cost grows by the minute . Get paid to watch TV and find stuff that's written about in CyberAlerts. The Media Research Center has openings for a news analyst and an... continue reading
Jennings Worries About Anti-Clinton Clique; CBS Wrong: Jones Ignored 1) What will the "anti-Clinton clique" do now asked Peter Jennings; Time for Starr to "put up or shut up"; CNN's Bruce Morton insisted Clinton is the victim of character thrashing . 2) CBS's Harry Smith preposterously asserted Wednesday night: "It was February 1994 when Paula Jones first burst onto the public stage." In fact, the networks ignored her. 3) Letterman's "Top Ten Ways President Clinton will Celebrate the Paula Jones Decision". The April 1 NQ. Before anyone starts citing or quoting the April 1 Notable Quotables distributed in the April... continue reading
GOP Blocks Great Reform; Hitting Jones for a "Scurrilous" Attack 1) ABC more upset by failure of campaign reform than by Clinton obstructionism. CBS focused only on Bennett denouncing the Jones lawyers. Only FNC told viewers that Clinton may refuse to testify . 2) Many highlighted a study showing exorbitant reliance upon weakly sourced material in Monicagate, but reporters didn't bother telling viewers that's no different than how they handled Iran-Contra. 3) A special treat tonight: two hours of Bryant Gumbel . Correction: The March 27 CyberAlert referred to how the CBS Evening News ran a story on an "anti-impotency... continue reading
Sex Assault in '78 "Unsubstantiated"; Breast-Rubbing Squeezed Out 1) ABC and CBS relayed the White House spin disparaging the Jones charge that Clinton assaulted a woman in 1978, but NBC's Lisa Myers acted like a reporter, offering details and a witness account. 2) Who simulates oral sex, jokes about sex with animals, and after 40 minutes won't give up rubbing a woman's breast as his wife sleeps nearby? The President, according to a flight attendant's recollections the networks have yet to pick up. 3) "Clinton and Mandela: Paying Mutual Homage," announced a Washington Post headline. But other papers offered a... continue reading
Nets Skip Scandal; Don't Blame the Shooters; Hollywood's Clinton Excuses 1) ABC and NBC conflict on whether Clinton apologized to South Africa. ABC, CBS and NBC silent on Monicagate as CNN and FNC ran updates, but only CNN noted the billing records found in Foster's attic. 2) Blame everyone but the shooters. A GMA host wonders if more needs to be spent on guidance counselors, Today wonders if Southern culture glamorizes guns too much . 3) More Hollywood political wisdom. "I wouldn't care if the President had been involved in bestiality if he runs the country right," declared a star... continue reading
Jonesboro: Blame NRA & Southern Culture; Priviledge & Hill Blackout 1) Wednesday night ABC skipped all the scandals, CBS emphasized how much the insistence on investigations is costing. 2) The Jonesboro shooting generated some anti-NRA and pro-gun control hits from Bryant Gumbel and Katie Couric, and the views of both sides from ABC's Chase. 3) The CBS Evening News and NBC Nightly News have yet to mention executive privilege this week, but Sam Donaldson nailed Clinton's deceit. On NBC: snorting cocaine just like diabetes and asthma? 4) Nolanda Hill's charge that the Clinton team sold seats on trade missions picked... continue reading
All But FNC Ignore Hillary's Tie to Brown's Scheme; Latest NQ 1) What's an Academy Awards show without a hit on Republicans or conservatives? 2) Commerce sold trade mission slots to donors, Ron Brown's business partner said Monday, asserting that Leon Panetta told Brown to defy a court order. Nothing on ABC, CNN or NBC. CBS aired a story, but only FNC revealed it was Hillary Clinton's idea. 3) The March 23 edition of Notable Quotables: Tripp bashing, Starr bashing, Scaife bashing and conservative bashing, but Clinton's the victim. "The Man from Grope." The March 30 Weekly Standard out this... continue reading
Executive Privilege Protected; Primary Colors Primarily Boosts Clinton 1) Clinton invoking executive privilege hardly condemned. Half a story on NBC; ABC contended it's not clear that personal matters not protected. Both accentuated how much money Flowers has made. 2) Friday night the networks highlighted Bob Bennett's attack on Jones and Willey. ABC stressed how troopers used Clinton to get women. 3) Fred Barnes and Eleanor Clift agreed Primary Colors makes Clinton look good: "His empathy with people trumps his personal flaws." 1 The Clinton team's decision to invoke executive privilege led ABC on Saturday night but instead of pointing out... continue reading