Clift & Carlson Not Liberal in Conservative Dominated Media Headline contrasts on welfare, GDP and suicide. A leading author argued that the Washington press corps is dominated by conservatives and weekend talk shows don't have any liberals to counter the likes of Novak, Snow and Barnes. 1) A couple of headline contrasts I caught while traveling across the country last week. First, the two papers on the coasts offered very different interpretations of a study on a welfare program in a state in between in flyover country. Both headlines refer to the same Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation study on Minnesota's... continue reading
Espy Blackout; CNN's President Must Pay; O'Leary Ignored The networks spent nearly three years ignoring or complaining about the cost of the Espy probe. A judge reduced the punitive damages but upheld the Food Lion decision, so the new President of CNN must still pay an award. The August 27 Media Reality Check fax report: charges against Hazel O'Leary ignored and a revelation about a proposed White House payoff to a trooper skipped. Letterman's "Top Ten Things Overheard During the Clinton/Kennedy Sailing Trip." 1) On August 27 a federal grand jury indicted former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy on 39 felony... continue reading
Even Liberals (Not in Media) Realize Media Tilt Left A poll found that the more education a person has the more likely they are to see media bias and "moderates and liberals alike see liberal bias in the media twice as often as they see conservative bias." 1) The August 21 CyberAlert offered some examples of leading media figures denying the existence of any liberal bias. I mentioned how a recent survey, that went largely unnnoticed, discovered that even liberals realize the media are biased to the left. Last fall the Center for Media and Public Affairs retained the Louis... continue reading
Zilch on O'Leary; Editors Wonder About Lost Credibility No other shows picked up on NBC's revelation about Hazel O'Leary, not even NBC's own Today show. The American Society of Newspaper Editors launched a project to learn why they are losing public trust. Some know that liberal bias is the problem, but more disparage that thought. Letterman's "Top Ten Things Elvis Would Say if He Came Back Today." 1) None of network morning shows on Wednesday morning mentioned the revelation in NBC's interview with Johnny Chung that he was directed by an Energy Department aide to donate $25,000 to Secretary Hazel... continue reading
Chung's Charge; Teamsters Won; Diversity Would Have Pulled the Plunger Tom Brokaw interviewed Johnny Chung and uncovered news about buying access at Energy, but will other outlets pursue the story? The Teamsters were the victors, declared all the networks. Bad cops didn't lead to the NYC police beating. No, ABC News pinned the blame on the lack of "diversity" in the police force. As one former U.S. News & World Report staffer leaves the White House another is about to slide into a top slot at Commerce. 1) Tuesday night NBC Nightly News carried its first fundraising story this month,... continue reading
Clinton's Celebrity Vacation; CBS Salutes the NEA Two Hollywood stars met Clinton's plane in Martha's Vineyard, and he'll spend his vacation palling around with celebrities. CBS's Sunday Morning broadcast a tribute to the NEA which disparaged conservative arguments against the arts agency. 1) With his last election behind him, President Clinton can put his annual "average guy" vacation charade aside and vacation with Hollywood and other celebrities. When he arrived on Martha's Vineyard Sunday night, in fact, two Hollywood stars were there to meet the plane designated Air Force One. As The Washington Post's Peter Baker reported in an August... continue reading
Public Couldn't Follow Hearings; Coverage Boosts Teamsters Matching the media's priorities, a new poll discovered that few have heard anything about Clinton and fundraising and most did not follow the hearings. Actor Mel Gibson says he'll stop smoking in movies as soon as the Clintons "stop telling fibs." A new MRC study on the UPS strike found that the networks mis- reported the part-time work dispute and ignored the pension issue. 1) A couple of interesting findings in the latest monthly poll from the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. Released Friday, the poll of 1,213 adults... continue reading
Helms the Terrorist; Don't Blame Communism; Cunanan Tops Fundraising MRC Job Opportunities: The MRC has an opening for an entertainment analyst and two intern positions. Entertainment analysts review television shows to track content. Starting salary in low $20s. The interns will work for the entertainment and news division. Hourly pay of about $7 per hour. The MRC is located in Alexandria, Virginia and applicants should be in the area so they can be interviewed. Fax resumes to: 703-683-9736 Charming Jesse Helms is "a good warm-up game" for Madeleine Albright before meeting Yasir Arafat, suggested a Newsweek reporter. Communism did cause... continue reading
Welfare Disaster Averted; Crediting Bush's Tax Hike; Elvis MRC Job Opportunities: The MRC has an opening for an entertainment analyst and two intern positions. Entertainment analysts review television shows to track content. Starting salary in low $20s. The interns will work for the entertainment and news division. Hourly pay of about $7 per hour. Fax resumes to: 703-683-9736 NBC decided that on welfare reform "not all of the predictions of disaster have come true." And who made those predictions: NBC. Howard Fineman and the New York Times credit Bush's tax hike for leading to a balanced budget. But the record... continue reading
GOP Gaffe Before Democratic Swastika; Killer Lawnmowers MRC Job Opportunities: The MRC has an opening for an entertainment analyst and has two intern positions. Entertainment analysts review television shows to track content. Starting salary in low $20s. The interns will work for the entertainment and news division performing duties from transcribing stories to analyzing story content. Hourly pay of about $7 per hour. Fax resumes to: 703-683-9736 Some contradictory and confusing headlines about the man who did or did not threaten Chelsea Clinton. IBD documented how the media jumped on Sam Brownback's gaffe but ignored the Nazi swastika displayed at... continue reading