More MSNBC; Veterans for Clinton Two items today: 1) More on MSNBC's liberal agenda. Tom Brokaw and Bill Moyers take on Clinton -- from the left, in interviews with the Carters and a union boss. 2) Bill Clinton addressed a group a disabled veterans and NBC reports that they all love him and have forgiven his draft avoidance because he's the only thing stopping Bob Dole from cutting off their Medicare payments. 1 Cal Thomas wrote a column a few days ago (it ran in The Washington Times on July 28) noting that NBC's Olympic coverage is tailored to women,... continue reading
Clinton Tears; Talk Radio Lies & Filegate Ignored Three items today: 1) President Clinton got the spin he wanted from ABC out of his visit to the families of the TWA 800 victims. ABC's Jim Wooten concluded his story: "When he left them in the hotel and entered his car he buried his head on Mrs. Clinton's shoulder." 2) A media critic says talk show hosts don't tell the truth, so they shouldn't be considered part of the news media. 3) Another major development arose in Filegate on Thursday as Bill Clinger offered evidence contradicting the First Lady, but you'd... continue reading
CBSer Donates to Gantt; Misreporting Medicare "Cuts" Two items today: 1) Among contributors to Harvey Gantt, the Democratic challenger to Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina: former CBS News reporter Charles Kuralt. But it's not really much of a surprise given the views Kuralt expressed on the air. 2) The study in the July MediaWatch documents how six media outlets falsely referred to Medicare "cuts" 1,060 times in just 18 months. (And now reporters complain about Joe Klein's lies.) 1 As brought to my attention by MRC analyst Tom Johnson, Tuesday's (July 23) New York Times reviewed major contributors to... continue reading
More Moyers; Liberal Editor for U.S. News Two items today: 1) MSNBC again shows that instead of offering an alternative it's just providing more of the same, specifically another platform for Bill Moyers. Just four day after Tom Brokaw came at President Clinton from the left on welfare reform, on Friday night Moyers hosted InterNight and posed questions from the left to Steve Forbes, Gary Franks and Kay Bailey Hutchison. 2) U.S. News & World Report owner Mort Zuckerman has selected a new Editor: former Jimmy Carter speechwriter and liberal media critic James Fallows. In his recent book Fallows urged... continue reading
Jennings: The Dumbest Anchor? Two items today: 1) Yet again, during coverage of a live event, Peter Jennings is fooled by a fake eyewitness call. During live coverage Wednesday night of the TWA tragedy Jennings took seriously a fake caller, and even after it became clear the caller was not an eyewitness Jennings treated as accurate a description provided by the fake caller. 2) Conservative film critic Michael Medved will replace Mike Siegel as the 12 to 3pm talk host on KVI in Seattle. 1 Back in 1994 as O.J. Simpson's Bronco parked in his Rockingham driveway following the freeway... continue reading
Gingrich Vindicated? Not in Media One item today: Secret Service agents testifying before a congressional committee on Wednesday (July 17) disclosed that 21 White House staffers used drugs, even crack. Sound familiar? In December 1994 Newt Gingrich was condemned for suggesting the White House had an illegal drug problem. But Wednesday night the networks failed to note the vindication of Gingrich or apologize for repudiating him. Below you'll read: 1) How Gingrich's charge was received by the media in 1994 with quotes from CBS and NBC's Tim Russert. 2) Which network failed to report the drug revelations Wednesday night and... continue reading
No Democratic Obstructionism; No Facts on NBC Two items today: 1) The Weekly Standard magazine documents a case of a media double standard. In 1993-94 Republicans were blamed for "obstructing" progress by blocking Senate votes. Now that Democrats are obstructing Republican bills where's the media indignation? 2) Former NBC News President Michael Gartner praises the late John Chancellor, but in so doing he says that during his tenure NBC Nightly News didn't include many facts. 1 The Weekly Standard found a good contrast in coverage that reflects the media's biased mind set. In the June 22 editorial, David Tell noted... continue reading
Brokaw Attacks Clinton from Left One item today: Tom Brokaw challenges President Clinton from the left in the premiere of "Internight," the 8pm ET interviewshow on the new MSNBC cable network. Here are two questions posed by Brokaw in his live July 15 interview: Brokaw: "Let's talk for a moment about welfare. The Republicans have a bill that they think you will sign, on the Hill. It eliminates the federal guarantee of cash assistance for poor children in this country, a guarantee that we've had in place since the early 1930s. Are you prepared to have that happen?" Clinton: "Depends... continue reading
Reverential Dole Coverage; Sam Tells Dole to Go Left Four items today: 1) Margaret Carlson claims the poll showing 89 percent of Washington reporters voted for Clinton does not show her colleagues are liberal. Clinton was just a better candidate. 2) In fact, far from biased to the left, Carlson thinks the media are "reverential" to Bob Dole. 3) ABC's John Cochran claims that black Republicans are mad at Dole for not speaking to the NAACP, but the NAACP is targeting conservative House members for defeat. 4) On Sunday's This Week, Sam Donaldson suggested how Bob Dole can rebound: go... continue reading
Chancellor Reality Check One item in this MRC Alert: > John Chancellor is being praised for his fairness, but a review of his commentaries show he used his position to promote liberal ideas and attack conservatives. As you may know, NBC News veteran John Chancellor passed away at age 68 on Friday evening. From 1970 to 1982 he anchored the NBC Nightly News, then provided commentary through 1993. During the Johnson Administration he presided over the Voice of America. His passing has generated a series of tributes to his fairness and impartiality from his media colleagues. On the July 13... continue reading