MSNBC's Martin Bashir on Tuesday snarled at a fellow liberal, Congressman Alan Grayson, for daring to compare the National Security Agency's spying program to Nazi Germany . This is the same Bashir who, on January 14, 2013 , compared conservatives to Hitler. Linking Grayson to the dreaded National Rifle Association, Bashir attacked, " The NRA says a bill which prohibits a gun registry is actually an echo of Hitler. And, of course, you've mentioned the Nazis in connection with the NSA." [SMP3 audio here .] In January, however, Bashir lectured, "If anyone deserves to be equated with Hitler on the... continue reading
On Monday, Charlie Rose was more than halfway through his 47-minute interview with President Obama on PBS before he finally brought up one of the several scandals surrounding the liberal's administration. Rose pursued Obama about the NSA's leaked domestic surveillance program, but failed to mention any of the other scandals, including the IRS's targeting of conservative groups and the Justice Department's investigation of journalists. The veteran journalist also echoed the President's critics from the left about " the notion of that you have simply continued the policies of Bush/Cheney ... many people say you're Bush/Cheney-lite . And then, people write... continue reading
On her eponymous 1 p.m. ET show on MSNBC on Thursday, host Andrea Mitchell ranted against House Republicans daring to introduce pro-life legislation to limit abortions: "The House is expected to vote by tonight on controversial new restrictions that would go against Roe v. Wade. And if they were to pass the Senate, the President would of course veto it...So what's the point?" [ Listen to the audio ] Turning to Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Joanna Coles, Mitchell derisively wondered: "Here we have another abortion fight that seems to be just House Republicans, or those who are against abortion rights, picking a... continue reading
On Monday's NBC Nightly News , reporting on President Obama's trip to Europe, chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd fretted over the commander-in-chief's declining popularity overseas: "Obama comes to this [G-8] summit...to a much more muted reception than in the past. Once heralded as the anti-George Bush... now he's on the defensive over U.S. policies, including some he's kept in place from the Bush era." [ Listen to the audio ] Todd listed some of the ways in which Obama hasn't been liberal enough for European sensibilities: "The NSA surveillance programs, widely panned on this privacy-conscious continent. The failure to... continue reading
The journalists at Good Morning America on Tuesday offered a light-hearted, whimsical look at the Obama family's multi-country vacation. Reporter Linsey Davis played U2's "Beautiful Day" and compared the Ireland part of the trip to National Lampoon's European Vacation. Davis gushed, " You know it's a beautiful day when U2's Bono reportedly invites you to a private lunch at his favorite Irish pub, the famous Finigan's of Dalkey. " She added that "dining with a rock star is one of the perks of being a first family." Nowhere on the morning program was any mention of the cost of the... continue reading
On Monday's NBC Nightly News , correspondent Andrea Mitchell seized on NSA leaker Edward Snowden attacking former Vice President Dick Cheney, who labeled Snowden a traitor for publicizing classified information: "Snowden wrote, 'Being called a traitor by Dick Cheney is the highest honor you can give an American.'" [ Listen to the audio ] Mitchell went out of her way to hit Cheney on Monday's Today , noting that he "helped institute warrantless evesdropping, no court orders required, a policy Congress later rejected in favor of the current surveillance programs." In her Nightly News report, Mitchell did also mention Snowden... continue reading
Since late January of 2012, the Washington Examiner ’s Paul Bedard has once a week featured a “Mainstream Media Scream” selection in his “Washington Secrets” column. For each pick, usually posted online on Monday and then printed in the Tuesday newspaper, I provide an explanation and recommend a “scream” rating (scale of one to five). This post contains all the “Mainstream Media Screams ” through June 11, 2013, the last to appear in the printed Washington Examiner which switched to an online-only publication as of June 17, 2013. ( Newer “Mainstream Media Screams , ” from June 17, 2013 forward.)... continue reading
On Saturday's Melissa Harris-Perry on MSNBC, substitute anchor Ari Melber hosted a panel of liberals fretting over Republican efforts to restrict abortion, with one guest even theorizing that Republicans are motivated by a racist desire to prevent white women from having abortions as a way of "reproducing whiteness, white supremacy, white privilege." Melber seemed quite accepting of University of Pennsylvania Assistant Professor Salamisha Tillet's preposterous idea of pro-lifers being motivated by racism as he responded: And you're talking not only then about a potentially religious view about life, you're talking about social control. I mean, that goes to some of... continue reading
ABC on Saturday fawned over the growing "bromance" between Bill Clinton and Chris Christie, hyping the relationship as like "Clooney and Pitt" and, oddly, "Han Solo and Chewbacca." Good Morning America reporter Reena Ninan touted the New Jersey Governor's appearance last week at the Clinton Global Initiative, enthusing, " There was Clooney and Pitt. Han Solo and Chewbacca ." (Ninan didn't explain who is Chewbacca in this example.) ABC clearly seemed pleased at Christie's relationship with the Democratic politician. A graphic touted, "Clinton & Christie's 'Bromance." Ninan repeatedly gushed, "It's a bromance...But a political bromance?" [MP3 audio here .] Ninan... continue reading
On Monday's CBS This Morning , Sharyl Attkisson slammed the unnamed hacker who broke into her computers : " It's a very serious and disturbing matter. I'm outraged that anyone would do such a thing ." The correspondent revealed back in May 2013 an "unauthorized, external, unknown party" accessed both her personal and work computers on "multiple occasions in late 2012." Attkisson detailed the " odd behavior of both my work and my personal computers ", including how the machines "began turning themselves on, and then, back off again during the night." [audio available here ; video below ] Anchor... continue reading