BiasAlerts

The reporters of Good Morning America , who on Monday briefly questioned Barack Obama's hyperbolic talk about the sequester cuts, have returned to promoting dire warnings of meat shortages and children losing vaccines. Guest co-host Elizabeth Vargas on Wednesday hyped " the grim countdown to the massive spending cuts that will kick in on Friday ." To underline the point, an ABC graphic proclaimed, "Countdown to Massive Cuts: Will Illegal Immigrants Be Released From Jail?" Correspondent Jon Karl parroted Obama: " Each day, the White House's list of terrible things caused by the cuts grows longer, including flight delays, kids... continue reading

Reacting to Chris Christie not being invited to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), on Wednesday's NBC Today , co-host Matt Lauer melodramatically announced: "...another battle for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie today. But this time, he's at odds with the right wing of his own party." The headline on screen throughout the segment read: "Cold Shoulder for Christie; NJ Governor Snubbed By Conservative Conference." [ Listen to the audio ] In the report that follow, correspondent Andrea Mitchell eagerly touted Christie's willingness to buck the GOP: "The latest sign that Chris Christie won't kowtow to Republican hardliners... continue reading

CNN's own legal analyst scoffed at CNN's notion that 75 Republicans supporting legal gay marriage is a "big turning point" for the party. Anchor Ashleigh Banfield did her best to drum up the matter on Tuesday, for the network that has repeatedly shown a bias favoring gay marriage. "Next, a big turning point in the Republican party. 70 high profile Republicans just signed a brief supporting gay marriage ," Banfield touted. " I really disagree with the premise that this is a lot of people, " responded CNN's legal analyst Jeff Toobin. [Video below. Audio here .] Toobin dismantled CNN's... continue reading

CNN's chief political analyst freaked out about the sequester cuts on Tuesday afternoon's Newsroom , calling them a "man-made disaster." " It is a man-made disaster. Not a natural one ," Borger insisted. She compared them to the massive snow storm currently hitting the Midwestern states: "And just watching those pictures of Erin in the snowstorm, I was thinking, it's like we know this huge storm is coming to the country, but nobody is buying a shovel. " [Video below. Audio here .] "Nobody is getting together and talking. They're trading charges. They're playing a pre-blame game if you will... continue reading

The New York Times sent reporters scurrying around the country to deliver Tuesday's dire dose of sequestration fear -- a full page (with photos) of impending cuts to a range of federal programs starting Friday . Lead reporter Michael Cooper set the groaning board: The owner of a Missouri smokehouse that makes beef jerky is worried about a slowdown in food safety inspections. A Montana school district is drawing up a list of teachers who could face layoffs. Officials at an Arizona border station fear that lines to cross the border could lengthen. And if Olympic National Park in Washington... continue reading

On Tuesday's CBS This Morning , Charlie Rose and Norah O'Donnell stayed true to form in conducting a tag team-style, confrontational interview of a conservative/Republican, this time House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers. The anchors pressed Rep. Rodgers about a recent Pew Research/Washington Post poll that, in their words, indicates " the public is going to blame Republicans " for the sequester. At one point in the segment, Rose wouldn't let the Washington representative complete an answer, interrupting her twice in the course of just 20 seconds. On the second occasion, he raised the poll, which found that 45... continue reading

At the top of Monday's NBC Nightly News , anchor Brian Williams made this hyperbolic declaration: "A moment of crisis for the Catholic Church hit by a wave of scandals , just as the leaders must gather to select a new pope." Introducing the lead story moments later, Williams further hyped: "The problem for the Catholic Church is the drumbeat of scandal is now growing so loud and so vast , it's taking a lot of attention from this process." [ Listen to the audio ] In the report that followed, correspondent Anne Thompson ominously declared: "... the world is... continue reading

Last week, ABC scored an exclusive "get." Barack and Michelle Obama appeared on Good Morning America to welcome back co-host Robin Roberts from a serious illness. On Tuesday, Roberts paid the White House back, fawning over the "trend-setting" First Lady and her "hot" bangs. The anchor asked not a single tough question during the two part, eight and a half minute segment. Co-anchor George Stephanopoulos compared Mrs. Obama's appearance at the Oscars, Sunday, to the real mission in the movie Argo : Rescuing American hostages from Iran. He thrilled over the secretive appearance: "Producers go undercover to the White House... continue reading

During a panel discussion on Tuesday's NBC Today , co-host Matt Lauer urged the liberal Today's Professionals pundits to assign blame for the upcoming budget sequester: "I want you to complete the following sentence, 'And the blame goes to...' Almost by every analysis people agree this will hurt the economy, hurt the recovery, might even damage national security. And the blame goes to?" [ Listen to the audio ] Chief medical editor Nancy Snyderman ranted: "The American public for not being invested enough in the terms of what it means and firing every one of these SOBs the next time... continue reading

Picking up on a Saturday front page New York Times story on how the Obama campaign is selling access to the White House through its newly formed Organizing for Action group, a revelation ignored all weekend by ABC, CBS and NBC, on Monday’s Daily Rundown on MSNBC, Chuck Todd declared: “This just looks bad. It looks like the White House is selling access.” He pointed out the hypocrisy, recalling: “Offering this kind of access to big donors was precisely what Obama was campaigning against in 2007 and 2008.” Yet, though Todd is NBC’s chief White House correspndent, nothing about it... continue reading