Tuesday's CBS This Morning played up the union-led protests against a proposed right-to-work law in Michigan. Elaine Quijano claimed " the protests here in Michigan ...[will] likely only get bigger ." Quijano added that "they're planning to return today in record numbers - protesters determined to defend one of the biggest union strongholds in the country." The correspondent loaded her report with six soundbites from the anti-right-to-work protesters and their supporters, including President Obama. Quijano only played two from proponents of the Michigan bill, including " reluctant supporter " Governor Rick Snyder. Anchor Charlie Rose introduced the Quijano segment by... continue reading
In a report for Tuesday's NBC Today , chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd touted President Obama supposedly being nicer to the GOP while in pursuit of a fiscal cliff deal: "Mr. Obama was noticeably less confrontational toward Republicans....The President's softer tone came just a day after he sat down with House Speaker John Boehner..." While Todd focused on Obama's "softer" side, Monday's New York Times reported on the President's team playing hardball: "The White House is also cranking up the machinery of the Obama campaign to help in the battle. On Monday, the campaign sent an e-mail to its... continue reading
Dictatorship and double standards invade the New York Times once again. Check the headline over Dennis Lim's Sunday Arts & Leisure profileof the director of "Barbara," set in Communist East Germany in 1980: " Summoning Halcyon Days Of Failed Ideals ." "Failed Ideals"? Can one imagine the paper running a headline that suggested a fascist society like Nazi Germany was built on "failed ideals"? Born in 1960 to parents who had just emigrated from East to West Germany, the director Christian Petzold spent his first few months at a refugee camp near Düsseldorf. He has lived in the West all... continue reading
In the face of possible cuts to food stamp programs, CNN let Democratic Newark Mayor Cory Booker rail against the House cuts and publicize his own attempt to live off of food stamps for a week. On Friday night host Piers Morgan lauded Booker, calling his food stamp challenge " something really pretty extraordinary " and "a life-changing experience for him." In addition, Morgan cast Republicans as villains wanting to protect the rich at the expense of the hungry, asking GOP pollster Kristen Soltis, " do you feel comfortable that the Republicans are prepared to slash investment into something like... continue reading
On Monday's CBS This Morning , Norah O'Donnell seemed unsure about the extent of Tea Party's political influence. During an interview of former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, O'Donnell first indicated that the movement was a potent force: " I want to ask you ... about how powerful the Tea Party is. Is the Tea Party holding back House Republicans and Speaker Boehner from agreeing to additional revenues? " The anchor later hinted the Tea Party's power was on the wane: "FreedomWorks spent $40 million in the last election, and you had less than one-in-four of a winning record on... continue reading
On Sunday's NBC Meet the Press , moderator David Gregory eagerly touted the approval rating of outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and gushed over the prospect of her running for president in 2016: "...her popularity has soared to an all-time high. According to a new Washington Post /ABC poll out this week, 66 percent view the country's top diplomat favorably..." [ Listen to the audio ] Gregory then teed up a fawning promotional video about Clinton: "A recent campaign-style tribute video that was played at the Saban Forum here in DC left the political world abuzz..." A clip of... continue reading
Reporting on the Supreme Court taking up the issue of gay marriage for the first time, on Friday's NBC Nightly News , justice correspondent Pete Williams proclaimed: "The fact that the Court has agreed to take up both cases could mean that the Justices are prepared to get to the heart of the same-sex marriage issue, and that could result in what would essentially be the Roe v. Wade of gay rights." [ Listen to the audio ] At the top of the broadcast, anchor Brian Williams billed the upcoming report as "big news...that could change everything." Introducing a repeat... continue reading
Apparently, opponents of gay marriage all look the same to ABC. As reporter Terry Moran on Friday highlighted the news that the U.S. Supreme Court will hear two cases on the issue of same sex marriage, video of the hateful Westboro Baptist Church was featured to visually represent "opponents." [Listen to MP3 audio here .] Westboro Baptist, an extreme organization with few members, also protests the funerals of American military personal who were killed defending this country. Yet, Moran announced, " For opponents of gay marriage, the very fabric of our society is at stake." During his comment, video showed... continue reading
CNN's Wolf Blitzer said Thursday that the Democratic fiscal cliff plan of raising tax rates on the top two percent of income earners is the "beginning" of a solution. "But it's a beginning. A billion here, a billion there, it winds up being real money," Blitzer told Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) on Thursday's The Situation Room . Blitzer had already pushed House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to consider tax hikes in a fiscal cliff deal. [Video below. Audio here .] "It's incredible to me we're even talking about it because it doesn't solve a problem," DeMint scoffed at the... continue reading
After gushing on Wednesday over left-wing actress Ashley Judd possibly running for Senate in Kentucky, on Friday's NBC Today , the cast applauded liberal comedian Stephen Colbert suggesting in jest that he might replace outgoing South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint, with co-host Willie Geist proclaiming: "I can tell you, having done a show with him [Colbert] in Charleston, he is an absolute rock star in that state." Geist added: "It doesn't mean he will be a senator, but he could probably pull it off." Fill-in news reader Erica Hill remarked: "Doesn't mean he...won't be either." Fellow co-host Savannah Guthrie chimed... continue reading