BiasAlerts

" GOP presidential contenders drift to the right ," reads the headline over a Monday night dispatch by the AP's Charles Babington who devoted an entire story to fears "Republican candidates are drifting rightward on a range of issues, even though more centrist stands might play well in the 2012 general election." (I caught a shortened version in Tuesday's Washington Examiner .) "Independents," the Associated Press White House correspondent warned, "may be far less enamored of hard-right positions than are the GOP activists." He soon repeated the "hard-right" pejorative as he relayed how "some in Obama's camp," as if they... continue reading

CBS's Erica Hill strongly hinted on Monday's Early Show that Sarah Palin's "extended flirtation...with running" for president and speaking only to Fox News to the detriment of the rest of the media would sour her with the voters. Hill asked former Mitt Romney aide Kevin Madden, " Does any of this risk though rubbing voters the wrong way? " The anchor brought on Madden and former Clinton spokesman Joe Lockhart to discuss the former Alaska governor and the rest of the possible and actual 2012 presidential field for the Republican Party. After the Republican strategist agreed to a large extent... continue reading

Isn't Jessica Yellin mocking her own network for incessantly reporting on Sarah Palin's bus tour? The CNN correspondent called the coverage of the tour "a media low-point" on CNN Tuesday, although her own network made mention of tour almost every hour Monday from 6 a.m. EDT through 11 p.m. EDT - and then again Tuesday from 6 a.m. EDT through 1 p.m. EDT. The continuous coverage included nine live reports from Gettysburg, one of the tour stops, by correspondent Jim Acosta - and a live appearance there by anchor John King Monday afternoon. John King, USA - King's 7 p.m... continue reading

MSNBC's Chris Matthews on Tuesday could barely contain a tingle as he fawned over left-wing Congressman Dennis Kucinich, connecting the Representative to World War II hero Winston Churchill and NBA star Lebron James. Discussing the idea that Kucinich, who could be redistricted out of his Ohio seat, might move to Seattle and run there, the Hardball anchor offered a pledge of positive coverage: " Let me make a promise to you. Should you make this incredible decision, we will be covering your campaign with enthusiasm. And that's a fact. " [MP3 audio here .] Touting his ability to deliver, Matthews... continue reading

The press is pouting because potential GOP presidential contender Sarah Palin is apparently having a bit of fun with them, by refusing to let them know in advance where she is headed on her bus tour. One of them, CBS News producer Ryan Corsaro, even suggested the former Alaska governor is a "dangerous" traffic hazard because she is forcing reporters to chase her around like they were paparazzi. This bit of griping led Rush Limbaugh, on his Tuesday radio show , to amusingly point out Palin, "has rendered" the liberal media "totally irrational," adding: "She's making utter fools of these... continue reading

After Democrats won a special congressional election in New York State, New York Times congressional reporter Carl Hulse seemed comfortable leading the early cheers for Democrats looking to win back the House of Representatives, in Tuesday's "Political Memo," " Surprise Victory in New York Invigorates Democrats Looking to 2012 ." It's not something the Times does after Republican wins in special or off-year elections, when Republican victories are typically downgraded as unimportant and atypical, like the Times treated the 2009 G.O.P. wins in governors' races in Virginia and New Jersey, which turned out to be accurate harbingers of electoral success... continue reading

ABC's Good Morning America on Tuesday offered a dismissive take on two conservative females, Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann. Reporter Jon Karl brushed aside Palin's bus tour as "another reality TV show" and wondered if the former governor is " just playing tourist ." George Stephanopoulos, meanwhile, played up conflict between the two. He prefaced a question to Bachmann by admitting it may be "sexist." He then asked it anyway, wondering of the two Republican women: " And I know you might resist the comparison. Some might even think that it's sexist. But is there enough room in this race... continue reading

Appearing on the May 25 edition of MSNBC's Last Word, Time magazine's Joe Klein declared that a Democrat's victory in a New York House election was "a victory for socialism!" This took the conventional media talking points, that the special election was a referendum on Paul Ryan's budget, to a new level. Klein has since tried to walk back this declaration, but it wasn't the only bizarre claim he made on Lawrence O'Donnell's prime-time program. He can reassure his "Swampland" readers all he wants that his "tongue was planted firmly in cheek," but Klein has yet to retract his position... continue reading

"Do you think the Tea Party is losing some of its appeal?" So Harry Smith cued up a hardly independent guest on Sunday's Face the Nation : Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the Democratic Congresswoman and Chair of the Democratic National Committee. Earlier, the fill-in host was astonished House Majority Leader Eric Cantor would want to find cuts to afford extra spending for tornado recovery efforts: "One of the things you said earlier this week is that emergency funding should be offset by cuts to the budget deficit. Do you stand by that?" Meanwhile, another round of Sunday panels meant more pleas... continue reading

As broadcast news programs over the weekend gave attention to Sarah Palin's bus tour which was viewed as a possible prelude to a presidential run, NBC correspondent John Harwood had one of the most negative views of the former Alaska governor's chances of being elected President as he appeared on Sunday's NBC Nightly News and predicted that she "has next to zero chance of being elected President." He went on to declare that most Republicans want her out of the race: "I think what Republicans hope most is that Sarah Palin clarifies before too long that she's not going to... continue reading