BiasAlerts

Chris Matthews, in the wake of the Tucson shootings, went on a tear against the likes of Sarah Palin who used what he called "gun play" language, yet on Wednesday's Hardball, Matthews uttered phrases against public figures that he, himself, would've considered incendiary had a conservative said them. In his "Let Me Finish" segment Matthews issued a "call to arms" against George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld and others who were responsible for the "unpatriotic way this country was marched to war." Matthews then proceeded to give out the Capitol Switchboard phone number, urged his viewers to call their senator and... continue reading

George Stephanopoulos on Thursday followed in the footsteps of other journalists who are lecturing Republicans on the need denounce birthers and declare Barack Obama a Christian. The co-anchor quizzed Michele Bachmann four times on the President's faith and citizenship. He pestered, "You know, a sizable number of GOP primary voters are questioning President Obama's faith and citizenship. Can you just state very clearly that President Obama is a Christian and he is a citizen of the United States? " Stephanopoulos, like NBC's David Gregory , found no answer sufficient. The ABC host snapped, "Do you believe it?...I'm just asking if... continue reading

Opening Wednesday's 12PM ET hour on MSNBC, anchor Contessa Brewer proclaimed that President Obama was "driving Republicans in a corner" by calling their "budget bluff with his big proposal to slash spending." In reality, Obama's budget is projected to increase the national debt by 7.2 trillion dollars over the next decade. [ Audio available here ] Brewer argued that the President's supposed "slash" in spending, "forces Republicans to take an even stricter stand if they want to appear to be spending hawks." As a result, she warned: "...if the Republicans embrace the role of meanie money enforcer it gives Democrats... continue reading

Despite the fact that the 2012 presidential election is still 20 months away, MSNBC apparently has an idea who might win. On Monday's News Nation, a network graphic featured a picture of Barack Obama and these words: " 2012: In the Bag ?" Anchor Tamron Hall even cited as inspiration for the day's segment, last week's edition of the liberal Real Time With Bill Maher: "I was watching Bill Maher and this is how this conversation kind of came up." Hall continued, "He said, in a sense, 'Doesn't President Obama have it in the bag,' when he was speaking with... continue reading

Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos on Wednesday conducted a softball interview with Michael Bloomberg, touting his new gun control campaign and never once calling the New York mayor a liberal. GMA even featured a truck promoting Fixgunchecks.org , highlighting the parked vehicle just outside ABC studios. Ignoring ideological labels, Stephanopoulos introduced, "New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg joins us now. He's co-founder of Mayor's Against Illegal Guns and he's unveiling a new campaign today to toughen gun control." Stephanopoulos didn't offer much in the way of tough questions. After Bloomberg cited the Tucson shooting, the murders of Martin Luther King and... continue reading

A defensive Joe Scarborough showed up on Tuesday's Hardball, to tell off all his Republican doubters as he defiantly declared: "I'm more ideologically conservative" than most on Capitol Hill "but because I don't hate the President...that makes me a liberal." The MSNBC host of Morning Joe was pressed to place himself on the ideological spectrum as even Chris Matthews wasn't sure where he stood, which gave Scarborough the opportunity to write-off those who question his conservative credentials as "sad and pathetic" Obama haters. (MP3 audio) The following exchange was aired on the February 15 edition of Hardball: CHRIS MATTHEWS: Where... continue reading

The New York Times went after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas again in Tuesday's report by Eric Lichtblau, " Court Is Asked to Clarify Thomas's Ties to a Retreat ." Discrepancies in reports about an appearance by Justice Clarence Thomas at a political retreat for wealthy conservatives three years ago have prompted new questions to the Supreme Court from a group that advocates changing campaign finance laws. When questions were first raised about the retreat last month, a court spokeswoman said Justice Thomas had made a "brief drop-by" at the event in Palm Springs, Calif., in January 2008 and had... continue reading

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux complimented a media colleague on Tuesday's Newsroom who hit President Obama from the left that morning. April Ryan cited the liberal Congressional Black Caucus's criticism of Obama's proposed budget , that " rebuilding our economy on the backs of the most vulnerable Americans is something that is ... not acceptable ." Malveaux stated that Ryan " brought up a very good point ." Ryan, the White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks, twice raised Mr. Obama's past as a community organizer in her two questions to the President during his 11 am press conference. The reference... continue reading

With the unveiling of Obama's 2012 budget, some newspapers around the country framed the $3.7 trillion proposal as a serious attempt to slash the federal deficit. The February 15 editions of The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, the Daily Herald, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and the DC Express all couched the administration's massive budget as a fiscally responsible plan that makes "deep" and "big" cuts to "rein in deficits." "Obama budget makes deep cuts, cautious trades," trumpeted the Post's A-1 headline , even though the federal government is expected to run a $1.1 trillion deficit for fiscal year 2012. The... continue reading

For about ten minutes on MSNBC Monday, Harvard History professor Niall Ferguson offered a articulate, detailed, and biting indictment of President Obama's handling of the crisis Egypt - and those disagreeing on the usually Obama-friendly "Morning Joe" panel could offer little of substance in response. Co-host Mika Brzezinski began the segment reading Ferguson's latest column - which is the latest Newsweek magazine cover story - and asked him to expound on Egypt, saying that "it actually seems like it went pretty damn well." Perhaps she is referring to the many joyful reports from Tahrir Square amidst jubilant masses, or maybe... continue reading