NBC's Matt Lauer was joined by his colleague Chuck Todd, on Thursday's Today show, as the two trumpeted "good news" for President Obama in the latest results from a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. After Lauer hailed Obama received "an eight-point leap from last month" in his approval rating, Todd explained the surge was because the respondents "think he's going to be the reasonable guy" and that the Republicans will be "inflexible." While Lauer did offer that a rise in optimism for the economy, as seen in the poll, could be spun the GOP's way because people "see there... continue reading
On Wednesday's CBS Evening News, anchor Katie Couric was dismissive of a vote by House Republicans to repeal ObamaCare as she asked congressional correspondent Nancy Cordes: "There is no chance this repeal will succeed, it's a largely symbolic measure. So what's the point?" Cordes described it as "the first step in their long-term effort to wipe this health care law off the books." Cordes proclaimed that "The party line vote capped a vigorous debate....In which Republicans vilified the health care law , and Democrats exalted it." However, only seconds earlier in the report, an image appeared on screen of the... continue reading
After spending close to two weeks bemoaning the state of political dialogue in America and wondering about its connection to the shooting of a Congresswoman, NBC has, thus far, completely ignored a Democratic Representative comparing the Republicans to Nazis and the Holocaust. On Wednesday, Tennessee Congressman Steve Cohen smeared, "They say it's a government takeover of health care. A big lie, like Goebbels...The Germans said enough about the Jews, and the people believed it and you had the Holocaust." Both ABC and CBS reported the story, but NBC skipped it on Wednesday's Nightly News and on Thursday's Today show. Yet,... continue reading
"The health care law may not be popular, but many of the provisions now in effect are," ABC's Jonathan Karl asserted in his Thursday night look at the House vote to repeal ObamaCare as he highlighted one beneficiary of it without a balancing opponent or list of detrimental provisions: "To Kris Cambra, whose four-year-old son has a heart condition, the law is a life changer, and repeal would be a disaster." Karl touted: "Already, seniors are getting more money to pay for their prescription drugs. Children can stay on their parents' insurance until age 26. And children with pre-existing conditions... continue reading
On Wednesday's Countdown show, as he plugged a segment on former Democratic-turned independent Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman's retirement, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann referred to Lieberman as a "delusional liar," and suggested that he had experienced a "departure from reality" for describing himself as a "moderate Democrat" after endorsing John McCain over Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. At the top of the show, the MSNBC host teased: "The end of the line for Joe Lieberman, self-described 'moderate Democrat.' Don't let the delusional liar door hit you in the delusional liar butt on the delusional liar way out." In another... continue reading
Ever since the Tucson shooting, MSNBC's Chris Matthews has been on a tirade accusing conservatives of creating a climate of hate that led to an attempt on Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' life. Yet on Wednesday's Hardball, Matthews himself insulted GOP Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, as he blared that she was: "a screamer, and in many cases pretty close to a nut case." What was the great affront from the Minnesota Congresswoman that caused Matthews to spew such vitriol? She dared to openly root for a Republican presidential victory in 2012. The following consecutive exchanges Matthews had about Bachmann, with Republican Congressman... continue reading
Carrying his sermonizing from his MSNBC morning show to Politico, Joe Scarborough railed against inflammatory political rhetoric in his latest Politico column - but hit conservative talk while ignoring leftist vitriol. Calling them out by name, as he did recently on his show Morning Joe, Scarborough pleaded with conservatives that if they can't be civil out of righteousness, they could at least practice civility for the sake of the Republican Party. "It's time to grow up," he lectured the Right, specifically pundits Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck. Of course, Scarborough made no criticism whatsoever of inflammatory rhetoric from the Left... continue reading
On Tuesday's John King USA, CNN's John King issued a prompt on-air apology minutes after a guest on his program used the term "crosshairs" during a segment: " We're trying to get away from using that kind of language " (audio available here ). This action stands in stark contrast to an incident over a year earlier where former anchor Rick Sanchez took four days to apologize for using a unconfirmed quote attributed to Rush Limbaugh. The firearms term appeared during a panel discussion about the race for Chicago mayor with CNN contributor Roland Martin and former journalist Andy Shaw,... continue reading
Say what you will about NBC's Today show but they recognize a ratings winner when they see one and they demonstrated that, when they invited Fox News host Glenn Beck back for a second appearance on Wednesday's show. However with that second guest spot came another opportunity to accuse him of fomenting hate. In the 7am half hour Today co-anchor Meredith Vieira accused Beck of contributing to "a dialogue of hate " that led to the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords and in the 9am hour it was her colleague Natalie Morales' turn to make that ugly inference as she pressed... continue reading
Fox News host Glenn Beck showed up on Wednesday's Today show to promote his new book The 7: Seven Wonders That Will Change Your Life , but it was NBC's Meredith Vieira's misperceptions of him and conservatives as a whole that Beck was forced to try to change. After an initial discussion about Beck overcoming his personal struggles, Vieira brought Beck into the debate over whether conservative talk provoked the Tuscon shooter Jared Loughner, as she charged: "You talk about spewing anger in your personal life but also in your professional life, Glenn. I mean there are people who've criticized... continue reading