BiasAlerts

Good Morning America on Friday promoted an attack piece by the liberal magazine The Nation against Lou Dobbs. In the two segments devoted to whether or not the populist host hired illegal immigrants, the show's hosts never identified the left-wing agenda of the publication. Instead, an ABC graphic speculated, "American Hypocrite?" (This is also the title of The Nation's article.) Isabel MacDonald, the reporter who filed the story for the magazine, appeared with Dobbs to debate the issue. Co-host George Stephanopoulos teased, " One of America's loudest opponents of illegal immigration is called a hypocrite. " During the four references... continue reading

In a report on Friday's CBS Early Show, senior White House correspondent Bill Plante noted that President Obama hitting the campaign trail for Democrats didn't seem to be helping: "...more than half of the voters say that the President's support for any one candidate would have no impact on their decision." However, he then declared: "Not all Republicans are coasting to victory in 2010." While Plante acknowledged that "Republicans [are] far more energized than Democrats this campaign season," he spent the second half of his report focused on two GOP candidates behind in the polls: "New York Republican gubernatorial candidate... continue reading

A new CBS News poll found the public rejecting President Barack Obama and Democrats - so the CBS Evening News focused its story on discrediting the legitimacy of the Tea Party movement. "Tonight, 26 days til the elections," Katie Couric teased, "a CBS News poll finds support for Republicans growing, but most Americans don't believe the Tea Party represents them." Couric proceeded to highlight how "45 percent of likely voters would choose the Republican candidate, 37 percent the Democrat" and Obama's disapproval on the economy is soaring while "two out of three think he's been only an average or poor... continue reading

According to ABC's Juju Chang, "wedge issues" like gay marriage can be linked to the bullying of homosexual teens. On Thursday's Good Morning America, the news anchor connected the subject in a piece on why a "seemingly accepting society" would allow harassment. The reporter complained, " But despite the progress, gay issues are wedge issues in this country. 29 states effectively ban gay marriage. " Effectively banned? Without explaining the connection, she added, "And there's Don't Ask, Don't Tell." In a follow-up segment, co-host Robin Roberts interviewed Harvard professor William Pollack and Jesse Tyler Ferguson, star of ABC's Modern Family,... continue reading

On Wednesday, Good Morning America co-anchor George Stephanopoulos hosted the Florida Senate debate and on Thursday morning highlighted the attacks against Republican Marco Rubio. Discussing the Tea Party overall, Stephanopoulos dismissed, " Both [Joe] Miller and [Christine] O'Donnell have been called too extreme by their opponents. The same case made here against Rubio. " Stephanopoulos, a former top aide to Bill Clinton, replayed attacks from the debate both from Democrat Kendrick Meek and independent Charlie Crist. Crist derided Rubio: "Wanting to punish women. Wanting to punish seniors by raising the age of eligibility. You haven't been drinking the kool aid,... continue reading

Despite a new CBS poll showing low approval numbers for President Obama, at the top of Thursday's CBS Early Show, co-host Harry Smith emphasized weak numbers for the tea party: "...most Americans think President Obama is not living up to their expectations. But, they don't know if the tea party is an answer to the problem." Smith later declared: "...less than a month before the midterm elections, there's a lot of voter uncertainty about the tea party movement." Correspondent Ben Tracy then reported: "...most Americans haven't made up their minds about the growing tea party movement. The rest are nearly... continue reading

Appearing as a guest on Monday's Charlie Rose show on PBS, CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin seemed to misunderstand conservative complaints about judicial activism as he seemed to suggest that any court rulings that strike down legislative action could be considered part of judicial activism. The CNN analyst charged that the Supreme Court of the United States has recently engaged in "conservative judicial activism" in its enforcement of the First and Second Amendments. Missing the point that "judicial activism" often involves a distortion of the Constitution's words to find legal precedent that does not exist, Toobin characterized recent decisions by... continue reading

Are religious leaders, conservative activists, and Jim DeMint responsible for the deaths of gay teenagers? That's the impression left by Kathy Griffin, Wanda Sykes, and Lance Bass, in an extensive interview on the October 4 "Larry King Live." Focusing on the slew of gay teens who have committed suicide in the past week as a result of bullying, the panel of gay rights activists spewed offensive bile toward preachers of traditional social values. "The blood is on their hands," decried Griffin, referring to the bullies who abused the gay teenagers, and religious leaders and political figures who oppose gay marriage... continue reading

CNN's new host Eliot Spitzer slammed the Tea Party movement on Tuesday's Parker-Spitzer: " I think that that piece of the Republican Party is vapid. It has no ideas .... They're going to destroy our country ." Spitzer also accused Tea Party members of forwarding a " Herbert Hoover vision of government ...saying, we want to take away the very pieces of government that created the middle class ." The former New York governor of "Client Number Nine" infamy launched his attack on the nascent political movement minutes into the 8 pm Eastern, as he and his co-host, Kathleen Parker,... continue reading

Appearing on Wednesday's CBS Early Show, business correspondent Rebecca Jarvis expressed disappointment in the lack of a new stimulus package, but hoped for other government action: "...while the government doesn't necessarily have the political will or the motivation to put a new stimulus into effect here in the United States, the Federal Reserve is prepared to step in and do that." Co-host Maggie Rodriguez had asked Jarvis about possible reasons for why the stock market "sky-rocketed" on Tuesday. Jarvis touted possible intervention by the Fed as a reason for the stock "surge": "...many are anticipating that the Federal Reserve will... continue reading