In the wake of the “big three” networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) devoting 25 minutes to the indictment of Governor Rick Perry (R-TX) in the story’s first two days, ABC’s World News with Diane Sawyer continued the network obsession with the potential 2016 presidential candidate. On Monday, August 18, anchor Diane Sawyer introduced a report on Perry by proclaiming “back here at home to Texas and a kind of high noon for Texas Governor Rick Perry facing indictment, but defiant again today.” Sawyer then turned to Jim Avila, ABC’s Senior National Correspondent, to provide a fairly one-sided attack piece on the... continue reading
In just two days, the three network morning and evening shows deluged viewers with over 25 minutes of coverage (17 stories) on the indictment of Texas Governor Rick Perry. These programs made sure to speculate as to whether the controversy could "end any chance" for the Republican in 2016. [MP3 audio here .] The indictment came after Perry lobbied for Texas District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg to resign after her drunk driving conviction. From Saturday morning through Monday morning, CBS offered the most amount of coverage, five stories over nine minutes and 14 seconds. Over the same period, ABC produced six... continue reading
On Sunday's Reliable Sources on CNN, Dr. Gail Saltz blasted Fox News contributor Dr. Keith Ablow for his jab at Michelle Obama's weight: " To be criticizing people, kind of, willy-nilly is – I don't think meets the Hippocratic Oath ." She played up how Dr. Ablow previously hinted that Vice President Biden might have dementia, and claimed that the psychiatrist violated " American psychiatric guidelines, which is not to diagnose someone that you have never met ." [MP3 audio available here ; video below ] Host Brian Stelter wondered if there's "this urge to be entertaining; to be provocative;... continue reading
On Monday’s Morning Joe on MSNBC, MSNBC contributor and Managing Editor of Bloomberg Politics Mark Halperin slammed the indictment of Texas Governor Rick Perry (R) by an Austin, Texas-area grand jury for threatening to veto funding for a Democratic District Attorney’s public integrity unit after she was convicted of a DUI as “the stupidest thing I’ve seen, I think, in my entire career. ” Expanding further on his opinion, Halperin added: “I hope some judge throws it out right away. It's not just kind of funny and ridiculous, but it’s an infringement on individual liberty. He’s got a First Amendment... continue reading
All three network morning shows on Monday continued to hype the Friday indictment of Texas Governor Rick Perry, but none of the broadcasts mentioned prominent liberals like Obama adviser David Axelrod or Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz coming to Perry's defense and dismissing the charges as politically motivated. On NBC's Today , correspondent Peter Alexander proclaimed Perry to be "the first Texas governor to be indicted in nearly a century." The reporter then attempted to paint the entire field of possible 2016 Republican presidential candidates as plagued by scandal: "It's another possible 2016 contender with a blemish on his resume... continue reading
Filling in as host on NBC’s Meet the Press , Andrea Mitchell, NBC's Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and host of MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports , rushed to defend her colleague Al Sharpton for his involvement in the Ferguson protests. During a discussion with the Wall Street Journal’s Jason Riley, Mitchell declared that Sharpton was in Ferguson “on a peace mission” and not in the words of Riley to “continue to blame whites” for the death of Michael Brown. Mitchell’s comments came following Riley’s insistence that while the Brown death was tragic “let's not pretend that our morgues and cemeteries are... continue reading
Following the indictment of Governor Rick Perry (R-TX) for threatening to veto funding for the state’s public integrity unit after a Democratic District Attorney refused to resign for a drunk driving incident, ABC and CBS did their best to play up the charges against the Texas Republican. CBS reporter Manuel Bojorquez provided the most hyperbolic commentary by proclaiming “even if he is eventually cleared of these charges, he may have to deal with the political embarrassment of a mugshot.” On Saturday, August 16 all three network evening newscasts did provide numerous soundbites of Governor Perry’s repudiation of the charges against... continue reading
NBC Nightly News was the sole Big Three evening newscast on Friday to cover ISIS's ongoing rampage against non-Muslims in northern Iraq. Chris Jansing filed a full report on the heartbreak for a Yazidi community in Nebraska, who have lost family to the Islamist group's campaign of terror. By contrast, ABC's World News and CBS Evening News both found time to air news briefs on the historical gaffe in a photo promoting the new season of PBS's Downton Abbey . Jansing interviewed several Yazidis for the segment, who detailed the atrocities that ISIS is inflicting on their minority community: [MP3... continue reading
Good Morning America has a history of ignoring the spasms of bloody violence that rock Rahm Emanuel's Chicago. The city's little league baseball team prompted ABC to mention the problem. Correspondent Lara Spencer on August 15th noted the appearance of the Jackie Robinson West squad in the Little League World Series and reminded, "The victory bringing a much needed moment of pride to a city riddled with violence with 82 shootings occurring over fourth of July weekend alone." [MP3 audio here .] Back on July 8th, the weekend after the mayhem occurred, GMA reporter Dan Harris allowed a scant 11... continue reading
In an interview with the director of a Boston drug rehabilitation center on Thursday's NBC Today , co-host Matt Lauer worried about the impact media coverage of legalized marijuana was having on America's youth: "You know, if you're a teenager, a young adult, and you're watching the news and you're hearing more and more stories about the legalization of marijuana...and now you're saying, 'Wait a minute, here.' Are we sending mixed messages on drugs to our kids?" [ Listen to the audio ] David Ray, co-founder of Number 16 , replied: "We are. We are. We're sending mixed messages because... continue reading