BiasAlerts

On Friday's CBS Early Show correspondent Allen Pizzey made the over-the-top declaration that allegations of child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church amounted to "a scandal that's threatening to become a plague of biblical proportions." A headline on-screen declared a "Catholic Crisis." Pizzey was reporting on Pope Benedict XVI's efforts to address the scandal in a soon-to-be published Papal letter, but noted that such a statement "seems unlikely to assuage the anger of victims in parishes ranging from the U.S. to Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, and Brazil." Pizzey cited one victim of abuse, Andrew Madden, who argued: "I... continue reading

On Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Maggie Rodriguez proclaimed: "After more than a year of debate, Democrats say they're on the verge of passing historic health care legislation." And touted the massive legislation as fiscally responsible: "The government says the final version of the bill will cost $940 billion over ten years, but will reduce the projected budget deficit by $138 billion." In a report that followed, correspondent Nancy Cordes gave a fully positive description of the legislation: "The final bill would extend coverage to 32 million Americans who are currently uninsured. It would close the gap in Medicare prescription... continue reading

A mostly left-wing panel on Friday's Good Morning America forced former Cheers star Kirstie Alley into the role of speaking for the right. Liberal journalist George Stephanopoulos moderated a health care discussion with Democratic operative Donna Brazile and People magazine editor Larry Hackett. Alley surprised the group by opposing Barack Obama's plan for government-run health care. [Video available here . Audio available here .] Stephanopoulos casually asked the ex-sitcom star, "Are you rooting for this to pass?" After Alley firmly replied, "No," the surprised host blurted, " No? Why not? " The actress explained, "Because, we don't have one trillion... continue reading

"It's shaping up to be a great weekend here in Washington," Washington Post business section columnist Steven Pearlstein proclaimed in a piece in Friday's newspaper, and not because of the "spectacular weather," but because of the likely "vote in the House that would finally have the United States join the rest of the industrialized world in offering health insurance to all its citizens." Pearlstein , a former reporter who won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, concluded his column by asserting passage would prove Washington is capable of "solving" a major problem and by indulging in self-congratulatory ruminating about how... continue reading

Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos on Friday yet again pressed pro-life Democrat Bart Stupak on what it would take to get him to vote yes on health care. Over the course of two interviews, Stephanopoulos has offered eight questions designed to figure out what the Representative needs to support the legislation. Speaking of a brief chat between Stupak and Barack Obama, Stephanopoulos wondered, " Did he say anything to change your mind that could move you from no to yes? " The host later implored, "What more do you need?" At various points, the two seemed to be having separate... continue reading

"Democrats used the word 'giddy' to describe their reaction when they got the cost estimates from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO)," NBC's Kelly O'Donnell relayed Thursday night, but she could have been talking about CBS's Katie Couric and Nancy Cordes who shared the giddiness in touting the CBO numbers, favorable to Democratic spin on the health bill, without any caveats or reservations - yet with a dose of exaggeration. "The price tag certified," Couric trumpeted in teasing the CBS Evening News before leading with how the CBO "put out a report that may help win over some Democrats," reciting:... continue reading

In a bizarre choice, ABC News President David Westin has decided to make Christiane Amanpour, CNN's New York City-based international affairs correspondent, the host of ABC's Washington, DC-based This Week - thus passing over many qualified ABC journalists in favor of replacing a Bill Clinton operative with the wife of an operative for both Bill and Hillary Clinton. Amanpour is married to Jamie Rubin , Assistant Secretary of State for public affairs during the Clinton administration and an adviser in 2007-08 for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. (Of course, until early January, the show was hosted by George Stephanopoulos, a 1992... continue reading

As the Media Research Center's latest Media Reality Check details, over the past year, the media have served as cheerleaders for ObamaCare, praising the proposed legislation, while continually slamming its critics. As Congress moves closer to a final vote on the bill in the coming days, it's a good time to take a look back at the friendly spin that has dominated the airwaves in support of it, as well as the harsh attacks that have been launched against its opponents. Here is just a sampling of some of the slanted coverage from the past 12 months. -Kyle Drennen is... continue reading

Near the end of the 10AM ET hour on MSNBC Thursday, anchor David Shuster criticized Fox News anchor Bret Baier for having "interrupted the President numerous times" in a "contentious" and "heated" Wednesday interview. Shuster later accused the network of bias: "Fox is far more - far more conservative overall than MSNBC could ever be liberal." Shuster brought on left-wing Mother Jones editor David Corn and David Freddoso of the Washington Examiner to discuss Baier's interview with Obama. He asked Corn if Baier's questioning was "inappropriate," Corn didn't think so, but joked: "I was just disappointed overall, though, because there... continue reading

ABC's George Stephanopoulos on Thursday lobbied Representative Jason Altmire, a Democrat who is undecided on the health care legislation, over what it will take "to change your vote from no to yes." The former Democratic operative turned journalist pressed for details: "Well, the House bill was about, what, $950 billion. The Senate bill came in about $875 billion. What number do you need to see?" Stephanopoulos chided Altmire over whether he was ready to take down Obama's presidency. Citing another Democrat who changed sides, he argued, "You know, yesterday, when Congressman Kucinich said he was switching from no to yes,... continue reading