MSNBC's Cycle hosts on Thursday brought on liberal author Rick Perlstein to pine for the greatness that was the 1970s. Perlstein appeared to promote his new book on the '70s and the transition from Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan. Allowing that the decade was a "dark time," the writer enthused, "But to me, there's some nostalgia to that period. Because Americans proved they could look our problems in the eye like grownups and face them." [MP3 audio here .] Remember, this was the decade of Vietnam, gas shortages, American hostages in Iran and inflation, to name a few problems. Perlstein... continue reading
On Thursday, the al Qaeda spinoff group the Islamic State seized numerous towns in northern Iraq that are home to much of the country’s minority Christian population, sending tens of thousands of them fleeing further into the Kurdish-dominated region to avoid the unforgiving and deadly extremist group. When it came to the major broadcast networks covering this story on their Thursday morning news shows, neither ABC, CBS, or NBC provided their viewers with information on this story. Meanwhile, CNN and its morning show, New Day , did cover the story with not one but two stories during its three-hour show... continue reading
Could the liberal-leaning ladies of The View be pushed even further left? It could happen as MSNBC’s vice president of prime-time programming and producer of The Rachel Maddow Show has been picked to be the new showrunner. On Thursday, CNN’s Brian Stelter reported that Bill Wolff will replace longtime producer Bill Geddie. The producer-switch comes on the heels of the announcement that the ultra-liberal Rosie O’Donnell will be returning to the set of ABC's The View. The following excerpt is from Stelter’s August 7 story for CNN.com: ABC’s reconstruction of “The View” involves not just new co-hosts like Rosie O'Donnell... continue reading
On Wednesday, actor Rob Lowe took to Twitter to criticize Barack Obama’s failed foreign policies. Waiting for the President to deliver a speech at the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit, the irritated star of NBC’s Parks and Recreation demanded the President explain how the world literally fell apart on his watch: Of course this isn't the first time Lowe has gone against the grain in liberal Hollywood. Back in November of 2013, as reported by MRC's Kyle Drennen , he told NBC's David Gregory : “Just my own world view is that the individual needs to be more responsible for their... continue reading
On Thursday's NBC Today , co-host Savannah Guthrie noted a restaurant in Minnesota that found "a unique way to offset the added expense" of the state hiking its minimum wage: "The Oasis Café is now including a 'minimum wage fee' on bills. You see it right there on the bill. Totals 35 cents ....the cafe's owners say this wage hike is going to cost them $10,000 a year, this is their way of protesting it..." [ Listen to the audio ] Guthrie touted: "Now complaints are piling up on the cafe's Facebook page. One man says, 'Look, if you can't... continue reading
On Thursday, August 7, CBS This Morning ’s coverage of President Obama’s Africa Summit consisted of a glowing puff piece on how being First Lady was like being in a sorority. Rather than acknowledge the existence of President Obama’s news conference from Wednesday night, Major Garrett, CBS News Chief White House Correspondent, played up how “Michelle Obama and Laura Bush shared the summit stage with moderator Cokie Roberts and talked candidly about the hard knocks of political criticism.” The report began with the CBS reporter hyping how “even when he was running for this office and criticizing President Bush relentlessly,... continue reading
ABC journalist Jon Karl dared to push Barack Obama on his use of executive power, demanding to know if the commander-in-chief is an "imperial president." But Karl's own network ignored the question, declining to air it on Wednesday's World News and Nightline or on Thursday's Good Morning America. It wasn't until the little-watched America This Morning , a program airing at 4am on ABC, that the question came up. At the August 6 news conference, Karl pointed out: "When you were running for president you said, quote, 'The biggest problems we're facing right now have to do with George Bush... continue reading
In a surprisingly favorable gun rights story on Thursday's NBC Today , correspondent and weekend Today host Erica Hill profiled Dartmouth College student Taylor Woolrich "in Washington D.C. speaking to a group that advocates for legal concealed guns on campus and about her desire to carry one." [ Listen to the audio ] Hill began the segment by declaring: "If you mention guns on campus, you're sure to get some attention. This request, though, is not about politics. For Taylor Woolrich, she says, it is a matter of personal safety." Soundbites played of Woolrich telling the gun rights group: "I'm... continue reading
On Wednesday night’s CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley , CBS News correspondent Manuel Borjorquez reported along the U.S. and Mexico border in Texas where one county’s police force includes help from officers in neighboring counties as volunteers to assist in stopping smugglers of illegal immigrants. When it came to interviewing one of the volunteers in Brooks County, Texas, Borjorquez raised a number of concerns of why anyone would do so without compensation. Borjorquez spoke with Reserve Deputy Gustavo Cabos, who told him that he and his fellow police officers are “all brothers” and that “[w]e're all out there to... continue reading
For the second consecutive night, Wednesday night’s NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams continued its refusal to cover the findings in the latest NBC News/ Wall Street Journal poll in which President Obama’s job approval rating hit a record low. 54 percent of Americans disapprove of how Obama is doing his job, while merely 40 percent approve in what is his lowest percentage since he took office in January 2009. As the Media Research Center’s Kyle Drennen reported on Wednesday morning, NBC’s morning news show Today did discuss the poll, but NBC News political director Chuck Todd ignored Obama’s job... continue reading