NB Staff's blog

Original caption:

U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate Barack Obama (D-IL) laughs with CNN host Soledad O'Brien during at a Presidential forum on faith, values and poverty at the George Washington University in Washington, June 4, 2007.

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National Public Radio folks read NewsBusters. The new show "Tell Me More" noticed that NB Senior Editor Tim Graham analyzed their sympathetic segment on anti-war mothers of fallen soldiers and how they felt about Cindy Sheehan's decision to abandon her activism for now because of mean conservatives.

On Friday's edition of "Tell Me More," NPR played host Michel Martin's Wednesday phone interview with Tim as he sat in his messy MRC office about his objections to the NPR piece, and he explained how the media didn't play up that Cindy Sheehan didn't merely suffer from derogatory names, but she also threw around a lot of derogatory names of her own. Tim also called out Martin for inaccurately suggesting on her blog that President Bush never met with Sheehan.

Original caption:

Media representatives wait for Paris Hilton to arrive at a Los Angeles municipal courthouse Friday, June 8, 2007. They were disappointed because she was driven in using an underground entrance as she arrived.

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Your opportunity to discuss whatever is on your mind...

MRC intern Michael Lanza caught a passing reference on the June 6 "Paula Zahn Now" to a June 5 blog entry by NB editor Brent Baker. (See transcript below the fold)

Video (0:35): Real (1.57 MB) or Windows (1.10 MB), plus MP3 (156 kB).

In "NBC's Williams Showcases Obama Blaming Bush for Black Despair Going Back to 1991," Baker noted that NBC's June 5 "Nightly News" ran excerpts of an Obama speech before running a story on the Democratic candidates and religious faith.

Excerpted below is the relevant portion of the blog, with the portion Zahn quoted shown in bold.:

For general discussion on topics of your choosing...

For general comment and discussion...

As a starter if you're interested, does anyone else find protests by anti-globalization types a little odd at a G-8 summit largely about curbing CO2 emissions?

Since the other one got full...

The Republicans are debating again tonight on CNN. Discuss it here as it happens.

Tune in via web at this link.

Discuss the news of the day and anything else you like...

Update. Please move all GOP discussion to this thread.

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Original caption:

Jack Kevorkian left prison after eight years. He was greeted by CBS reporter Mike Wallace -- who gave him a hug.

ABC's Diane Sawyer discusses tuberculosis.

Ball room blitz! Okay, not really, just another open thread.

Discuss, debate, pontificate, tell us your favorite glam rock song, offer NB editors your suggestions. Whatever's on your mind.

Name and town not needed if you wish to opine.

It's b-a-a-ck. Discuss the news of the day and anything else you like here.

Do any of your relatives have war stories from past U.S. conflicts? Is anyone you know currently serving overseas? Share these with us in our Memorial Day tribute.

Original caption:

Rosie O'Donnell, second from left, posing with her co-hosts on ABC's 'The View,' Barbara Walters, left, Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck, right, on the show's New York set in April 2007. O'Donnell won't be back on the show following her angry confrontation with Hasselbeck.

Brent Bozell, President of the Media Research Center which publishes NewsBusters, appeared live Thursday night on FNC's Hannity & Colmes to discuss Michael Moore's latest far-left documentary, Sicko. IMDb describes it as “a comedy about 45 million people with no health care in the richest country on earth.” Sean Hannity pointed out how the New York Times called it “a virtual love letter to Hillary Clinton” and how in it Moore takes workers sick from the 9/11 site to Cuba to get better health care.

Bozell characterized Moore as “Dennis Kucinich-crazy” and recalled how “Michael Moore said in 2003 that the Saudi Arabian royal family was hiding bin Laden in Saudi Arabia and the Bush administration knew where he was.” Indeed, that comment from Moore to HBO's Bob Costas was a runner-up in the “The I’m Not a Geopolitical Genius But I Play One on TV Award” category at the MRC's 2004 DisHonors Awards (posted with a streaming Real clip and transcript).

Video clip of Bozell's appearance (3:40): Real (2.7 MB) or Windows Media (2.3 MB), plus MP3 audio (1.2 MB)

Brent Bozell, President of the Media Research Center, appeared Fox News Channel Thursday morning to discuss the recent radio controversies, such as Don Imus’ firing and XM Radio’s suspension of Opie and Anthony, who had joked on air about violently raping Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Bozell argued that such vile speech plainly crosses a line, but at the same time defended the need to have unfettered political speech from both the Left and Right.

Video: Real (3.44 MB) or Windows (3.91 MB), plus MP3 (615 KB)

Referring to left-wing campaign to go after talk show hosts like Rush Limbaugh, Bozell warned: “We also have to be very cognizant that there are some people who are playing games,” using the pretense of “decency” to suppress political speech.

Discuss, debate, pontificate. Name and town not needed if you wish to opine.

Here's a topic to think about.

Why do the media pay little if any attention to the role that the OPEC oil cartel plays in high oil prices, largely laying the blame at the feet of publicly-traded corporations that the media deride as "Big Oil"?

For weekend discussion...

Original caption:

"Former U.S. President Bill Clinton (R) [sic] appears on CNN's Larry King Live in New York April 19, 2007."

For general discussion and comment...

Discuss the news of the day and anything else you want...

So who's going to win? Will FNC be fairer than MSNBC? Tune in tonight at 9pm Eastern. In the meantime, feel free to prognosticate and discuss...

For general discussion and comment...

Discuss the news of the day and anything else you like...

For Saturday discussion and comment...

Actual caption:

In this photograph provided by 'Meet the Press', former Central Intelligence Agency Director George Tenet, appears during a taping with moderator Tim Russert on NBC's 'Meet the Press.'