Yikes! How's this for a correction? On Monday, May 5, 2008, the Los Angeles Times published an article about adults dealing with the death of their parents. The main subject of the article was a Dr. Larry Graber, a psychotherapist from Santa Monica.

In the second paragraph of the piece, the Times wrote,

As second-generation Jewish immigrants, Graber's parents were frugal and had worked their way into the upper middle class by running pawn shops. Becoming a psychotherapist and living openly as a gay man, Graber had challenged many of their expectations.

The problem? Graber isn't gay.

Here's the correction from the Times today:

Anti-Catholicism still thrives at the Los Angeles Times, even though readers of the paper continue to call them on it. Last week, the Times published a smarmy op-ed by "humor" writer Barry Gottlieb ("That 'thou shalt not' list just got longer," 3/17/08). In addition to propagating the false story that the Vatican had composed a list of "new sins" (it didn't), Gottlieb mocked Catholic belief, ridiculed the sacraments, and derided the Church. In other words, it was just another episode of Catholic bashing at the Times.

Today (Thu. 3/20/08) - to its credit - the Times published three letters to the editor from readers who objected to the column's blatant bigotry. (I couldn't help but embolden some of the right-on points.)

This screed [Gottlieb's piece] insulting the Catholic religion is inexcusable. To publish this in a daily paper is an insult to every Catholic reader.

Addressing children's health to a group of doctors and nurses at the Ohio State Medical Center in Columbus on Saturday (2/23/08), Sen. Barack Obama made the following statement:

My home state of Illinois - I think, I'm pretty sure about this - is the only state in the country now that still requires phys ed [physical education] for local school districts. Most of the schools have abandoned it because they're under-funded, they're worried about testing.

First: According to the National Association for Sport & Physical Education (pdf file), Obama is wrong. The majority of states in the country require physical education at schools. (36 states require it at the elementary level; 33 in junior high; 42 at the high school level.)

As NB's Matthew Sheffield wrote last week, rocker/activist Bob Geldof praised President Bush for doing more for poor Africans "than any other president so far." Geldof also chided the American press for not reporting enough on the efforts by the President to deliver billions in aid to fight disease and poverty in the ailing continent.

Now look at this awful cartoon by syndicated cartoonist Joel Pett from this past week. Apparently in the eyes of Pett, the President's unwavering commitment to Africa is no more significant than a small bouquet of flowers. Ugh.

Let me get this straight: On September 11, 2001, terrorists brutally exterminated nearly 3,000 Americans, obliterated the landscape of lower Manhattan, and pummeled the headquarters of the United States's national defense. And since that same date nearly six-and-a-half years ago, pro-lifers have committed a grand total of zero murders, attempted murders, and bombings directed at abortion workers and clinics across the United States and Canada.

So the Associated Press implies that the bigger threat of terrorism to this country comes from ... pro-lifers? Here's how the AP tells it:

When it comes to fears about a terrorist attack, people in the U.S. usually focus on Osama bin Laden and foreign-based radical groups. Yet researchers say domestic extremists who commit violence in the name of their cause — abortion or the environment, for example — account for most of the damage from such incidents in this country.

We've reported several times in the past on the Los Angeles Times's problems in reporting on the abortion issue (see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.) Its negligence has included ignoring a Panned Parenthood scandal in its own backyard. But then on Friday (2/8/08) the Times published an eye-opening article prominently displayed on the top of page B1: "Abortion clinics operator is charged" (Print edition: "Operator of clinics is charged").

The article chronicles horrific barbarities at a chain of Southern California abortion clinics managed by a Bertha Bugarin. Bugarin has now "been charged with practicing medicine without a license on five patients in February and March 2007." The article begins (WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE):

By the time paramedics arrived, the patient was lying in a pool of her own blood, her pulse racing and her blood pressure dangerously low.

In the article, "Abortions down 25% from peak" (Thu. 1/17/08), the Los Angeles Times continues their practice of propagating abortion falsehoods. But their faulty reporting exceeds simple factual errors. Their falsehoods put women's lives in jeopardy.

In a passage on the activities at pro-life crisis pregnancy centers, the author of the article, Stephanie Simon (more on her below), writes,

Some of the material given to women at such sessions [at these centers] is false or misleading -- for example, warnings that abortion raises the risk of breast cancer or causes post-traumatic stress disorder.

First - The Times and Simon, despite the loads of evidence contradicting them, continue to deny the numerous studies asserting the link between abortion and an increased risk of breast cancer ("ABC" = "abortion-breast cancer"). They are wrong to do this, and we have cited Simon and the paper on this very issue before (here and here). In addition, as recently as three months ago (October 2007), a major study conducted out of England concluded that abortion is the "best predictor" for developing breast cancer.

A close adviser and chief fundraiser to Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was indicted on fraud charges. Yet if you read about the story in the Chicago Tribune, you won't read which party the governor belongs to. That's right. Blagojevich is a Democrat, yet the Trib didn't bother to include this fact in their piece.

Meanwhile, Bryan over at Hot Air showed how the Kansas City Star reported the resignation of Kansas's attorney general following a sex scandal. The original article completely omitted Paul Morrison's Democrat affiliation. Only after a phone call to the writer of the article did the Star amend the article by adding the word "Democrat" to the fourth paragraph.

Fervent liberalism is not the only thing that's predictable at the Los Angeles Times. You can bet that when the Times publishes a news article on the Church abuse scandal, rabid letters to the editor that bash the Church will follow a few days later.

Such was the case in yesterday's paper (Sat. 12/15/07). Yet the Times also failed to identify that both letter writers critical of the Church have established records of public involvement and activism in the abuse scandal narrative.

One letter was from a man named Udo Strutynski, who in his letter blasted "the conduct of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles." However, the Times completely failed to note that Strutynski is a lawyer who, according to the Times' own reporting in 2006, has filed cases against the Los Angeles Archdiocese and the Jesuit order (source).

Does the Los Angeles Times just love what's going on with the Barack Obama - Oprah Winfrey tour? Check out the coverage for the last three straight days:

"Oprah hits the road with her candidate" (Sat. 12/8/07) (image)

"Trekking to see Oprah - oh, and Obama" (Sun. 12/9/07) (image a, b - couldn't fit it into one on my scanner!) (Plus front-page color contents photo)

"Obama - Winfrey road show rolls on" (Mon. 12/10/07) (image)

Some pretty large pictures there - wouldn't ya say?

The protests against the forthcoming anti-religious film, "The Golden Compass," are "fundamentally ridiculous" and are perpetuated by "America's religious fear-mongers." That's according to Laura Miller in an opinion article in the Los Angeles Times (Sun., 12/2/07).

But that's not all. Writing about the various e-mails that Christian groups have sent to warn the public about the disturbing themes in "Compass," Miller spews:

[Y]ou have to wonder how much actual reading goes on in the sort of household that welcomes e-mails like the ones denouncing 'The Golden Compass' ...

Good ... grief. Just when you thought the level of condescension could not get any worse at the Times.

The first thing that goes through my mind every time I lay eyes on an article on abortion in the Los Angeles Times is, "Oh, no." As we've relayed several times before, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here, the Times's reporting on abortion and life issues can be problematic, to say the least.

So imagine my pleasant surprise after reading Friday's front-page piece by Times staffer Nicholas Riccardi, "Abortion foes' strategy advances." I wasn't offended by a blatant agenda by the writer. There were no factual errors that I could see. The article wasn't laced with hysterical pro-choice rhetoric. Even the photo that accompanied the article portrayed pro-lifers respectfully.

The New York Times reports that the man behind the claim that crosses and crucifixes are made under "horrific sweatshop conditions" in China admits that his information is "sketchy" and "anecdotal." Charles Kernaghan is the head of the National Labor Committee (NLC), a well-known organization that has challenged the working conditions under which companies like GAP have manufactured their clothes. Kernaghan now claims that crosses and crucifixes being sold at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City and other outlets are made under similar unacceptable conditions.

It's one month before Christmas. Stories of "crosses and crucifixes made in sweatshops in China" are airing across America. Are Catholic and Christian retailers getting a bad  rap? There's evidence that this might be the case.

1. A New York Times report stated, "Mr. Kernaghan acknowledged that information on the factories was sketchy ... 'This stuff is all anecdotal,' he said. 'It comes to us from the workers.'"

How about a fun one for Thanksgiving?

Yesterday's Los Angeles Times (Wed. 11/22/07) published this photo to accompany a story about the writers' strike. But the Times did not identify the central figure in the photo. Do you know who it is? If you've been a regular reader of NewsBusters, you should know!

A couple of weeks ago, we challenged claims published by Los Angeles Times staffer Héctor Tobar and his paper. (NB, 11/6/07: "LAT Propagates Mexico Abortion Falsehoods") Before first-trimester abortions were made legal for the first time in Mexico City last April, they claimed that up to "one million women" each year had sought illegal abortions in Mexico. But by applying Tobar's own recent reporting, we demonstrated that the one million figure appeared to be grossly inflated, that the number was a flagrant exaggeration dispersed by abortion proponents.

Now Mr. Tobar has posted an item at the "La Plaza" blog at the Times that attests that NewsBusters reporting was right-on. Tobar admits "the 1-million figure appears too high." He acknowledges that there is an "obvious inconsistency" between the reported number of legal abortions currently being performed in Mexico City and that 1 million figure that was so widely propagated.

"It could be the worst movie I've ever seen" ... "[T]he out and out worst, most disgusting, most hateful, most incompetent, most revolting, most loathsome, most reprehensible cinematic work I have ever encountered." ... "It portrays the members of our Marine Corps in the most disgusting way imaginable." ... "This film is an atrocity. It is zero stars." ... "I honestly was close to vomiting when I saw the film." ... "It is a slander on the United States of America." ... "Everyone associated with this film ought to be ashamed." ... "Will it inspire future terrorists? Of course it will!"

That's prominent movie critic Michael Medved on the new film "Redacted." Lest anyone think that Bill O'Reilly's recent outrage over the film is an overreaction, Medved tells Bill, "It's worse than you think."

Johnny Dollar's Place has the must-hear audio.

We have reported several times on the negligent reporting by the Los Angeles Times on the Catholic Church abuse scandal. (See here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.) Last week, we reported on a glaring error about the scandal in an opinion article by Jason Berry.

In yesterday's Times (Sat. 11/17/07), a reader thoughtfully weighed in on this narrative in a way that the paper never has. From the Letters section:

A recent episode of Nova about the high-profile 2006 Kitzmiller v. Dover intelligent design trial has been cited for numerous false facts and false insinuations. The episode, entitled "Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on trial," contains "blatant misrepresentations" and "misinformation," according to the Discovery Institute, the leading think tank of the intelligence design movement.

Among the falsehoods:

A trip to the United States from Pope Benedict is still nearly six months away (April 2008), but the Los Angeles Times is already in a tizzy. An editorial in Wednesday's Times (11/14/07) advises the Pope to shun "hard-liners" and "conservative Catholics" and listen to "other Catholics." The Times is concerned with the issue of whether or not abortion-friendly politicians who claim they are Catholic should receive Holy Communion. As they so often do, the Times avoided the "liberal" tag for these "other Catholics":

An opinion article by author Jason Berry in Sunday's Los Angeles Times (11/11/07) claims that United States Catholic bishops "released data [in 2004] showing that they had identified about 4,400 abusive U.S. priests." The truth? That number refers to the number of priests who had allegations of abuse.

This discrepancy is significant for a number of reasons:

A defender of abortion falsely claims in a letter in today's Los Angeles Times (Sat. 11/10/07), "The Bible does mention abortion." The erroneous reader adds that a passage in the Bible, Numbers 5, gives a "a detailed formula designed to end a pregnancy." In fact, the cited passage makes no mention of pregnancy, abortion, or miscarriage whatsoever. The reader's assertions are simply false.

Does the dishonesty at the Los Angeles Times regarding the abortion issue know no bounds? Does anyone at the Times own a Bible? Are there fact checkers at the paper?

As unrestricted first-trimester abortions were being made legal in Mexico City for the first time this past April, the Los Angeles Times reported claims that "up to 1 million Mexican women seek abortions every year" and "thousands of poor women die every year" from illegal abortions. However, recent reporting reveals that the capital's public hospitals are now on pace to perform less than one percent of one million abortions in the first year of legalization.

By grossly inflating the number of illegal abortions and the deaths they caused, the Times has propagated abortion falsehoods yet again.