In a hard economic times story by NBC's Kevin Tibbles on Monday's "Today" show there was a not-so-subliminal pro-Obama message on display as several times pro-Obama signs found their way into the background. Reporting on the increased traffic to pawn shops by the desperate to make ends meet in the "rocky economy," Tibbles, didn't mention Obama by name but the Illinois senator's name or image popped up in the background several times.
Tibbles, or at least his cameraman and/or producer, seemed to be sending the not-so-subtle message that the presumed Democratic presidential nominee could be the savior from these tough economic times.
The following is the full story as it occurred on the June 2, "Today" show:
MATT LAUER: On "Today's Money," quick cash. If you're having trouble making ends meet in this rocky economy what can you do? NBC's Kevin Tibbles found one place where business is moving.
KEVIN TIBBLES: You don't need to go to Wall Street to see we're living in tough times. Tell-tale signs of an economic slump are all on display at the Royal Pawn Shop in Chicago, where this brokers' business is booming in a bust economy.
PAWN SHOP BROKER: With the gold going up I have never been as busy.
TIBBLES: More people looking to pawn their expensive watches or jewelry for a quick buck. Something's kinda catching my eye and it's the gleam coming off of that. What is?
BROKER: That's your six-karat diamond.
TIBBLES: Six-karat diamond?
BROKER: With one-karat diamonds next to it.
TIBBLES: But it's not only family heirlooms. There are cameras, stereo equipment, guitars, even motorcycles. From soup to nuts.
BROKER: Unbelievable isn't it? I got it all.
TIBBLES: Remnants of better times exchanged for much needed cold, hard cash, in many cases, just to make ends meet. A fur is a sort of luxury item that goes first?
BROKER: That's probably one of, that and jewelry.
MAN WITH OBAMA SIGN IN BACKGROUND: Gas is high, food is high, everything going up but your salary.
TIBBLES: Why do you think your seeing so many people come in here?
BROKER: Tough times and tougher times to come.
TIBBLES OVER VIDEO OF SHOP COUNTER WITH OBAMA POSTER IN BACKGROUND: Most customers bring items as collateral for temporary loans with the hope of reclaiming them later. Pawnbroker Randy Cohen charges about 10 percent monthly interest. Customers have from three months to a year to pay off their loans and get their goods back. Pawn shops eventually re-sell unclaimed items, often, at bargain basement prices.
UNIDENTIFIED CUSTOMER: I've bought Rolex watches, I've bought cell phones, I've bought DVDs.
TIBBLES: Just another economic indicator, this one from the street level up. For "Today," Kevin Tibbles, NBC News, Washington.
—Geoffrey Dickens is the senior news analyst at the Media Research Center.
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Obama supporter in the
June 2, 2008 - 14:40 ET by bigtimerObama supporter in the background...
Isn't that convenient!
The whole report has me LMAO...no bias here...nope.
"Never murder your opponent when he is committing suicide." ~ W. Churchill
Oh, pawn shop
June 2, 2008 - 15:11 ET by MassConservOh, pawn shop merchandise... absolute proof of a lagging economy. And I'm sure none of the stuff is hot, either.
[edit] sorry, I know that's a little off topic.
Truthful sign-offs
June 2, 2008 - 15:24 ET by thelahunginjeetFor Barack Obama, Kevin Tibbles, NBC News, Washington.
TIBBLES: Six-karat diamond?
June 2, 2008 - 18:47 ET by motherbeltTIBBLES: Six-karat diamond?
BROKER: With one-karat diamonds next to it.
TIBBLES: But it's not only family heirlooms. There are cameras, stereo equipment, guitars, even motorcycles. From soup to nuts.
What makes Tibbles think that diamonds are necessarily "family heirlooms"? Or that most of the stuff in a pawn shop is "family heirlooms?
Well it's just like those old folks eating cat food when other foods are just as cheap. It makes the situation more sympathetic.
Fred having to hock that DVD player and guitar he bought last year isn't as heart-wrenching as having to let go of supposedly Grandma's ring.
Economy
June 3, 2008 - 09:40 ET by DaieI know that things are tight for a lot of people but I think the media is making things out to be much worse than they are. When I was reading the paper this weekend there was a story about what people are doing with their rebate checks. Every person in the story talks about how hard things are and how they are barely getting by. Then they talk about what they spent their rebate on. One guy spent his on a new plasma TV. The next family spent $225 on a new cell phone for their daughter. (Mine cell phone only cost around $50.) They spent $325 for a class trip for their son. The rest of the story was more people spending their rebates on frivolous stuff but hey, the economy is so bad!!
Jimmy Carter 2 : this time more socialist than ever
June 3, 2008 - 09:33 ET by GameGridAs silly as I find this constant slant towards Obama (it's not unexpected of course) it is baffling that anyone would think that a guy with policies that are quite reminiscent of Jimmy Carter are going to save our economy especially with this Congress and Senate that is causing a good deal of headache right now. Unless people wake up we'll be going so far left after this election that it will be even more difficult to do business than it already is. Why anyone would want to put any of these clowns back into office is truly perplexing but of course 100% of the blame goes to the president because it is easier to do so and politically expedient for the liberal MSM.
Good points GG, however not
June 4, 2008 - 11:19 ET by MassConservGood points GG, however not so perplexing when taking into consideration that the media is running interference on any historical references beyond Bush taking office.
They certainly won't bring up the nightmare that resulted from Jimmy Carter's policies. Not when recognizing the similarities would kill the buzz related to the Obamagasm going on right now.