NewsBusters Making Impact at 'Morning Joe'

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Oh sure, sometimes they love to hate us, but one thing is clear: NewsBusters is must reading for MSNBC's Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.

As I noted here, Scarborough and panelist Willie Geist blasted Media Matters on today's "Morning Joe" for using a "phony story" to go after Rush for his "phony soldiers" comment. Joe and Willie recognized the truth of the matter: that Rush had been speaking of one phony soldier indeed, Jesse Macbeth, and not of anti-war soldiers in general.

Later, at 8:03 A.M. EDT, in the context of the Media Matters-inspired attack on Rush, Joe and Mika made clear that they have NewsBusters on the noggin.

Video (0:52): Real (1.41 MB) and Windows (1.60 MB), plus MP3 audio (404 kB).

JOE SCARBOROUGH: [The Media Matters attack on Rush] just like the MoveOn.org ad [attacking General Petraeus], it will whip up the base and they will get a lot of contributions, they will make a lot of money. And that's what these organization are all about, on the left and on the right. We've got organizations on the right always viciously attacking poor Mika [who could they have in mind?]. We have to stand here and defend her honor. But you know what?

MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I enjoy it.

SCARBOROUGH: They make money, they make money doing that.

WILLIE GEIST: You're no phony soldier, Mika.

SCARBOROUGH: You are no phony soldier.

BRZEZINSKI: It's kind of fun to read that stuff. It keeps you sharp.

SCARBOROUGH: It does keep you sharp. I always like reading Media Matters and I also like reading NewsBusters to see if I did something that was over the line. And usually I disagree when --

BRZEZINSKI: You're a star at NewsBusters!

SCARBOROUGH: [continuing thought] they say I'm over the line, but sometimes they get it right.

BRZEZINSKI: That's right.

My only quibble, speaking for myself and my colleagues at NewsBusters: we aren't mercenaries; we believe passionately in what we write. That said, we're glad to count the "Morning Joe" crew as fans.