Just after the bottom half of the 8 pm Eastern hour of CNN’s coverage of the Republican convention, as Oklahoma Congresswoman Mary Fallin began an introduction of a video presentation about Islamist attacks on the U.S. over the past decades, host Wolf Blitzer gave a bit of a warning about the content of the video: "Let's listen to Congresswoman Mary Fallin of Oklahoma. She's going to make the case why Republicans are better in protecting us than Democrats, and that will lead into a video. It's provocative. There will be images of 9/11 and towers going down. It will raise controversy. We're going to show to it you because it's part of this convention. But let's listen to this Congresswoman from Oklahoma speak first."
Nine minutes later, after Fallin had finished her introduction and the video concluded, Blitzer began a short discussion with correspondent John King, co-host Campbell Brown, and Republican strategist Alex Castellanos about the video’s content. Brown charged that Republicans were playing on fear: "But that message though, has been fear, I mean, as a message at this convention."
BLITZER: A rather dramatic video -- powerful images, remembrances of 9/11. John King, some will say, you know what -- at a political convention, there's no real need to bring those kinds of images into this hall.
JOHN KING: That -- some will say that's controversial in playing politics out of a tragedy. Since they were doing it, it's interesting to see how they used it. You saw Rudy Giuliani. You did not see President Bush -- that was his defining challenge and his defining moment -- nowhere in that video at a Republican Convention -- think that's interesting. I think it's no accident. Number two, many will criticize the tactic. What they're trying to do is say, whatever you may think of Republicans right now -- and the brand is damaged -- but there has not been another attack since 9/11, and they will make the case at this convention that is because of their policies -- their president too, George W. Bush, but their policy.
CAMPBELL BROWN: But that message though, has been fear, I mean, as a message at this convention. And, Alex, is that the message that Republicans want to convey?
CASTELLANOS: There are things I think a lot of Republicans in this hall, especially people from, I'd say, the New York delegation, and maybe around Washington, D.C. area and Pennsylvania -- there are things worth fearing in this world. You know, I think a lot of Republicans here think that video should run every day, because we -- somewhere out there, there may be a terrorist with a nuclear weapon thinking about going into an American city. This is not just politics. Politics is a means to an end. It's how we govern ourselves.
The CNN talking heads had a measured response to the video in comparison to their competitor at MSNBC Keith Olbermann, who took offense to how his network decided to show the Republicans’ video.
—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.
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Some will say...
September 5, 2008 - 02:01 ET by DamianoAm I the only one who wants to slap the snot out of the next talking head that says, "Some will say..."?
Here's one for you:
Some will say that you are in the business of delivering liberal talking points while trying to disguise it as a question.
Tell you what CNN, find me somebody who is actually saying something then report it instead of making up crap about what you think that someone will say about a video that no one has seen yet.
Speaking of Barack Obama Fear
September 5, 2008 - 02:04 ET by Lame CherryAs Barack Obama and the DNC were served with federal court papers in the civil suit today after the US Post Office in mystery lost the original papers to them, but not to the FEC concerning his citizenship in America..........
It might be informative to note the rules in how Barack Obama will be replaced by the Democrats:
Official Rules:
“Filling a Vacancy on the National Ticket: In the event of death,
resignation or disability of a nominee of the Party for President or
Vice President after the adjournment of the National Convention, the
National Chairperson of the Democratic National Committee shall confer
with the Democratic leadership of the United States Congress and the
Democratic Governors Association and shall report to the Democratic
National Committee, which is authorized to fill the vacancy or
vacancies.”
So this means that Nance Pelosi and Dingy Harry will huddle together attempt to send both their names to the Governors to be congential candidates whereby that Virginia Governor with one eyebrow will put his name in for a trilateral presidency and Howard Dean will loose them all and vote himself the Democratic nominee.
Or Al Gore will soon be appearing as I doubt Hillary will want to go anywhere near this looser fest and instead await for 2012.
Happy Trails..........and it might be why Doc Limbaugh has been so quiet in this as he was waiting for an October Surprise but the PUMA's have snarled to life in cat scratch fevering Obama into the British subject column.
*HIC IACET ARTORIVS REX QVONDAM REXQVE FVTVRVS
Hard to believe these
September 5, 2008 - 02:18 ET by mastersofdeceitHard to believe these people were the fastest sperm.
The Others must have been in wheelchairs.
LMAO
September 5, 2008 - 02:36 ET by well99Too much
Oldie but goodie : o
September 5, 2008 - 02:47 ET by mastersofdeceitOldie but goodie : o
I prefer "failed abortions"
September 5, 2008 - 05:42 ET by mostlymoderateI prefer "failed abortions" myself. Afterall, these ARE liberals who LOVE abortion.
It's provocative. There
September 5, 2008 - 02:50 ET by MidAmericaIt's provocative. There will be images of 9/11 and towers going down. It will raise controversy. We're going to show to it you because it's part of this convention
"Martha, you better get the kids outa the room! Their gonna show 9/11. Maybe you better go with them. I'll stay here and watch as long as I can".
Yeah, CNN--let's all forget
September 5, 2008 - 05:09 ET by Andrew H.Yeah, CNN--let's all forget 9-11 and what Clinton, Gorelick, Albright, Berger and the rest of that sorry administration wrought.
All the more reason to stay tuned to FOX for news and truthful analysis.
Liberalism is a convenient lie.
Typical
September 5, 2008 - 05:13 ET by JWFThe only fear I see is the Media's fear that the Media's love for Obama will not push him into the white house.
I'd like to make a request
September 5, 2008 - 07:23 ET by usinkoreaI'd like to make a request to Newsbusters:
Can you check out the last decade or so's coverage of the anniversaries of the atomic bomb drops on Japan?
How often were they covered using film footage?
How often did they include more indepth stories like the typical ones that interview blast survivers, contemporary people in Nagasaki and Hiroshima and interview WWII vets and so on?
It would be good to compare that with notes like this about 9/11 coverage and especially the first couple of 9/11 anniversaries when many in the media openly fretted about showing scenes from that day....
The Republicans play the fear card?
September 5, 2008 - 07:27 ET by mikejReally?
They must have missed Al Gore at the Obama annointing ceremony last week going on for 20 minutes about how the world is going to end if we don't invest his company to save us all from Global Warming.
See. It makes us feel
September 5, 2008 - 07:35 ET by usinkoreaSee. It makes us feel better about the United States and being an American --- an accidental citizen of the world's lone Superpower --- if we don't do things like this - like connecting the dots.
It is better if we just ignore stuff like that.
So what if every couple of years some isolated group tries to blow up and topple our landmark skyscrapers? Or some guy uses a machine gun in the parking lot of the CIA? Or blows up some embassies. The embassies aren't even on American soil [technically they are] --- and mostly non-Americans get killed then. Or some American citizens get kidnapped. Maybe a head gets lopped off or two or three. Maybe a few airliners get blown out of the sky....
.....we're a big country. We can take it.....
I mean.....it's a small price to pay to keep our civil liberties, right?
All this scare mongering is just going to make those guys who do those things hate us even more --- and put more people like George Bush in the White House --- and then you know what will happen......!!!
Just go watch the movie The Seige.....
http://en.wikipedia....
If we let those Republicans keep showing images of 9/11 and previous terrorist attacks ---- you know that's what'll happen next...
They just won't be putting Arab looking minorities in secret prison camps or at Gitmo...
....It'll be you and me penned up like animals.....
It'll be Hitler all over again....
.....Just look what Dick Chaney has done so far!!!
.......[Hopefully, most readers will understand the whole Palin smear thing has pushed me a bit too far and I'm ridiculing neo-con-derangement syndrome in the above].....
It Is "Amazing"
September 5, 2008 - 08:54 ET by Wildcatter1980It is amazing that the left-leaning media almost always wants us, US, to not be reminded of past events such as September 11, 2001. Why is that? It couldn't be because they know that reminding us that we were attacked by cowardly enemies who don't like us simply because we live free and have a different culture from theirs will think about who among the two major candidates will be more likely to protect our country from these threats and be more tempted to vote for the Republican candidate, could it? Naaaaaa!
BTW-I wonder if Blitzed objected to the major magazine cover that exploited the famous image of the Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima's Mount Suribachi to engage in obvious advocacy journalism. Probably not.
So these talking heads
September 5, 2008 - 09:16 ET by athoughtor2So these talking heads don't fear Muslim extremists? If this type of complacency becomes prevelent in our socirty then it will just lead to another attack.
What's the matter with being fearful of terrorists?
9/11
September 5, 2008 - 11:38 ET by merlin61The Dems don't want to be reminded of how they
allowed 9/11 to happen. All they want to do is
get elected, promote more political correctness,
fight global warming (to line AG's pockets) so
they can tax us more, sing Kumbaya , and
live in their own perfect socialist world and
pretend there is no terrorists out there.