NB Staff's blog

With all the focus on Newt Gingrich versus Mitt Romney of late, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum not only reminded everyone of his presence once again, he did so in a sweep--taking caucus victories yesterday in the important states of Colorado, Minnesota, and Missouri. He was not awarded any delegates for these victories, however, so the question for today is, how much do Santorum's triumphs count? A lot, not much, or somewhere in between?

The publishing of Peter Schweizer's Throw Them All Out seems to have inspired some of the editors and writers at the Washington Post who published this week an exposé on how many members of Congress are directing money in federal earmarks to projects that have some direct connection to themselves. It's not necessarily indicative of corruption but the data is fascinating to take a look at. From the Post's summary of its findings:

Politico correspondent Jonathan Martin's Tuesday morning comment about the "cracker counties" of Florida has gone unaddressed and unrebuked by the liberal media, so Sean Hannity and NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell led off last night's "Media Mash" segment with it.

MSNBC's "Chuck Todd agrees with Jonathan Martin," but he works at the same network which is constantly trying to find hidden racist messages in Republican speeches, particularly those of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the Media Research Center president observed. [see the full segment video below embedded below the page break]

Mitt Romney wins big tonight in Florida. Use this thread to catch media bias reports on the night or make your own comments.

Today's starter topic: Despite billions of dollars in taxpayer corporate welfare, electric vehicles are failing to sell everywhere, not just in this country. The results worldwide are showing that Obama's subsidies for vehicles no one wants are failing even more than you'd think:

Are you watching the GOP presidential debate tonight? If so, consider joining us live here at NB as we watch the event. It airs at 8pm ET tonight on CNN as well as on the CNN website. We'll be posting videos and fact-checks throughout the night but if you want to add your own analysis or snark, this is the place to do it.

As with all NB live events, you are expected to abide by the NewsBusters terms of service. Vulgarity and general obnoxiousness will get you kicked from the chat room. Before the debate begins, feel free to use this post as an open thread about the campaign or other topics.

One year after insulting the Supreme Court and promising a better economy, President Obama is back at it again tonight for another State of the Union Address. If you're watching the speech and the after-the-fact commentary, feel free to join us as we discuss the debate in a live chat right here on NewsBusters.

As with all NB live events, you are expected to abide by the NewsBusters terms of service. Vulgarity and general obnoxiousness will get you kicked from the chat room. Note: You do not need to be a registered NewsBusters user to participate in the chat.

Today's starter topic: After a long delay, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney released some of his tax records today. Even though they failed to adequately look at the background of President Obama, expect the media to be over these records like white on rice.

Will the records help Newt Gingrich intensify his attacks on Romney's venture capitalist background though? Will we keep complaints about Romney's wealth from the liberal media even though John Kerry's net worth is greater and that didn't seem to bother them? Or will the media move on to something else?

Fresh off his commanding South Carolina victory, Newt Gingrich is looking to keep his momentum going in yet another Republican presidential debate hosted tonight in Florida at 9pm Eastern. NBC "Meet the Press" host David Gregory is set to moderate (don't ask us why). Join us in a live chat if you are interested in tuning in to the debate. You can also watch it online here.

As with all NB live events, you are expected to abide by the NewsBusters terms of service. Vulgarity and general obnoxiousness will get you kicked from the chat room. You will need a Flash-enabled browser to participate.

"There was nothing newsworthy" about Marianne Gingrich's latest claims about the dissolution of her marriage to Newt Gingrich, NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell told Fox News host Sean Hannity on his January 20 program.

"We looked at the September 2010 Esquire story on the marriage" and found "there's nothing, let me underscore, nothing in the story last night that wasn't in that interview," Bozell noted during the "Media Mash" segment [MP3 audio here; videofollows page break]

ABC News's Marianne Gingrich interview has "that awful, awful taint of Rathergate to it," timed as it was "to do the most amount of damage it possibly could to Newt Gingrich's career," NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell complained in an interview with Washington, D.C. news-talk station WMAL's Morning Majority program.

While Marianne Gingrich may be "entirely honest" in her claim, she is "lashing out at her ex-husband" and her story is an unconfirmable account. "I think it was a mess of a story, I think it hurts the media," the Media Research Center (MRC) founder added. [interview embedded below page break]

At the very least the timing of ABC News's interview with Gingrich ex-wife Marianne Gingrich is suspect. At the very worst, it is completely inappropriate if it failed to be newsworthy and respectful, NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell told CNBC's Larry Kudlow on his January 19 Kudlow Report.

"In some respects, aren't they obliged to get it out as fast as they can," Kudlow countered, adding that maybe by putting it out the night of the debate, "it actually lessens the impact and significance of the interview." [see video embedded below page break; see related Bozell statement here]

With Rick Perry dropping out of the race today and ABC's attack on Newt Gingrich airing tonight, the GOP presidential candidate debate sponsored by CNN at 8pm ET ahead of Saturday's South Carolina primary is shaping up to actually be a newsworthy event. Are you watching tonight? If so, please join us at NB for a live chat for some fact-checking and bias busting.

As with all NB live events, you are expected to abide by the NewsBusters terms of service. Vulgarity and general obnoxiousness will get you kicked from the chat room. You will need a Flash-enabled browser to participate.

Today's starter topic: Liberals fancy themselves to be the best proponents of free speech and tolerance. But when actual political speech is at issue rather than theoretical speech, their boasts are often revealed to be mere posturing. That's why we thought it'd be nice to start off today's OT by giving some well-deserved praise to Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen for mounting a solid defense for political speech against the self-interested censors of the liberal press:

While the news media has a professional "obligation to get it right," liberal network news anchor last week set out to "purposefully" take Mitt Romney's "fire people" comment out of context, Fox News host Sean Hannity complained on his January 13 program.

But it's not only "purposeful distortion" but "purposeful character assassination" by the liberal media added NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell, who appeared via satellite for the popular recurring "Media Mash" feature. [MP3 audio available here; video embedded below page break]