Thursday’s NBC Nightly News featured one of the classic tricks in the liberal media playbook as Capitol Hill correspondent Kasie Hunt declined to disclose the liberal activist history of a woman in her story about the Senate push to repeal and replace ObamaCare.
Prior to the live shot at the end of her segment, Hunt explained that “all the uncertainty” about ObamaCare “worries Theresa Bohannan” because “[h]er son was born with a rare heart condition.”
Bohannan then tearfully opined in a soundbite: “I think they should meet with people. I think they should slow down and, you know, hear as many stories as they — as they can.”
Hunt summarized Bohannan as someone “[p]leading with Congress to get it right instead of just getting it done.”
A quick Google search of “Theresa Bohannan” would yield search results that include a link to a March 21 press release the far-left group Ultraviolet touting her as the star of an ad targeting Republican Senator Dean Heller (Nev.).
Here’s an excerpt:
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA — As the House prepares to vote on whether to strip away healthcare from millions of Americans, UltraViolet, a national women’s advocacy group, is launching an new video ad campaign in The Las Vegas Sun urging Nevada Senator Dean Heller to vote against repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and alerting Nevadans to place a call to Heller’s office urging him to vote no.
The ad features Reno residents Theresa Bohannan and Briant Gibb, the mother and father of a toddler, Dean, who was born with a congenital heart defect. They discuss how the Affordable Care Act has been a lifesaver for her son. In the video, Theresa and her spouse Briant argue that repealing the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with the Republican plan – the American Health Care Act – would be a disaster for their family, and other Nevada families, who rely on coverage from the ACA.
Along with an interview in The Wall Street Journal that also didn’t disclose her liberal tilt, another link went to a July 13 story from Reno, Nevada’ CBS affiliate KTVN 2. Bohannan was prominently featured in the report about ObamaCare supporters and two Nevada Democratic lawmakers teaming up for a phone bank targeting Heller.
An accompany text article of the story also included her:
"For us, the repeal of the ACA is a direct threat for our family and our son," phone tree volunteer Theresa Bohannan said.
She has a two-year-old son with a congenital heart defect. She said his medical bills since he was born already total more than $1.3 million.
"For families like mine, the fear would be either being denied the services that he needs to save his life or potentially having to pay anything extra out of pocket," she said, "which would obviously bankrupt us."
It should be made clear that Bohannan’s son deserves the best care possible and her passion is undeniable and certainly warranted.
However, NBC’s failure to disclose her as having a clear partisan affiliation was the real issue. And it should be noted that the other networks have done this as well to their respective audiences (see two examples here and here). If NBC or any outlet wants the trust of its viewers, how can they do so by withholding important tidbits like these from them?
Here’s the relevant transcript from July 27's NBC Nightly News:
NBC Nightly News
July 27, 2017
7:08 p.m. Eastern
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Senate Marathon Ahead of “Skinny Repeal” Vote]
KASIE HUNT: All the uncertainty worries Theresa Bohannan. Her son was born with a rare heart condition.
THERESA BOHANNAN: I think they should meet with people. I think they should slow down and, you know, hear as many stories as they — as they can.
HUNT: Pleading with Congress to get it right instead of just getting it done.
[BOHANNAN’S SON MAKING BABY NOISES]
