On Wednesday, both ABC World News Tonight and CBS Evening News ignored a report that Democrat House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has finally been dragged kicking and screaming to support a ban on stock trading by members of Congress. After ignoring the story for four weeks, NBC Nightly News was the only one of the three broadcast networks to cover this story.
Instead of reporting on the proposed ban, both ABC and CBS wasted airtime on topics like a water main break in Philadelphia and other local stories that would be better suited for local newscasts by their affiliates in the area where these incidents occurred.
NBC led off their report with correspondent Tom Costello on the “rare bipartisan support to prohibit lawmakers from owning any individual stocks.” He went on to explain that “while insider trading is already illegal, lawmakers have still profited from background briefings or legislation that can influence stocks.”
Costello reminded viewers “lawmakers from both parties bought and sold stocks after receiving closed-door COVID briefings before the pandemic began to rage.” Despite a recent poll showing that “63 percent of voters believe lawmakers should be banned from stock trading” Costello reported that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is only just coming around to the idea:
Speaker Pelosi, whose husband is a wealthy financier has until now opposed a stock ownership ban. Now under pressure from her own party, she’s open to the idea if the Supreme Court is also included.
The report ended with a moment of cynicism from Costello saying “with midterm campaigning heating up, both sides want to remove the potential of insider trading claims and counterclaims from staining their own reelection efforts.”
ABC and CBS should be embarrassed that even CNN’s Jake Tapper beat them to cover Pelosi's conspicuous reluctance. At least the two broadcast networks still pretend to be objective. CNN gave up a long time ago.
This latest example of bias by omission was made possible by the endorsement of United Healthcare on ABC, and Capital One on CBS. Their information is linked so you can let them know about the biased news they fund.
To read the transcript of this segment click "expand":
NBC Nightly News
2/9/2022
7:21:08 PMLESTER HOLT: Tonight there is growing pressure on Congress to prohibit lawmakers from trading on individual stocks which often move up or down based on what those same members are doing. Here’s Tom Costello.
TOM COSTELLO: In a bitterly divided Congress, suffering from low public opinion, rare bipartisan support to prohibit lawmakers from owning any individual stocks. While insider trading is already illegal, lawmakers have still profited from background briefings or legislation that can influence stocks. Now a call to make that much more difficult, with support from the left.
SENATOR ELIZABETH WARREN: No owning the stock, no trading the stock for the member, for the member's spouse.
COSTELLO: And the right.
SENATOR STEVE DAINES: An important step forward to restore the faith and trust of the American people in this institution.
COSTELLO: Lawmakers from both parties bought and sold stocks after receiving closed-door Covid briefings before the pandemic began to rage. A recent poll found 63 percent of voters believe lawmakers should be banned from stock trading. But Speaker Pelosi, whose husband is a wealthy financier has until now opposed a stock ownership ban. Now under pressure from her own party, she’s open to the idea if the Supreme Court is also included.
SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI: It has no reporting of stock transactions, and it makes important decisions every day.
COSTELLO: One potential compromise, lawmakers could have a blind trust or own mutual funds.
SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL: That's what I advise members to do because I think it prevents such suggestions that you are engaged in insider trading.
COSTELLO: With midterm campaigning heating up, both sides want to remove the potential of insider trading claims and counterclaims from staining their own reelection efforts. Lester?
HOLT: Okay, Tom, thank you.
