Labeling

Tuesday evening, Associated Press economics writers Christopher Rugaber and Josh Boak attempted to "fact check" statements made by candidates at the just-completed Republican presidential debate. Claiming that "The fourth Republican presidential debate was thick on economic policy — and with that came a variety of flubs and funny numbers," the two writers botched at least half of the six points…

Giving his thoughts about Tuesday’s Republican presidential debate on Wednesday’s AC360, former Bill Clinton administration staffer Paul Begala offered a strange comparison and unintentional irony when he declared that the GOP candidates are merely “creepy” “junior high schoolboys” who are playing the role of Hillary Clinton’s stalkers.

Just as a reality check, I asked a friend today what his reaction would be if I said with a sincere-sounding voice that he makes me want to strangle him. He said, "Almost sounds like a threat." I said, "No, it was supposed to be a joke." He said, "No it's not." I also asked another person what her reaction would be if I earnestly called her "demented." She said, "You'd be insulting me." I asked…

Carol Costello was true to her liberal form on Wednesday's CNN Newsroom during a segment with Rick Tyler, Senator Ted Cruz's campaign spokesman. Costello asserted that "Ben Carson didn't exactly give riveting answers" during the latest GOP presidential debate, and asked, "Why did no one challenge him on that?" She also wondered, "Is it too politically dangerous to attack Ben Carson, or to even…

Name the missing word in the following sentence from tonight's Associated Press report on the current situation at the University of Missouri: "On Friday, the now-former chancellor issued an open letter decrying racism after a swastika smeared in feces was found in a campus dormitory." The obviously missing word is "allegedly," as in, "was allegedly found." That word is also missing in sentences…

Today's "I'm just making stuff up on the fly" award nominee is Martin Crutsinger at the Associated Press. The AP reporter, named by National Review's Kevin Williamson as America's "Worst Economics Writer" in 2013, lived down to his designation in a Tuesday report on the Census Bureau's September Monthly Trade Inventories and Sales release. He described a sales increase which didn't come close to…

On Tuesday's The Lead, CNN's Jake Tapper zeroed in on University of Missouri Professor Melissa Click's attack on a student journalist, after he tried to cover anti-racism protests on campus. Tapper bluntly stated, "I have to say that I found this video shocking — not just this mob of students trying to intimidate this student journalist — but they had faculty help!" The anchor later asked…

CBS This Morning stood out as the sole Big Three network morning newscast on Tuesday to cover a University of Missouri academic shouting down a reporter, briefly physically attacking him, and then calling people over to "get this reporter out of here...I need some muscle over here." Norah O'Donnell spotlighted Melissa Click, "an assistant professor of mass media," who along with "students, were…

The folks at Investor's Business Daily are more than a little tired of seeing their IBD/TIPP (TechnoMetrica Institute of Policy and Politics) polls smeared by establishment press publications and pundits. No similar torrent of criticism has been directed at other polls which have been horribly inaccurate predictors of actual election outcomes. A large majority of them seriously and oh-so-…

Speaking with host Chris Hayes on the Monday edition of MSNBC’s All In, Democratic Congressman and 2016 Senate candidate Alan Grayson (Fl.) made a crude joke in comparing Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz to Miley Cyrus as he’s “twerking every right-winger in sight.”

CNN's Alisyn Camerota, along with guest Jackie Kucinich of The Daily Beast, targeted Dr. Ben Carson on Monday's New Day over his attacks on the media's coverage of his personal background. When Camerota wondered if Carson is indeed "being vetted more than other people," as he claims, Kucinich replied, "No. That's crazy. No, that is ludicrous....it's his autobiography....So why wouldn't the media…

At the math-challenged mess known as MSNBC, the network's "all new video experience" known as "Shift by MSNBC" tweeted a dire warning: "Latest UN report says humanity will warm the planet by 2.7˚C or roughly 37˚F." Though not revealed in the tweet, this warming will allegedly occur by 2100. If MSNBC's conversion were true, it would of course mean that the earth as we know it is in dire straits.…

In the New York Times Sunday magazine, reporter Jackie Calmes issued an unwanted sequel to her 16,000-word summer screed "'They Don't Give a Damn About Governing,' this one focusing on conservative radio host Steve Deace: "Such is the mood on the far right these days....This strain of conservative media, and its take-no-prisoners ideology, have proliferated on websites, podcasts and video outlets…

On Friday's The View, as CNS News's Mark Judge reported, Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar went ballistic when GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina stated that Planned Parenthood is "harvesting baby parts through late term abortion." Part of Goldberg's response as she serially talked over Fiorina: "You know that’s not true. Carly, you know no one’s harvesting baby parts." Behar chimed in: "That…