Breaking: Federal Judge Blocks Obama Admin Drilling Moratorium (A Win

Via the Associated Press (link may be dynamic and subject to change):  A federal judge in New Orleans has blocked a six-month moratorium on new deepwater drilling projects that was imposed in response to the massive Gulf oil spill. The White House says President Barack Obama's administration will appeal. Several companies that ferry people and supplies and provide other services to offshore…
Tom Blumer

Flashback: Media Promoted Military Criticism of President Bush

No general should criticize his or her commander, and Gen. Stanley McChrystal is no exception. But the mainstream media is primarily concerned with the political fallout of McChrystal's apparent insubordination as revealed by a piece in Rolling Stone. They are not concerned with whether his critiques are accurate, in stark contrast to other military officers' critiques of war policy under the…
Lachlan Markay

After Only Six Days, Olbermann Kisses and Makes Up with Daily Kos Blo

Keith Olbermann just couldn't stay mad at the radical leftists at the Daily Kos. Six days after walking away in a huff, the MSNBC host returned to his spot on the blog on Tuesday morning, with the headline "So, uh, this looks like a nice site." He began: "OK, I'm back." I've always liked to invent backstories behind cliches and one of my oldest ones is the idea that the first guy who said "You…
Tim Graham

Col. Jack Jacobs: Most In Military Will Say McChrystal 'Was Right

Contessa Brewer got a lot more than she was likely looking for when she interviewed Col. Jack Jacobs [ret.] this afternoon about the McChrystal situation.  The MSNBC host wanted to focus on the impropriety of McChrystal publicly airing his criticisms of Pres. Obama and others in the chain of command.  But while the Medal of Honor recipient readily agreed that McChrystal was out of line, and…
Mark Finkelstein

Dem Leader Hoyer: Middle Class Tax Cuts Aren't 'Sacrosanct'; WaPo Buri

In a recent interview, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that the Bush tax cuts that affect the middle class should not be considered "totally sacrosanct." The number two Democrat in the House of Representatives "acknowledg[ed] that it would be difficult to reduce long-term deficits without breaking President Obama's pledge to protect families earning less than $250,000 a year,"…
Ken Shepherd

Zoinks! Media Shocked by Study Showing Kids Prefer Cartoon-Endorsed Pr

CNN, USA Today report 'little research' done about character-based marketing, call for regulation and omit parental responsibility
Kyle Gillis

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Dismisses 'Fake' 'Platitudes' of Conservative Mo

Liberal MSNBC host Rachel Maddow on Monday mocked the Mount Vernon Statement, a conservative declaration of principles as "a grandiose fake-parchmenty-looking thing." The anchor first described the document as endorsing "the rule of law, and individual liberty, and opposing tyranny in the world, and the defense of family, neighborhood, community and faith." [Audio available here.]Maddow then…
Scott Whitlock

While Networks Ignore Obama Golf Outing, CNN Humorist Gets Story Right

CNN correspondent Jeanne Moos has a penchant for quirky, off-beat reporting, but what happens when the eccentric newswoman gives a more accurate picture of important events than the serious journalists?While media outlets relentlessly denounced BP CEO Tony Hayward for taking Saturday off to participate in a yacht race, they mostly glossed over or completely ignored President Barack Obama's…
Alex Fitzsimmons

Revolutionary Rot, But News It's Not: AP Ignores Venezuela's 'Battle f

Late last year, a story carried by the wire service AFP reported on an announcement by Venezuela's Hugo Chavez that his government would launch "a new chain of government-run, cut-rate retail stores that will sell everything from food to cars to clothing." Chavez reportedly said that these "discount socialist stores" would show people "what a real market is all about, not those speculative, money…
Tom Blumer

Zoinks! CNN, USA Today Shocked Kids Prefer Cartoon-Endorsed Products

It didn't take Velma, Shaggy or Scooby to uncover this mystery. In a June 21 study published in the medical journal Pediatrics, researchers from Yale University "discovered" that food products with characters on them affect children's taste preferences, which may explain why food companies have been advertising with cartoons since at least the 1960's. CNN.com and USA Today used the study to…
Kyle Gillis

Newsweek Wonders if Utah Republicans Will 'Play Dirty' by Voting for L

Liberals in the media frequently paint conservatives and Tea Party activists as pushing the GOP too far to the right to be electable in general elections. But the same complaint isn't repeated on an endless loop when it comes to leftist activists challenging more centrist Democratic incumbents in primary contests. In fact, in some of those occasions, the media find a way to cast aspersions on…
Ken Shepherd

ABC News Prominently Features 'Gay-Friendly' McDonald's Ad Airing In F

Is ABC News trying to position itself as the go to place for gay rights advocacy amongst the broadcast network websites?Ten days after featuring a video of a gay prom king and queen, the website prominently displayed a gay-themed McDonald's ad.The video first appeared Monday with the title "McDonald's Ad You Won't See in the U.S: A fast-food commercial with a gay-friendly story is only airing in…
Noel Sheppard

Mother Jones’ David Corn Says BP Oil Spill Great for Democrats

The BP oil spill - millions of gallons of oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico, coastal businesses from Houston to Tampa shuttered, the potential for higher energy costs across the country and untold ecological damage. But according to Mother Jones magazine's David Corn, there is a silver-lining in all of this - that is, if you're a Democrat.  MSNBC's June 21 "Countdown with Keith Olbermann"…
Jeff Poor

Mother Jones' Corn Says BP Oil Spill Great for Democrats

Liberal magazine reporter explains portraying GOP as pro-BP will score Dems electoral points
Jeff Poor