On Networks, 'Controversial' Law Means Conservative Law
Liberals may like to boast of fighting the establishment and taking on the status quo, but it's conservative laws that are 30 times more likely to be deemed "controversial" - at least by the mainstream media. In the past five years, when ABC, CBS, or NBC news reporters claimed a law was "controversial," they were most likely referring to legislation backed by the right. This analysis looked…
Networks Ignore Misleading Obama Report on Drilling Moratorium and Opp
All three network news shows on Tuesday skipped a report that eight of 15 experts consulted by the Obama administration opposed the government's plan to halt deepwater oil drilling for six months. Only Special Report With Bret Baier covered the story. FNC reporter James Rosen noted a federal judge's decision to overturn the plan: "The judge also rebuked the Obama administration for filing a quote…
Awkward: ABC Skips Report That Bianna Golodryga's Fiance Is Leaving th
Good Morning America on Tuesday skipped the news that Peter Orszag, Barack Obama's budget director, is resigning from the White House. Perhaps not coincidentally, Orszag is also the fiance of GMA's weekend anchor Bianna Golodryga. CBS's Early Show and NBC's Today both covered the subject. Today reporter Savannah Guthrie explained, "It's a mix of the personal and the political. Most budget…
Behar: Prayer 'Takes the Place of Thinking
Oh, Joy of little faith. On the June 22 episode of "The View," co-host Joy Behar criticized prayer, saying it "takes the place of logical thinking, then I think that's dangerous." Behar's attack on prayer came as she defended comedian Janeane Garofalo, who during a June 16 appearance on Behar's Headline News show called prayer "anti-intellectual" in criticizing President Obama's reference to…
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…
Media Turn to Public Enemy's 'Chuck D' for Arizona Immigration Critiqu
Where does a 1990s rap star fall on your list of immigration law experts? For the media the answer is: pretty high. Rapper "Chuck D," whose real name is Charles Ridenhour, has released a new single criticizing Arizona's controversial immigration law, which he says "brings racial profiling to a new low." In the song, "Tear Down That Wall," Chuck D compares Border Patrol agents to the Gestapo and…
Network Morning Shows Rage Against BP CEO's Yachting Trip, Ignore Obam
All three morning shows on Monday railed against BP CEO Tony Hayward for attending a yachting race in England on Saturday, but they found no such anger for Barack Obama's golf outing on the same day, ignoring the story. The pattern was nearly identical on Sunday, with only Good Morning America briefly mentioning the President's recreational activities. On Monday's Early Show, Katie Couric…
Sunday Talk Shows All Start With BP Hayward's Yachting, Ignore Obama's
As NewsBusters previously reported, America's media on Saturday had a collective hissy fit over BP CEO Tony Hayward having the nerve to participate in a yacht race on his day off.At the same time, no such outrage was expressed concerning President Obama and Vice President Biden going golfing.This double standard continued Sunday as the three broadcast network political talk shows all began with…
ABC's Tapper: White House Hails A 'Good Week' After 'Gift' From Joe Ba
On Friday's Good Morning America on ABC, White House correspondent Jake Tapper described White House reaction to Republican Congressman Joe Barton calling BP's $20 billion escrow fund the result of a government "shakedown": "...the argument they're making, that the Republican Party is too close to corporate America.....And they've been given this great foil by Joe Barton."When co-host George…
ABC Focuses Oil Spill Blame on BP and Coast Guard, Not Obama; CBS Give
On Thursday's Good Morning America on ABC, co-host George Stephanopoulos laid blame on BP and Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen for mishandling the Gulf oil spill response but depicted the Obama administration as having done everything it could. In contrast, on the CBS Early Show, guests from both sides of the aisle gave the President a 'C' grade for his response. At the top of Good Morning America…
ABC Touts Entrepreneur Seeking Backing of Government 'Lawyers and Lobb
The day after President Obama’s oil spill speech — in which the President pivoted from the ongoing mess in the Gulf of Mexico to his call for ending our “addiction” to fossil fuels — ABC’s World News obliged the White House’s agenda with a profile of solar cell manufacturer Natcore, whose president, Chuck Provini, says he can cut the costs of solar cells (which are right now too expensive to be…
Obama Requests $50 Billion More, Networks Devote 38 Times More Coverag
The news media have recently been struck with World Cup fever, with two broadcast networks sending reporters to South Africa to cover the games. At the same time, a bailout request that could cost taxpayers another $50 billion was ignored by most broadcast news programs. ABC, CBS and NBC spent a combined 25 minutes 54 seconds talking about World Cup soccer between June 13 and 15. That was…
Defending the Indefensible: ABC's Moran, Stephanopoulos Shill for Obam
Despite widespread criticism of President Barack Obama's Oval Office address on the Gulf oil spill–including flak from MSNBC's left-wing posse of Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, and Howard Fineman–ABC's Terry Moran and George Stephanopoulos on the June 15 "Nightline" fawned over the president's speech and ignored its obvious shortcomings.In recapping the address, Moran could not contain his…
Double Shock: ABC Shows Gulf Residents Panning Obama’s Oil Spill Spe
A tale of two disasters: On ABC’s Good Morning America this morning, weatherman Sam Champion’s piece included reaction from several residents of Florida, Alabama and Louisiana to President Obama’s oil spill speech, and found three outright critics and no defenders of the administration’s handling of the disaster. One woman exclaimed: “What I would have liked to heard from him – that he actually…
