Morning Shows Skip Sexual Assault Charge Against Al Gore

June 24th, 2010 11:34 AM
All three morning shows on Thursday ignored allegations of "unwanted sexual contact" by Al Gore against a woman in 2006. This is despite the fact that the claim was reported by the AP, the New York Times and the Washington Post. CBS's Early Show, NBC's Today and ABC's Good Morning America failed to mention the charges made by an Oregon massage therapist that Gore tried to have sex with her. Yet,…

Media-Backed Obama Mortgage Program Flops

June 24th, 2010 10:43 AM
Obama's home loan modification program was talked up by the bailout-friendly news media as a potential "ray of light" for struggling homeowners. But on June 21, Associated Press reported the mortgage assistance program is "falling flat." The broadcast networks supported the mortgage modification and housing bailout when Obama launched it in 2009, after criticizing Treasury Secretary…

MRC Study: Media Blackout of Supreme Court 'Battle

June 24th, 2010 10:32 AM
When President Obama picked Elena Kagan to replace Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, the broadcast networks referred to the upcoming Senate confirmation process as “contentious” a “meat grinder” and a “battle,” warning Kagan was “in for a fight.”But a Media Research Center analysis of the ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts in the six weeks since Kagan was nominated shows the broadcast…

CBS's Katie Couric Fawns Over Left-wing Feminist and Her Outrageous Cl

June 23rd, 2010 6:33 PM
"[Carly Fiorina's] position on taxation would deprive women of childcare."The Hyde Amendment "penalizes poor women terribly.""You can't be a feminist who says other women can't" have an abortion.These are just some of the outrageous statements left-wing feminist Gloria Steinem made during an interview with CBS anchor Katie Couric on the latest installment of "@katiecouric," which was posted to…

'Early Show' Panelists on Marriage: 'Who Wants to Sign up for That

June 23rd, 2010 5:16 PM
Apparently unmarried men don't have to bother ‘putting a ring on it' anymore. A CBS' "Early Show" panel on June 23 made marriage look like an obsolete tradition by  highlighting several couples who've cohabited for years-with little or no intentions of ever saying "I do." CBS co-host Erica Hill cited statistics showing a record-high 6.4 million couples currently cohabitate in the United States…

Media Praise Obama's 'Brilliant' Handling of McChrystal Controversy

June 23rd, 2010 3:38 PM
President Obama's decision to relieve General Stanley McChrystal of command in Afghanistan and replace him with General David Petraeus was met with a chorus of praise in the media, as anchors and pundits on CBS, NBC, CNN, and MSNBC all sang in unison that it was a "brilliant" move. [Audio available here]  During live special coverage leading up to the announcement in the 1PM ET hour on CBS, White…

On Networks, 'Controversial' Law Means Conservative Law

June 23rd, 2010 3:17 PM
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…

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

June 22nd, 2010 12:20 PM
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…

CBS Fawns Over Pay Czar Feinberg: He Speaks With 'Moral Authority' and

June 21st, 2010 5:20 PM
On the June 20th edition of Sunday Morning, CBS reporter Richard Schlesinger conducted a glowing interview with pay czar Kenneth Feinberg, lauding him as someone who speaks with "moral authority" and who has "become an expert assessor of the value of life itself." Feinberg, who will now be in charge of distributing the $20 billion BP has pledged for the oil spill, previously worked with President…

Network Morning Shows Rage Against BP CEO's Yachting Trip, Ignore Obam

June 21st, 2010 12:40 PM
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

June 20th, 2010 9:51 PM
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 Focuses Oil Spill Blame on BP and Coast Guard, Not Obama; CBS Give

June 17th, 2010 5:23 PM
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…

Obama Requests $50 Billion More, Networks Devote 38 Times More Coverag

June 17th, 2010 10:21 AM
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…

ABC's Stephanopoulos Lobbs Softballs to Gibbs; CBS and NBC Provide Cha

June 15th, 2010 1:30 PM
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs made the rounds on the network morning shows on Tuesday, ahead of President Obama's prime time Oval Office address on the Gulf oil spill. While he had confrontational interviews on CBS's Early Show and NBC's Today, on ABC's Good Morning America, co-host George Stephanopoulos made sure Gibbs's appearance was low-stress.Stephanopoulos kept the questions…