New twist on the old media double standard: Strong pro-life women shouldn’t accept far-flung speaking engagements. They should stay home (presumably barefoot and pregnant, too.) Strong pro-choice women, however, are welcome to “champion women’s rights,” wherever and whenever they please.
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin recently gave a speech at a pro-life dinner in Indiana on April 16 and the media condemned her for not staying home and governing her state. But when U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently spoke to a Planned Parenthood group she was lauded as “championing women’s rights.”
ABC’s “Good Morning America” covered Palin’s speech and the “controversy” that ensued, stating that Alaska lawmakers, failing to mention they were mostly Democrats, are “criticizing Palin for her out of state travel.” Instead of focusing on Palin’s main pro-life points, GMA spent 50 seconds of the 64 second segment keyed in on her admission that she understands women who entertain the thought of abortion.
But when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke on March 27th to a Texas Planned Parenthood crowd, she was “honored for support of women’s rights.” Instead of criticism for the Secretary of State not investing in overseas diplomatic relationships, she received rave reviews from Texas newspapers for being someone who “champions women’s rights worldwide.”
The most attention-getting part of Palin’s speech was when she declared that deciding when life begins “isn’t above her pay grade,” referring to then-candidate Obama’s statement at Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church forum back on April 16, 2008. Palin also explained to the Evansville, Indiana crowd that her son Trig is a blessing. “The moment he was born, I knew that moment my prayers had been answered,” she said. “Trig is a miracle. He is the best thing that ever happened to me and I want other women to have that opportunity.”
The mistreatment of Sarah Palin by the mainstream media is nothing new as CMI has noted the character assassination she suffered at the hands of the networks during her run for Vice President.
Colleen Raezler contributed research to this article.
