Bill O'Reilly and commentator Bernard Goldberg on Monday night touted a new Media Research Center study that found 86 percent of stories on Mitt Romney's international trip emphasized "diplomatic blunders." Goldberg derided the soft coverage Barack Obama receives, asserting, "...Journalists are Barack Obama's most loyal base. They will not abandon him." [See video below.]
He added that reporters have "too much invested in [Obama]." Describing the MRC's study, The O'Reilly Factor anchor marveled, "86 percent of all the media coverage on Mitt Romney's overseas trip was negative. Eighty-six percent."
Speaking of Obama's international tour in 2008, Goldberg reminded, "So they drooled over him four years ago, and all they could find now are gaffes in Romney's trip.
A transcript of the August 6 discussion can be found here:
8:43
BILL O'REILLY: Real quick, the Romney trip. Media Research Center, conservative group. You've been critical of them in the past. I think they do pretty good research. I've never had trouble with their stats.
BERNARD GOLDBERG: They do excellent research. I only wish they would do it on both sides.
O'REILLY: They say 86 -- 86 percent of all the media coverage on Mitt Romney's overseas trip was negative. Eighty-six percent.
GOLDBERG: If you're wondering if I'm shocked like Captain Louis Renault, who went into the back room at Rick's Cafe in "Casablanca" when he -- and he noticed gambling going on, no, I'm not shocked. I'm not shocked at all.
O'REILLY: That's a big number, though.
GOLDBERG: It's huge. It's huge. Listen, four years ago I wrote a book called "A Slobbering Love Affair," about how the media fell in love with Barack Obama. And it included material about his foreign trip. So they drooled over him four years ago, and all they could find now are gaffes in Romney's trip.
Look, obviously, journalists are Barack Obama's most loyal base. They will not abandon him. And they've got too much invested in him.
O'REILLY: That's true.
GOLDBERG: Do I find that a problem? Obviously. Am I surprised? Not at all.
O'REILLY: That's an interesting thing. Bernie Goldberg just said journalists are President Obama's most loyal base. Very provocative statement. Very interesting statement. I think we'll pick up on that more next week.
