Jay Leno did something Tuesday most media members up to that point hadn't done.
On NBC's Tonight Show, the host actually reported - albeit with jokes, of course - the FBI's investigation of Sen. Robert Menendez's (D-N.J.) alleged involvement with Dominican prostitutes (video follows with transcript and commentary):
JAY LENO: Well, in more serious news, the FBI investigating New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez for allegedly soliciting Dominican prostitutes. So, once again, foreign workers doing the jobs Americans don't want to do, right? [Laughter and applause]
Well, the FBI says Menendez agreed to pay the prostitutes $500 but then only gave them $100. So, he had sex like a Democrat but is a fiscal conservative like Republicans. That's what we need in Washington! We need more men like that! Yeah. A little different when they're spending their own money, huh?
Irrespective of the levity, it appears from a LexisNexis analysis that through Tuesday, Leno was the first person on NBC to mention these allegations.
Pretty sad when a late night comedy talk show host is in front of his network's entire news division.
But NBC isn't alone.
Ditto CBS, CNN, and MSNBC.
It appears the only network interested in this story up to this point has been Fox News.
In print, outside of Florida, only Investor's Business Daily and the Pittsburgh Tribune Review had reported the investigation through Tuesday.
As for wire services, Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, and Reuters have yet to publish a word about this. Only UPI has.
Now in fairness, the Miami Herald on Wednesday broke the news that FBI officials late Tuesday night raided the office of a West Palm Beach doctor alleged to have provided these prostitutes to Menendez. As a result, other news organizations are beginning to report this story.
However, where have they been till now? Would they have been as slow on the uptake if Menendez were a Republican?
Somehow I doubt it.
