Jim Avila

Gloating Networks Hype Chris Christie’s Inauguration 'Crisis': Not Exactly ‘His 'Glory Days'
By Scott Whitlock | January 21, 2014 | 9:48 AM EST

All three networks on Tuesday morning continued to pile on Chris Christie, offering gloating coverage about how his “glory days” have gone terribly wrong.  After recounting everything that has gone awry for the Republican, Good Morning America's Jim Avila imagined, “You can almost see at the inauguration today, Governor Christie raising his right hand and shaking his head at the same time. “ [See video below.] Co-host Robin Roberts added, “It’s not what they thought today was going to be.”

After reiterating that  the new year is “not at all going to plan” for Christie, Avila continued, “Instead, [the governor has been] forced to play scandal whack-a-mole, with new poll numbers falling.” CBS This Morning offered a network graphic that trumpeted, “Christie Crisis.” Journalist Elaine Quijano featured  Alex Burns from the liberal Politico to lecture that in order to run for President, Christie needed to “run up the legislative score board in New Jersey. I think we can safely say that all those plans are on hold.”  

It's the End of the World as ABC Knows It, Spinning Another Story as 'Armageddon'
By Scott Whitlock | January 15, 2014 | 4:33 PM EST

 Spinning liberal-friendly stories as the end of the world is a popular thing at ABC. Good Morning America's Jim Avila on Wednesday hyped the scandal involving Chris Christie as "traffic armageddon," a hyperbolic term the network loves. On Saturday, Avila mentioned the "four-day traffic armageddon." [See video of both below. MP3 audio here.]

As the sequester set in on April 22, 2013, co-anchor George Stephanopoulos freaked out: "Breaking this morning: Airport armageddon. Almost seven thousand flights could be delayed." On March 1, 2013, a GMA graphic warned of "budget armageddon." On April 23 reporter Matt Gutman predicted an "airline apocalypse."

Networks Torch Christie for Lane Closures, But Ignored Obama Admin's Corrupt Shutdown Tactics
By Matt Hadro | January 9, 2014 | 3:01 PM EST

The same network evening news shows that ignored vindictiveness by the Obama administration during October's government shutdown were up in arms Wednesday over New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's "Bridgegate" and the possible tarring it could give his image.

NewsBusters already counted 17 times more network coverage of Christie's controversy than of Obama's IRS scandal in the past six months. That same double standard was evident in the treatment given the Christie administration versus the non-coverage of any Obama administration wrongdoing during the shutdown.

Year-End Awards: Journalists Acting as Orderlies for ObamaCare
By Rich Noyes | December 28, 2013 | 9:03 AM EST

Today’s installment of the Media Research Center’s “Best Notable Quotables of 2013,” as selected by our 42 expert judges, the “Obama's Orderlies Award,” for championing ObamaCare.

Back in 2010, this award was “won” by then-MSNBC star Keith Olbermann, who on January 5 of that year lambasted conservatives for daring to oppose Obama's big government solution: “What would you do, sir, if terrorists were killing 45,000 people every year in this country? Well, the current health care system, the insurance companies, and those who support them are doing just that....Remind me again, who are the terrorists?”

This year, as ObamaCare began to unravel, the media cheerleaders were still out in force. (Winners and videos after the jump.)

ABC Wants Dismissal of $1.2 Billion 'Pink Slime' Suit
By Julia A. Seymour | December 19, 2013 | 6:03 PM EST

A South Dakota circuit court judge heard arguments on Dec. 17 from both sides in the lawsuit by Beef Products Inc. (BPI) against ABC News over its coverage of lean finely textured beef in 2012.

Reuters reported that ABC’s lawyers asked for the $1.2 billion defamation suit to be dismissed “as the news outlet stood by its reports and cited free speech protections.” BPI, a South Dakota-based company, sued ABC after the news network aired a series of reports labeling its product “pink slime.” ABC used the term 137 times in four weeks, Reuters noted.

Beyond Spin? Networks Unload on ObamaCare: An 'Embarrassing,' 'Botched' 'Resounding Thud'
By Scott Whitlock | November 14, 2013 | 12:11 PM EST

 At least for Thursday, the network morning shows admitted that ObamaCare is an "embarrassing," "botched" failure that has landed with a "resounding thud." ABC, NBC and CBS offered blunt, stark descriptions of the health care law's low enrollment rates and the disastrous implementation. Good Morning America reporter Jim Avila explained, "The President's signature achievement, health care for everyone, officially got off to a resounding thud." He added that Republicans are "seizing on the botched rollout."

Over on NBC's Today, Savannah Guthrie unloaded on the President: "A new poll that has the President's approval rating hitting an all-time low as the administration is forced to acknowledge health care enrollment numbers that are embarrassingly low." [See video below. MP3 audio here.] Correspondent Peter Alexander marveled, "For a better sense of just how few Americans signed up for ObamaCare in the first month – 106,000 total – consider that's barely enough to fill a large football stadium and only one-fifth of what government officials had projected."

ABC and NBC Sympathize With Sebelius For 'Falling on Her Sword' Against 'Rude' Republicans
By Scott Whitlock | October 31, 2013 | 12:00 PM EDT

 

ABC and NBC journalists on Wednesday and Thursday hailed Kathleen Sebelius as "falling on her sword" and "taking responsibility" for the ObamaCare website debacle. On World News, reporter Jim Avila complained about the Sebelius grilling as a "rude grandstand" and a "three hour circus of a congressional hearing." He dismissed it as "official finger pointing day on Capitol Hill."

Yet, on Thursday, Avila sympathized with the Democratic Health and Human Services secretary, praising, "...The woman in charge of the Affordable Care Act fell on her sword with her first full-throated apology." The Obama official "was reluctant to pass the buck, even when pressed." Over on NBC's Today, host Matt Lauer gushed, "Kathleen Sebelius went before Congress yesterday and she did something you don't see happen in Washington very often, she took the blame."

ABC Wakes Up to ObamaCare 'Lie,' But Knocks Americans' 'Cheap, Underperforming' Plans
By Scott Whitlock | October 30, 2013 | 12:32 PM EDT

 The journalists at Good Morning America on Wednesday conceded that Barack Obama may have "misled the public" on the health care law, that "some call it a lie." But at the same time, reporter Jim Avila helpfully told viewers that Americans would be only be losing "cheap, underperforming insurance." [See video below. MP3 audio here.] Anchor George Stephanopoulos introduced the story on Kathleen Sebelius's testimony before Congress as the "latest firestorm over ObamaCare."

The co-host revealed, "All this is happening as we learn of a new report from inside the administration that warned these website problems were coming." Avila related that the Health and Human Services Secretary will blame the disastrous launch of "contractors who built the site" and take "none of the" responsibility. The journalist explained, "A document posted overnight by a congressional committee shows that the main contractor did warn the government more testing was needed before launch."

ABC Excuses Obama’s False Promise: Canceled ‘Cheap’ Policies Are ‘Dangerous’
By Brent Baker | October 30, 2013 | 10:04 AM EDT

Jumping in to excuse President Obama for making the false promise (“If you like your plan, you can keep your plan”), ABC News on Tuesday night rationalized how ObamaCare is simply saving people in the individual market from being victims of awful policies forced upon them by insurance companies. 

On World News, Jim Avila cited the case of Julie Prince, who has been notified her policy will be canceled. Avila turned to an ObamaCare advocate and asked: “Julie tells us that she doesn’t have hospital care on this cheap insurance plan. Is that dangerous?” Lynn Quincy of Consumers Union agreed: “Absolutely. That’s on enormous hole in her coverage.”

Fusion Network Debuts With Softball Obama Interview: Can You Do More for Illegal 'Dreamers?'
By Scott Whitlock | October 29, 2013 | 12:28 PM EDT

 The new Fusion Network debuted on Monday with an exclusive Barack Obama interview. Journalist Jim Avila offered mostly softball questions and avoided any mention of disastrous launch of the ObamaCare website. Avila pushed the President from the left on immigration, wondering, "...Why if you have been able to by presidential fiat say that dreamers will not be deported, why not their parents? Why not, why is it the splitting of families bothers them?"

Avila prefaced his question as coming from "some of the younger people Fusion listens to." (The query was in reference to Obama's 2012 decision to stop deporting illegal students eligible for the Dream Act.) On the issue of ObamaCare, the journalist vaguely wondered, "I guess the main question for Fusion-type listeners is, what's in it for the young people?"

Name That Party: ABC Skips Dem ID of Gubernatorial Candidate at Underage Drinking Party
By Scott Whitlock | October 25, 2013 | 11:56 AM EDT

 All three networks on Thursday night and Friday morning highlighted the photographs of a gubernatorial candidate from Maryland at a teen party that featured underage teens and drinking. Yet, ABC failed to mention that Doug Gansler, the top tier candidate, is a Democrat.

ABC featured the most aggressive coverage. Reporter Jim Avila confronted the "would-be governor." While showing a photo that "Maryland's top cop...would love to forget," the journalist narrated, "The attorney general, right in the middle of teenage partiers, celebrating their high school graduation." At no time did the report, which aired on World News and Good Morning America, refer to Gansler as a Democrat. [See video below. MP3 audio here.]

After Highlighting Outrage Over Military Death Benefits, ABC Barely Notices Harry Reid's Failure to Act
By Scott Whitlock | October 10, 2013 | 11:41 AM EDT

 

ABC's Good Morning America on Wednesday rightly highlighted the "outrage" over the delay of death benefits to the families of fallen U.S. soldiers. A day later, the program's hosts barely had time for the story, allowing a mere 28 seconds (within a larger report). Reporter Jon Karl briefly referred to the "disaster on military benefits," but he didn't explain that a private charity had stepped in to solve the problem.

On Wednesday, a graphic for a Jim Avila full report insisted that "outrage grows for America's heroes." The journalist featured a clip of Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy trashing, "And now, because of a small group of Tea Party Republicans, we say we can't even take care of your family when you die in the service of the country." On Thursday, Karl lectured that "the only thing both parties seem to agree on" is that "it's inexcusable to deny help to family members of those who have given their lives serving the country." [See video below. MP3 audio here.] It's true that the House acted 425-0 to pay the death benefits, but Harry Reid's Democratic Senate has not acted. [UPDATE: 12:48pm ET The Senate has now moved on approving benefits. SECOND UPDATE: But the White House has rejected it.]