Baltimore Sun

Will Media Remember Praising Al Awlaki the ‘Moderate?’
By Matt Philbin | September 30, 2011 | 9:24 AM EDT

With the news that an American air strike has killed the U.S.-born head of Al Quaeda in Yemen, Anwar Al Awlaki, the media will explain his significance in the terrorist organization, and his role in inspiring the Ft. Hood shooter and the “underwear bomber.” What they probably won’t tell you is that they once celebrated Al Awlaki as a “moderate” and a bridge-builder “between Islam and the West.”

Awlaki once served as imam of the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Northern Virginia, the very same place that attracted many of the 9/11 hijackers and, later, Major Nadal Hasan, the Ft. Hood shooter.

Baltimore Sun Marks 174th Anniversary with Requisite Obama Worship
By Ken Shepherd | May 17, 2011 | 11:50 AM EDT

Today marks 174 years that the Baltimore Sun has been in print. As part of their celebration, the Charm City broadsheet has an "Historic Baltimore Sun front pages" feature that includes a mix of momentous events in Baltimore, American and world history such as the 1904 fire, the Lincoln assassination, and D-Day.

But it's also a feature that's capped off with two gushy Obama-related front pages.

WaPo Buries Opposition to Tuition Bill; Baltimore Sun Paints GOP Critic As Trying to Deny 'Rights' to Illegal Immigrants
By Ken Shepherd | May 11, 2011 | 11:24 AM EDT

Yesterday liberal Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley (D) signed into law a measure allowing illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates at public colleges and universities.

Covering the story today, the Washington Post offered this bland print edition headline on page B1: "O'Malley signs bill allowing immigrant tuition breaks."

The move "bucks trend in other states" and a "showdown with opponents is expected," subsequent subheadings trumpeted.

Yet staff writer Ann Marimow waited until paragraph 16 in her 23-paragraph article to get around to quoting one such opponent:

Baltimore Sun Hypes 'Illegal Immigrants Celebrat[ing]' New Law Granting Them In-state Tuition
By Ken Shepherd | April 14, 2011 | 6:14 PM EDT

Last Friday the Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill granting in-state tuition to illegal immigrants. The bill had already cleared the state senate and Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) has said he will sign the bill.

Today's Baltimore Sun devoted sympathetic front-page coverage to illegal immigrants who now "celebrate the approval of in-state tuition for Maryland students regardless of immigration status."

"I want to be a part," blared the front-page headline to Nick Madigan's A-1 story.  Below the headline is a picture of  "Missael, an illegal immigrant from Mexico who lives in East Baltimore."

Baltimore Sun Double Standard on Noting Party Affiliation of Maryland Politicians
By Ken Shepherd | March 22, 2011 | 3:58 PM EDT

The Baltimore Sun has no trouble noting for readers the political affiliation of politicians who face an ethical scandal and/or official investigation. That is, of course, if the pol in question is a Republican.

Last Wednesday, I noted how the Sun's Julie Scharper failed to note Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's Democratic party affiliation in a story about her voting on city contracts where her husband's company had a competing bid.

The very next day, however, Scharper's colleague Nicole Fuller promptly noted the Republican affiliation of two-term Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold. Here's how Fuller opened her story:

Name That Party: Balt Sun Notes Mayor Voting on Contracts That Favor Husband's Company; Paper Omits Her Party Affiliation
By Ken Shepherd | March 16, 2011 | 11:33 AM EDT

"Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has voted to approve more than $900,000 in deals with Johns Hopkins since her husband began working for one of its divisions late last year — a possible violation of the city ethics code."

That's how the Baltimore Sun's Julie Scharper began her March 16 story -- published last night online here -- about the Democratic mayor's votes on the city's board that authorizes spending for public contracts.

Yet Scharper failed to note Rawlings-Blake's Democratic Party affiliation.

Partial-birth Abortionist Opens Shop in D.C. Area, WaPo Buries Story on Page B10
By Ken Shepherd | December 1, 2010 | 12:08 PM EST

Three weeks ago, the Washington Post reported on the front page of its November 10 Metro section that a "Nebraska doctor who is one of the few in the country to perform abortions late in a pregnancy said Wednesday that he would open new clinics in Iowa and the Washington area."

At the time, Carhart refused to disclose where he would open his D.C.-area clinic, but said that it would be in a jurisdiction that was favorable to abortion.

"The laws are more favorable in these other jurisdictions, and we're going to do the maximum the law allows," Carhart told the Washington Post.

Stein filed an 8-paragraph follow-up story in today's Post, having received new information from an abortion clinic official that Carhart would be joining that clinic, based in Germantown, Md. That follow-up story, however, was buried at the bottom of page 10 of the paper's December 1 Metro section.

Name That Party: Arrested Prince George's County Political Couple Rarely ID'd as Dems
By Tom Blumer | November 13, 2010 | 9:03 AM EST

In Maryland, Prince George's County's top elected official, County Executive Jack B. Johnson (pictured at right on NB's home page) was arrested yesterday, and "is accused of accepting cash in return for helping a developer secure federal funding."

Johnson's wife, a recently elected councilperson, was also arrested yesterday. The couple are both accused of "tampering with a witness and evidence relating to the commission of a federal offense, and destruction, alteration, and falsification of records in a federal investigation."

The linked article at Gazette.net does not identify the Johnsons' political party affiliation. When this failure to identify occurs, it typically means that the politicians involved are Democrats. As expected, the Johnson are indeed Dems (Jack; Leslie).

Sadly, it is not at all surprising that there is a virtual blackout on the Johnsons' party affiliation:

Zurawik: 'TV Journalism Diminished in Public Mind' Due to MSNBC's Election Coverage
By Noel Sheppard | November 7, 2010 | 7:57 PM EST

The Baltimore Sun's media critic is still fuming about MSNBC's pathetic coverage on election night.

In his piece published Saturday, David Zurawik called the cable news network a "liberal prep school" while claiming the behavior of folks like Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews, Lawrence O'Donnell, and Keith Olbermann was "so egregious" that the "entire realm of TV journalism was diminished in the public mind":

Juan Williams: Fox Bosses are 'Much More Enlightened' Than NPR or CNN, Fox Viewers Aren't Dumb
By Tim Graham | October 27, 2010 | 3:04 PM EDT

Fired NPR news analyst Juan Williams is firing back at critics of Fox News Channel. In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, Williams said Fox management is "much more enlightened" than executives at other news outlets, from NPR to CNN:

"At NPR they don't know this: A third of the audience for Bill O'Reilly's show is made up of people of color," Williams said. "At NPR, they think, `Oh, these people who watch Fox don't appreciate diversity of opinion, they're not smart people. They're not informed people. Oh, yeah? I'll tell you what: They're informed."

...Williams said NPR "just doesn't understand the Fox audience" -- or have any idea how much more enlightened Fox News management is in some ways compared with news outlets like NPR, CNBC or CNN.

Baltimore Sun Notes Spending by Democratic 'Super PAC' But Doesn't Seek Comment From Its Donors
By Ken Shepherd | October 20, 2010 | 5:59 PM EDT

When it comes to so-called Super PACs spending money on TV ads targeting swing House districts, the Baltimore Sun seems to care a lot more about who's behind Republican ones than Democratic operations.

Yesterday I noted how Sun staffer Paul West wrote about a PAC running ads against freshman Democratic Rep. Frank Kratovil (Md.).

West portrayed the PAC's ads as a clever end-run around campaign contribution limits for Baltimore-area businessman Daniel Schuster.

Yet in a blog post yesterday afternoon entitled "Democratic 'Super PAC' dropping $400K hit on Andy Harris,"  West was decidedly uncurious about the motives animating donors behind America's Families First Action Fund, which is running ads opposing Kratovil's Republican opponent, Dr. Andy Harris.

Baltimore Sun: Running Attack Ads 'Perfectly Legal, Courtesy of the Supreme Court'
By Ken Shepherd | October 19, 2010 | 6:20 PM EDT

Opening his October 18 article on a tight House race in Maryland that's garnered national attention, Baltimore Sun's Paul West trotted out the typical liberal lament about corporate money in politics (emphasis mine):