In a Thursday column, PBS ombudsman Michael Getler took NewsHour anchor Judy Woodruff to task for failing to disclose a 2010 donation to the Clinton Foundation: “It is always a bad idea for a journalist to give money to a political campaign or anything even remotely connected to the activities of a politician or party, or an organization that they might cover. You just shouldn’t do it.”
Clinton Foundation
By Jeffrey Meyer | May 21, 2015 | 2:48 PM EDT
In the wake of the ongoing controversy surrounding ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos and his failure to disclose $75,000 worth of donations to the Clinton Foundation, and now news of his $105-million contract with the network, Politico decided to tout the “frugal habits of his wife,” actress Ali Wentworth.
By P.J. Gladnick | May 21, 2015 | 2:26 PM EDT
One fringe benefit of the George Stephanopoulos Clinton Foundation scandal in which ABC's This Week host failed to disclose that he donated $75,000 (plus lots of time) to that organization while interviewing "Clinton Cash" author Peter Schweizer is that it has inspired some really hilarious street art. The poster art appears to be the work of the conservative street artist who goes by the name of "Sabo." Not only was it just the art that served as comedy relief but also where it was located as revealed in a tweet this morning by the Weekly Standard senior writer, Mark Hemingway.
By Tom Johnson | May 20, 2015 | 5:56 PM EDT
Talking Points Memo editor and publisher Josh Marshall sees a pattern of self-deception among Clinton-loathing conservatives. Marshall acknowledges that Bill and Hillary Clinton routinely “play close to the line” and “refus[e] to play by rules tighter than those applied to anyone else,” but argues that right-wingers fool themselves when they insist that behind those tendencies lies criminality.
“It's never enough for the Clintons' perennial critics to be satisfied with potential conflicts of interest or arguably unseemly behavior,” wrote Marshall in a Tuesday post. “It always has to be more. There have to be high crimes, dead people, corrupt schemes. And if they don't materialize, they need to be made up. Both because there is an organized partisan apparatus aimed at perpetuating them and because there is a right-wing audience that requires a constant diet of hyperventilating outrage from which to find nourishment.”
Marshall commented that “freak show conspiracy theories…inevitably bubble up around [the Clintons], a symbiotic embrace of grievance, aggression and derp. It's painful to admit, but the two sides feed on each other.”
By Curtis Houck | May 19, 2015 | 9:47 PM EDT
Following Hillary Clinton’s decision to take questions from the press for the first time in over three weeks, ABC, CBS and NBC all covered the story on their Tuesday evening newscasts and, once again, were all too happy to spin for her. They all mentioned a federal judge’s ruling that her e-mails should be released more quickly, but they ignored news that she had a second private e-mail address and that Clinton ally Sidney Blumenthal advised her on Libya despite the fact that he was banned from working at the State Department. ABC's David Muir hailed how Clinton faced “tough new questions.”
By Alatheia Larsen | May 19, 2015 | 8:26 PM EDT
The Clinton Foundation scandal continues to spread ever since the news broke that it did not disclose millions of dollars of donations from foreign governments and businessmen.
It’s already infected ABC, as anchor George Stephanopoulos was forced to apologize for personal undisclosed donations to the foundation. He has yet to acknowledge or apologize for some of the other connections that have surfaced.
By Curtis Houck | May 18, 2015 | 11:00 PM EDT
On Monday night, the major English and Spanish broadcast networks failed to cover the latest in the Clinton Foundation and e-mail scandals as The New York Times reported that the Clinton Foundation paid former Clinton administration official Sidney Blumenthal to advise Hillary Clinton on Libya while she was secretary of state despite the fact that he was banned from serving within the agency.
By P.J. Gladnick | May 18, 2015 | 8:11 PM EDT
Know your place, peon! You may not approach Chelsea Clinton. If you need to contact her, you can only do so indirectly through a producer. Never face to face which is for ordinary people.
Those were the instructions for Chelsea's co-workers at not only NBC News but also at the management consulting firm at McKinsey where she briefly worked. Apparently Chelsea's attitude is so toxic that even dedicated liberals at the Clinton Foundation have split rather than having to deal with Chelsea according to a New York Post report.
By Jeffrey Meyer | May 17, 2015 | 11:35 AM EDT
On Sunday’s This Week, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos made a second on-air apology for failing to disclose that he donated $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation from 2012-2014.
By Jeffrey Meyer | May 17, 2015 | 10:37 AM EDT
On Fox News Sunday, the entire political panel blasted ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos for his failure to disclose $75,000 worth of donations to the Clinton Foundation despite covering the Clintons and promoting the work of the foundation over the years. Brit Hume criticized the ABC anchor’s actions and argued “if there's anybody in the world that you want to seem independent from it’s the Clintons. That's the mistake…I think by and large he's done a good job being even-handed in his work. But this was a mistake and I'm not sure he'll recover from it any time soon.”
May 15, 2015 | 5:00 PM EDT
Amanda Rentería, national political director of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, has received another cushy interview, this time at the hands of none other than Univision anchor Jorge Ramos.
Following on the heels of a puff piece on Telemundo, the six and a half minute interview with Rentería on Univision also failed to bring up the flurry of financial and ethical controversies swirling around Rentería’s candidate, in relation to the Clinton Foundation (including Univision’s own close ties to the Foundation).
By Matthew Balan | May 15, 2015 | 3:02 PM EDT
On Friday's CNN Newsroom, liberal anchor Carol Costello actually didn't buy the spin of a Hillary Clinton supporter on her skirting of questions from the press. When Democratic strategist Robert Zimmerman did his best to shield Mrs. Clinton, Costello interjected, "I want our political candidates to take tough questions." She later underlined that "she's not answering questions! About her foundation – there are really important issues out there that she needs to address!" Costello later complimented Jeb Bush: "At least he's out there answering hard questions!"