The NewsBusters Weekly Recap: September 8 to 14

September 15th, 2007 10:02 AM

We Get it: You Don’t Like Fox

In an interview with Playboy magazine, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann actually fulminated that "Fox News is worse than Al Qaeda." He then went on to compare his cable rival to the Ku Klux Klan and rail against Rudy Giuliani. And this is the guy who is hosting football coverage on NBC? Live?

Live From the Bathroom

Speaking of Fox News, the network proved this week that it’s not always "fair and balanced." FNC reporter Laurie Dhue anchored a segment entitled "Lavatory Lust" that re-enacted the infamous Larry Craig bathroom incident. Before ending the "Geraldo at Large" piece, Dhue editorialized that it was sad Craig "had to go to a public place, and that’s the shame of homosexuality in this country right, today — at least the shame that the Republican Party puts on it."

Charming Celebrities

According to MSNBC host Norah O’Donnell, comedienne Kathy Griffin’s acceptance speech at an awards show was censored after a mild joke about not thanking Jesus. However, the anchor helpfully left out the truly offensive line from Griffin’s rant. The "humorist" created an outrage not with a minor comment, but when she exclaimed, "Suck it, Jesus. This award is my God now." Over on HBO, hip hop artist, and "actor/activist," Mos Def told Bill Maher that bin Laden wasn’t behind 9/11 and called the United States "murderously meddlesome."

Couric Touts Talking Parrot; Ignores Fugitive Clinton Donor

"CBS Evening News" anchor Katie Couric certainly knows hot to prioritize. On Tuesday, the network host spent more time eulogizing a talking parrot then she did covering fugitive Clinton fund-raiser Norman Hsu.

100 Percent Certain

According to ABC’s David Wright, a network poll finds that a "stunning" 100 percent of Iraqis in Anbar province are opposed to the U.S. troop surge. Perhaps this number should be taken with a grain of salt, considering that in 2002, Wright also credulously told viewers that Saddam Hussein received 99 percent of the vote in a 1995 election.