Media Oversight: Is GM Stakeholder Federal Government Playing Politics
The government's traditionally enforced safety standards on automobiles sold in the United States. But the government didn't always own a car company. So you'd expect the media to take a hard look when the government's roles as regulator and competitor converge. But unless you saw the Jan. 28 broadcast of CNBC's "Power Lunch," you might not realize that this is exactly what has happened. In…
Media React to 5.7 Percent GDP Growth: 'Great News for Consumers;' Eco
Fourth quarter GDP growth "beat expectations," exciting some journalists on Jan. 29. But a number of economists were downbeat. The 5.7 percent growth for the last quarter of 2009 sparked media reactions on both MSNBC and CNN. Savannah Guthrie declared on MSNBC's "Daily Rundown" that "If they could do a jig at the White House, they would." Joining that discussion, NBC's Chuck Todd asked, "So is…
Paranoid Much? Robert Reich Imagines that Fox News Was Around in
Robert Reich must have nightmares about Fox News. Shoot, he must have triple locks on his doors and sleep under his bed out of fear that Roger Ailes will come and take him away. In a Monday column at Salon.com ("Is the President Panicking?"), Reich excoriated President Obama's proposed discretionary spending "freeze" -- a "freeze" that NewsBuster Julia Seymour noted fails to offset the spending…
Cramer React to SOTU: Notes Nat Gas Ignored by Obama; Defends Geithner
President Barack Obama encouraged some business interests by mentioning nuclear energy and offshore drilling during his Jan. 27 State of the Union speech. Those less popular energy solutions joined the usual alternative rhetoric of wind, solar and bio-fuels. But on CNBC's Jan. 28 "Street Signs," Jim Cramer, host of CNBC's "Mad Money" noted something was missing - an important onshore energy…
Washington Post Gives Obama Great Grades for Promises 'In Progress
The Washington Post launched an interactive page this week to profile President Obama's record on his campaign promises after one year in office. The Post put promises into three categories: "To Do," "In Progress" and "Completed."Based on the president's record, most people would be surprised to learn the Post put most of the promises in the "In Progress" category -- and didn't even include a "…
GOP Senator Rips Into MSNBC Host For ‘Absurd,’ ‘Dishonest,’ St
On the soon-to-be canceled ‘It’s the Economy’ program on MSNBC on Thursday, co-host Contessa Brewer grilled Republican New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg on his calls to reduce out-of-control government spending: “Which programs are you willing to cut? Are you willing to tell schools, no money for you?” Gregg shot back: “What an absurd statement to make. And what a dishonest statement to make.”…
Forget Sham Spending 'Freeze,' Obama's SOTU Proposals Would Cost
President Barack Obama's plan to "freeze" a tiny portion of the federal budget hit Washington with a "thud" Jan. 26. Conservatives argued that the spending freeze Obama would highlight in his State of the Union address Jan. 27 wasn't enough. Liberals, including New York Times columnist Paul Krugman called it "appalling on every level." Krugman denounced the plan as "bad long-run fiscal policy…
Matthews: Obama Policies 'Conservative,' Dems 'Created' Middle Class
On Wednesday's Countdown show on MSNBC, shortly before the beginning of the State of the Union address, as Keith Olbermann discussed the speech with Chris Matthews and Rachel Maddow, after Olbermann brought up the possibility that President Obama would give a divisive FDR-style speech, Matthews seemed to lament that such a speech would "spook" the middle class, and, as he credited the Democratic…
Olbermann Touts Man Who Created 50 Green Jobs with $99 Million Stimulu
Keith Olbermann should keep a calculator on hand during his broadcasts. If he'd had one, the liberal MSNBC host of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" could have run the numbers on Jan. 27 following the State of the Union address. Olbermann was recapping President Obama's speech and told viewers: "Among those seated with the first lady in the visitor's gallery ... a man from Arizona whose company…
Networks Ignore Contradiction Between Obama's Middle Class Giveaways
In an attempt to boost flagging approval ratings, President Barack Obama announced a series of initiatives aimed at helping out the middle class on Jan. 25, two days ahead of his State of the Union address. The networks, which have protected him from public outrage for months, praised the initiative. NBC heralded the move, giving Obama credit for "getting the message" Jan. 25. CBS's Katie Couric…
Ronald Reagan Would Be 'Unamused' by Tea Parties, Says Liberal Son
Since Ron Reagan, son of former President Ronald Reagan, would probably be the first to admit his political view are widely divergent from his father's it seems strange that he would put words in the Gipper's mouth about current events. However, the younger Reagan spoke for his father on HLN's Jan. 26 "The Joy Behar Show." Host Joy Behar asked Reagan what his father would have thought about…
NYT Reporter Who Praised Obama's Expensive Stimulus Sells Him as Defic
On the eve of President Obama's first State of the Union address, the lead story in Wednesday's New York Times by Jackie Calmes focused on Obama's abrupt transformation into a born-again deficit hawk: "Obama, On Own, To Set Up Panel On Nation's Debt."In a related video, Calmes played along with Obama's sudden about-face, claiming "the president wants to make deficit reduction a big part of his…
USAT Misses California's Dominance of Welfare Caseload and Its Increas
Sometimes getting hung up on percentage increases causes one to miss what's going on with the actual numbers. Such is the case in a January 26 front page story by USA Today's Richard Wolf. USAT's is the only recent original coverage I have found thus far relating to increases in the national welfare rolls during the recession. (An unbylined story at UPI merely reports on what USAT's Wolf wrote…
ABC’s George Stephanopoulos Frets to McCain: Tax Cuts Will ‘Increa
Good Morning America’s George Stephanopoulos played defense for the White House on Tuesday. While talking with John McCain about Obama’s 2010 proposals, he sounded annoyed that the Senator’s ideas for job creation would include tax cuts: "But, those tax cuts are going to increase the deficit, aren't they, sir?" After McCain declared his opposition to Democrat spending proposals, the host pressed…
