Despite Media, Buffett Recession Obsessions, 1Q Growth Revised Up
Matching predictions from Reuters and Bloomberg, the government's Bureau of Economic Analysis told us this morning that the economy grew at an upwardly-revised annualized rate of 0.9%. As I've said frequently, this is nowhere near acceptable. But it sure as heck isn't a recession.Initial reaction to the news by the Associated Press's Jeannine Aversa was unfortunately predictable (bolds are mine…
CBS’s Glor: Woman Trades Blood for Gasoline
On Wednesday’s CBS "Early Show" co-host Julie Chen introduced a segment on rising gas prices and what people are doing to ease the cost: "This morning in our series 'Running on Empty' the news gets worse about gas prices. They jumped 15 cents in one week to a national average of $3.94 a gallon, according to the Energy Department. That is a record price. And it's forcing some drivers to take…
Across the Board, Networks 'Cherry-Pick' Housing Data
As of late, the networks just can't get enough of bad housing news, seizing each opportunity to make a point how bad the American economy is. Each of the network news broadcasts on May 27 - ABC, CBS and NBC - took the news that home prices fell 14 percent in the first quarter of 2008, despite the news that new home sales rose an unexpected 3.3 percent in April from March, to portray the…
USNewser's Unconventional Take on Economy: Not As Bad As You Think
The media have been quick to paint the slow-growing economy as though it's in recession. Indeed, as our friends at the Business & Media Institute discovered, the MSM now is painting the economy much worse than the print media reported the 1929 stock market crash that marked the beginning of the Great Depression.But kudos are due U.S. News & World Report's Rick Newman for staking out a…
'Sixth Sense' Creator to Release Global Warming Horror Movie in June
For several months, NewsBusters has been reporting the new horror movie genre "Global Warming's Gonna Kill You!"Entering the fray is M. Night Shyamalan, the writer/director of 1999's smash hit "The Sixth Sense."Set to open coincidentally on Friday, June 13, "The Happening" is Shyamalan's move "to milk global warming for all the terror and despair it's worth."So say USA Today's "Weather Guys" (…
Taranto Nails Recession Obsession of AP's Aversa
..... But Misses Chance to Refute "Jobs Slashed" Claims. It's good to see that someone else is on the case of the recession-obsessed Associated Press, particularly reporter Jeannine Aversa. But even the estimable James Taranto, in his Best of the Web column yesterday, let Aversa's most obvious and repeated error go by without comment. Aversa started out her report yesterday ("When economy…
Two Short Ones From UPI
Today, I have two short United Press International stories that each have bias in them, but aren't worth a long, drawn out fisking of their own. So I'm combining them into one Newsbusters report. The first UPI report characterizes a Dutch anti-Islam cartoon as having been "found most offensive," as if it were universally accepted that it is, indeed, offensive and the second is a ridiculous report…
Media Miss Schumer's OPEC Oil Production Versus ANWR Drilling Gaffe
As the oil executives hearings on Capitol Hill received great media attention given soaring gasoline prices, supposedly impartial press members missed a classic gaffe by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as it pertains to the benefits of OPEC raising production quotas versus America drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.On Wednesday, Schumer once again claimed "if [Saudi Arabia] did a million…
Oy Vey: Obama's Salute to Israeli Socialism
Barack Obama—kibbutznik?Of all the ways the presidential candidate sought to connect with Jewish voters at Congregation B'nai Torah in Boca Raton yesterday, perhaps the most heartfelt seemed these lines:BARACK OBAMA: As I learned more [about the Zionist movement], I found I had a deep affinity with the idea of social justice that was embodied in the Jewish faith. There was a notion–tikkun–that…
BusinessWeek Launches 'Recession in America' Blog
If there were any doubt the media is trying to milk bad economic news for all that it's worth, look no further than BusinessWeek magazine. BusinessWeek kicked off its "Recession in America" blog on May 2. It is dedicated solely to reporting on the "recession [that] is here (or will be soon)," as the headline of a May 19 post stated (h/t BMI advisor Chris Roush of Talkingbiznews.com). "As the…
BMI's Gainor: Media Negativity on Economy Hurts Consumer Confidence
Dan Gainor, Vice President for the Business & Media Institute, blamed part of people's gloomy perception of the economy on the "constant drumbeat" of negativity coming from the news media. Gainor appeared on Fox Business Network's "Cavuto" May 20. "Almost 23 million people watch evening news every night. That has an affect and that's almost 1/10 of the American population. Those are people…
A Time to Fumfer? Webb Wimps Out on VP Question
As political rituals go, the phony denial of interest in the VP nomination is among the most annoying. So credit Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee for unequivocally stating their willingness to serve as McCain's running mate. But please, politicians out there, spare us the feeble non-denial denials such as the one Jim Webb offered up on today's Morning Joe. Isn't Webb supposed to be Mr. No-…
