AP Throws Pity Party for Dems In Illinois Lt. Gov. Nominee Stories

In stories currently carrying Friday afternoon and early Saturday time stamps, the Associated Press weighed in with supportive articles about Illinois Democrats who are desperately trying to convince Scott Lee Cohen (pictured at right; image is captured from his web site), who won the party's nomination for Lieutenant Governor, to step aside. In the Friday afternoon's report ("Embattled Dem Ill…
Tom Blumer

Open Thread

NB Staff

Bozell Column: Oscars Tilt To The Mainstream

Two years ago, Time critic Richard Corliss wrote an article that clearly must have resonated at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The Oscar telecast was sinking in the ratings, he wrote, because the nominees were largely unwatched by the masses. It used to be that the Best Picture prize went to mainstream box-office hits. "Now when the nominations come out, people try to catch up…
Brent Bozell

Arianna Huffington, the 'Ultimate Poster Girl for Change

The February issue of the rich-folks magazine Town & Country promises a special issue on "Wonder Women" – not just "Super Cindy Crawford," but "Amazing Arianna Huffington." Liberal magazine writer Leslie Bennetts spread the praise on thick on Arianna’s savvy and appeal. After a fourteen-hour flight from Tel Aviv, there’s this: "Although she slept only on the plane, she is alert and articulate…
Tim Graham

AFP Asks: 'Is US Bullying Toyota on Recall?' Rest of Media Indifferent

In a post late Thursday afternoon (at NewBusters; at BizzyBlog), I noted that the half of the teases (6 of 12) for the Associated Press's short videos in business stories at its web site were about Toyota, specifically its recent product quality issues and falling sales.In that post, I noted a conflict of interest in the relationship between the U.S. government and Toyota, and wondered when…
Tom Blumer

Rick Sanchez Omits Party of Convicted Democrat, IDs Tancredo’s Party

CNN’s Rick Sanchez failed to mention the party affiliation of former Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon on Friday’s Rick’s List program, but made every effort to identify former Congressman Tom Tancredo as a Republican. Sanchez ranked Tancredo higher on his “List You Don’t Want to Be On” for his remarks at the Tea Party Convention, despite Dixon’s conviction for illegally using donated gift cards for…
Matthew Balan

MSNBC Mocks 'Controversial' Tea Party Convention and the 'Funny Outfi

MSNBC on Friday continued to mock and deride the "controversial" tea party movement. Host David Shuster commented on the group's Nashville convention and asserted that it's "full of workshops, meetings, funny outfits and speeches." Setting the tone for how the conventioneers would be portrayed, Shuster introduced the segment by playing a clip of an unidentified woman. "I just couldn't sit down…
Scott Whitlock

Vanishing Debts? Krugman Asserts Deficit Hysteria's Just Like Iraqi WM

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman played media critic on Friday, asserting that the media have gone from sensible to sensationalistic on the long-term federal budget deficit forecasts. The most notable part came when he insisted that the media’s presentation of a deficit threat is a lot like the threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (and will be just as damaging).Isn't this a little odd…
Tim Graham

Couric and DeGeneres Tell Women: Don’t Be Beauty Queens Like Us

During a web-only interview with CBS's Katie Couric to promote her new role on "American Idol," comedienne Ellen DeGeneres went on a rant about our sexist culture that demands women look more attractive than men. There's just one problem: DeGeneres is the face of Proctor and Gamble's famous makeup line CoverGirl. In fact, she even appeared in a well known commercial saying, "Inner beauty is…
Candance Moore

Left-wing Websites Don't Bother With Truth in Smearing James O'Keefe

When the far-left finds a character to assassinate, it doesn't let facts get in the way. That, at least, is the lesson we can draw from the latest bout of liberal character assassination, this one aimed at James O'Keefe.The slandering of his reputation has occurred mostly at Salon.com, the Village Voice, and an obscure hard-left organization called the One People's Project. Together, they have…
Lachlan Markay

CNN: Tebow Ad is the Result of Pro-Lifers Becoming More 'Feminist

CNN’s Carol Costello bizarrely claimed on Friday’s American Morning that the upcoming Super Bowl ad featuring Tim Tebow and his mother is the “culmination of a brilliant marketing strategy by the anti-abortion movement... [which] has quietly found a way to rebrand itself as hip...and feminist.” Costello also misrepresented pro-lifers as people who regularly call women who abort “baby-killers.”The…
Matthew Balan

CBS: Global Warming Science Sound, ClimateGate Just a PR Problem

On Thursday’s CBS Evening News, anchor Katie Couric lamented the impact ClimateGate and other recent scandals involving fraudulent global warming data have had on the climate change debate: “Experts insist the overall conclusion remains the same, that climate change is real, but...such errors provide ammunition to skeptics.”In a report that followed, correspondent Mark Phillips cited accusations…
Kyle Drennen

Editor Tina Brown Admits: Obama 'Got the Best Press Known to Man,' WaP

Two prominent journalists appeared on Friday's Good Morning America and casually admitted that Barack Obama has received glowing coverage from the press. Former Vanity Fair and New Yorker editor Tina Brown announced, "No, [Obama] got the best press known to man. Let's face it."Howard Kurtz, host of Reliable Sources on CNN and a Washington Post columnist, corrected, "In the history of civilization…
Scott Whitlock

CNN Finds 'Good News' in Jobs Report, But CNBC's Burnett Argues 'The N

Allan Chernoff downplays revision of 1.2 million more jobs lost since recession for CNN.
Julia A. Seymour