Editors Love Leaks, But Are Furious That Fired Darrell Issa Aide Share

The media's policy on leaks is obviously "Good for me, but not for thee." It is okay for journalists to score scoops and win Pulitzer Prizes by printing everyone else’s secrets. It's okay for Julian Assange to goad the U.S. "military industrial complex" with WikiLeaks. But leak reporter E-mails, and you have no ethics whatsoever. Politico broke the story that Kurt Bardella, a spokesman for…

Tim Graham
March 1st, 2011 11:05 PM

Reich To Rich: Redistribute Or Risk Angry Populace Turning On You

Nice house there, rich guy.  Wouldn't wanna see nuthin' happen to it . . . Robert Reich has actually argued that the rich should welcome redistributing more of their income to prevent an angry American populace from turning on them. Clinton's former Labor Secretary made his astounding assertion on Cenk Uygur's MSNBC show this evening.   View video after the jump.  
Mark Finkelstein
March 1st, 2011 8:42 PM

CNN.com Story on Gov. Walker's 'Overreach' Loaded with Unanimous Anti

CNN's Ed Hornick apparently couldn't find anyone who disagreed with the notion that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker "overreached" in his push to eliminate collective bargaining for public sector unions. He couldn't even quote Walker himself. Hornick's Tuesday article quoted from two political science professors, a "progressive" editorial writer, and a former United States comptroller general,…
Matthew Balan
March 1st, 2011 7:41 PM

Fox Dominates (Again), Takes Top 11 Cable News Slots in February

The Fox News Channel absolutely dominated its cable news competition in February. In terms of overall viewers, the top 11 cable news shows were all on Fox. In the coveted 25-54 demographic - the group that advertisers pay particularly close attention to - Fox took 11 of the top 15 spots. The Rachel Maddow Show earned the top spot for an MSNBC program. Despite her struggles with factual…
Lachlan Markay
March 1st, 2011 7:07 PM

Matthews Ignores Democrat's 'You're F–ing Dead!' Threat of Republica

Chris Matthews has yet to condemn Democratic Wisconsin State Representative Gordon Hintz for yelling "You're f–ing dead!" at Republican State Representative Michelle Litjens during a legislative session on Friday, but the Hardball host did find the time, on Tuesday's show, to slam Speaker of the House John Boehner for engaging in "Glenn Beck talk" about guns. Matthews, initially teasing a…
Geoffrey Dickens
March 1st, 2011 6:49 PM

MSNBC's Martin Bashir Hails Obama Response to Libya As 'Measured,' Sla

"President Obama has been taking a truckload of flak from the right for his measured response to the crises embroiling the Middle East," MSNBC's Martin Bashir harumphed as he opened his "Clear the Air" commentary on the March 1 program. "Measured is my word because it's certainly not one that right-wing pundits have been using," Bashir complained. Of course the term "measured" implies…
Ken Shepherd
March 1st, 2011 6:08 PM

Jon Stewart Hits Conservatives and Wealthy for Focusing on Cuts for Te

Jon Stewart's latest anti-conservative screed included a satirical defense of top income earners and a tongue-in-cheek plea for teachers to pay their fair share, in the wake of the Wisconsin protests. On Monday's "Daily Show," the Comedy Central host offered a shallow assessment of the entire Wisconsin situation with not a single critical look at the state's public sector unions. Stewart's…
Matt Hadro
March 1st, 2011 3:46 PM

NYT's Lipton Teed Up, Hit Out of Park by Powerline over Cooked AFP-Koc

The Left has been making quite a bit of conspiratorial hay over the following paragraph Eric Lipton wrote at the New York Times on February 21 ("Billionaire Brothers’ Money Plays Role in Wisconsin Dispute") about the alleged degree of involvement Koch family members have allegedly had in the Wisconsin public-sector union showdown: Even before the new governor was sworn in last month,…
Tom Blumer
March 1st, 2011 3:19 PM

Village Voice Reporter Again Lionized By New York Times; Voice Again N

The lead story of the Sunday Metro section was a very long profile by Richard Perez-Pena of Wayne Barrett, former reporter for the alternative left-wing NYC weekly The Village Voice -- “The (Ex) Voice of The Village." Barrett was previously lionized (along with fellow reporter Tom Robbins) by the Times's Jeremy Peters on January 5 after the two veteran reporters were let go by the left-wing…
Clay Waters
March 1st, 2011 2:57 PM

NYT's Haberman Attacks NYC's Free Speech Hypocrisy on Removal of Pro-L

New York Times columnist Clyde Haberman took on the hypocrisy of New York City’s selective celebration of free speech in his Tuesday “NYC” column, “Where Freedom of Expression Runs Headlong Into the Impulse to Censor.” A Texas group put up a pro-life billboard with a provocative message showing a black girl under the words “The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb.”…
Clay Waters
March 1st, 2011 2:24 PM

Stern to WaPo: Labor Movement 'Had Socialist and Communist Tendencies

Retired Service Employees International Union President Andy Stern was recently interviewed by Journolist organizer and Washington Post staff writer Ezra "the Constitution is confusing because it was written more than a hundred years ago" Klein. In response to a question from Klein about "the animosity between unions and workplaces" (that is what Klein says he said), Stern made an interesting…
Tom Blumer
March 1st, 2011 2:06 PM

'Family Ties' Mom Tells Matt Lauer 'I Could Have Been a Republican...T

Actress Meredith Baxter, best known for her role as Elyse Keaton on the '80s NBC hit Family Ties, returned to the Today show set where, back in 2009, she announced she was gay and told Matt Lauer, on Tuesday morning, that her self-revelation could've been something, in her view, much more shocking - she may have realized she was "a Republican." On to promote Untied, Baxter was asked by Lauer…
Geoffrey Dickens
March 1st, 2011 1:41 PM

Ken Burns Spins Reagan as a Supporter of PBS, Cites Presence of Buckle

Liberal filmmaker Ken Burns on Sunday highlighted conservative William F. Buckley as an example of the diversity of PBS. He also claimed Ronald Reagan as a supporter of public financing public television. Writing in the Washington Post, the director lobbied, "[PBS] contributes to cradle-to-grave continuing education services that are particularly appreciated in rural states - belying the…
Scott Whitlock
March 1st, 2011 12:29 PM

'Ethicist' Columnist Randy Cohen Departs New York Times, Leaving Lefti

After 12 years and 614 columns (by his count), Randy Cohen has penned his last “Ethicist” column for the New York Times Magazine, signing off last Sunday. Cohen’s columns, in which he gave letter-writers advice on the right thing to do in ethically sticky situations, often glanced over cultural and ideological topics, which Cohen consistently addressed from a pungent left-wing perspective.…
Clay Waters
March 1st, 2011 12:28 PM