ABC, CBS, MSNBC, NBC and NPR Ignore Death Threats to Wisconsin Republi

March 13th, 2011 11:54 AM
Numerous death threats were made against Wisconsin Republican lawmakers last week, but you wouldn't know about it if your only news sources were ABC, CBS, MSNBC, NBC, and NPR. Bucking the boycott was Fox News's Bill O'Reilly Friday (video follows with transcript and commentary):

CBS Proclaims 'War in Wisconsin;' Did Gov. Walker 'Trick' Democrats Wi

March 10th, 2011 5:25 PM
At the top of Thursday's CBS Early Show, co-host Chris Wragge declared: "War in Wisconsin. Democrats cry foul as Republicans break a three-week deadlock over the budget battle with a surprise late-night vote." Minutes later, he remarked that the "long standoff over a plan to roll back union rights for state workers is suddenly just about over."   In the report that followed, correspondent…

CBS Gives Zero Coverage to NPR Scandal

March 10th, 2011 12:10 PM
Since an undercover sting video was released on Tuesday showing National Public Radio executive Ron Schiller calling conservatives "seriously racist people" – for which he resigned – CBS News has failed to utter a single word about the controversy on its broadcasts. That despite NPR President and CEO Vivian Schiller (no relation to Ron) also being forced out on Wednesday. In contrast, ABC…

Networks Frame Congressional Hearings on Radical Islam as 'Witch Hunt

March 9th, 2011 4:13 PM
On ABC's Good Morning America on Wednesday, co-host George Stephanopoulos fretted over congressional hearings on the radicalization of American Muslims being "potentially explosive" and that "Critics are already calling this a witch hunt." The headline on screen throughout the segment read: "Hearings on Islamic Radicals: Witch Hunt or Reality Check?" ABC was not alone in touting the "witch…

CBS Ignores, NBC Downplays Sting Tape of NPR Exec Slamming 'Racist' Te

March 9th, 2011 10:32 AM
Only ABC's Good Morning America on Wednesday highlighted claims by a NPR executive, caught in an undercover sting operation, that Tea Party members are "seriously racist" people. CBS's Early Show completely skipped the subject. NBC's Today allowed a brief mention during a news read. GMA's Jake Tapper extensively highlighted quotes by the outgoing Ron Schiller: "The current Republican Party,…

Schools Not Interested in Obama Commencement, CBS Urges Them to Get In

March 8th, 2011 3:51 PM
Tuesday's CBS Early Show featured a fawning story on President Obama's Race to the Top Commencement Challenge that sounded like it was written by the White House communications department. What the segment failed to mention was the severe lack of high schools that had actually entered the contest to have Obama speak at their graduation ceremonies. Co-host Erica Hill teased the story at the…

Networks Allow Scant Coverage of Obama's 'Stunning Reversal' on Guanta

March 8th, 2011 12:47 PM
The three evening newscasts on Monday and the morning shows on Tuesday mostly ignored Barack Obama's abandonment of a campaign pledge to close Guantanamo Bay and end trials of detainees there. NBC's Today, CBS's Early Show and ABC's Good Morning America all covered the story only in news briefs. Yet, when President Bush was in the White House, the networks obsessed over the issue. Today's…

CBS's Erica Hill Wonders if Americans Are Being 'Scammed' by Oil Compa

March 7th, 2011 3:59 PM
In an interview with former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich on Monday's CBS Early Show, co-host Erica Hill wondered if higher gas prices in the wake of Mideast unrest were the result of some sort of fraud: "We've seen prices skyrocket....Is the public right to feel taken advantage of in some ways here, or even scammed?" Even the liberal Reich didn't accept the premise: "Well look, a lot…

Latest Notable Quotables: Claiming 'Coordinated' GOP 'Assault on Union

March 7th, 2011 11:20 AM
The Media Research Center is out with another edition of our bi-weekly Notable Quotables newsletter, a compilation of the latest outrageous, sometimes humorous, quotes in the liberal media. Highlights from this issue include: Network reporters contrasting left-wing union protests in Wisconsin with recent uprisings against brutal Middle Eastern dictators, and journalists suggesting a “…

20-to-1: Networks Go Crazy over Sheen Story, Downplay Planned Parentho

March 7th, 2011 10:43 AM
If they ever take a break from publicizing Charlie Sheen’s cocaine dos and dont's, or detailing the power politics within his Beverly Hills harem, the networks should grab a copy of the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics. And they may want to pay special attention to this entry: “Show good taste. Avoid pandering to lurid curiosity.” From Feb. 1 through March 6, the three…

NY Times Columnist Tom Friedman Calls for Tax to Keep Gas at $4 a Gall

March 7th, 2011 10:39 AM
On Sunday's Face the Nation, New York Times columnist Tom Friedman denounced the proposed White House plan to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to curb rising gas prices: "That would rank in my top five worst ideas of 2011 so far....one thing we should finally be doing is using this opportunity to have a credible energy policy that begins to reduce our addiction to oil." Friedman's idea of…

Schieffer Scolds McConnell for Claiming Obama Isn’t Serious About Bu

March 6th, 2011 9:47 PM
Bob Schieffer on Sunday scolded Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) for saying President Obama wasn't serious about the budget. Two weeks ago, the "Face the Nation" host made the very same observation in a discussion with Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) (video follows with transcripts and commentary):

CBS Touts John Edwards Hiring 'Heavy Hitter' Greg Craig, Who Represent

March 4th, 2011 4:52 PM
On Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Chris Wragge introduced a story updating the John Edwards scandal and potential legal charges against the former Senator: "...a grand jury has been looking at evidence that he may have violated campaign finance laws. Now the former Democratic presidential hopeful has hired a political heavy hitter to fight off possible charges." In the report that followed…

CBS Again Praises Obama's 'Tough Talk' on Libya, While Defending His I

March 4th, 2011 1:00 PM
At the top of Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Erica Hill proclaimed: "Tough talk. As the violence continues to escalate between rebel forces, and Moammar Qadhafi's military, President Obama sends a clear message." A sound bite was played of Obama calling on Qadhafi to step down on Thursday. In a later report, correspondent Mandy Clark claimed Obama had "drawn his line in the sand." On the…