The 12 Days of Michael
July 8th, 2009 5:56 PM
There's no doubt about it. Celebrity is the media's top priority. Michael Jackson's June 25 death overshadowed all other news for almost two weeks. Nightly news programs on ABC, CBS and NBC featured at least one story each night about Jackson since his death. More than half of those broadcasts aired since June 25 lead with a story about Jackson. A Pew poll found cable news devoted 93…
MRC's Bozell: 'No Justification' for Soldier Deaths Getting 1/20th Cov
July 7th, 2009 3:08 PM
Reacting to Media Research Center (MRC) analysis showing the deaths of seven U.S. soldiers killed in Afghanistan recently has received just 1/20th of the network coverage devoted to Michael Jackson, NewsBusters Publisher and MRC President Bozell Bozell released the following statement earlier today:This is a prime example of why network television news audiences are disappearing before our eyes…
CBS Highlights Tea Party Protests on July
July 7th, 2009 3:30 AM
On Saturday’s broadcast network evening newscasts, the CBS Evening News uniquely gave attention to the tea parties that were inspired by the Tax Day Tea Parties from April. Anchor Jeff Glor set up the report: "In scores of communities tonight, people spent their Fourth of July not celebrating but protesting. Taking a cue from the 1773 Boston Tea Party, they rallied against federal tax and…
FNC Highlights Baseless Lawsuits Hitting Palin
July 6th, 2009 2:12 PM
As the broadcast network evening newscasts on Friday reported on Sarah Palin's decision to resign as Alaska's Governor, they gave little attention to the toll taken on the Governor by the onslaught of frivolous lawsuits from her political enemies. But, by contrast, FNC gave much of the credit for Palin's decision to these lawsuits that have tied up the Governor's time and forced her family to…
CBS Report Echoes DNC's Partisan Anti-Palin Slam
July 6th, 2009 11:12 AM
As the broadcast network evening newscasts reported Friday on Sarah Palin's decision to resign as Alaska's governor, some of the negative wording on the CBS Evening News sounded eerily similar to the partisan statement attacking Palin that was released by the Democratic National Committee, which was quoted the same evening on FNC's Fox Report, and on Special Report with Bret Baier.As she began…
CBS Mocks Palin: ‘Resign from Office? You Betcha
July 4th, 2009 1:17 PM
On the Saturday Early Show on the morning of July 4, CBS anchor Priya David mocked Sarah Palin’s famous phrase, "You betcha," as she introduced a report by correspondent Nancy Cordes on the Alaska governor’s decision to resign from office. David: "Resign from office? You betcha. Alaska Governor Sarah Palin dropped a political bombshell Friday, announcing that she's leaving her post, but her…
Notable Quotables Flashback: Ten Months of Media Scorn for Sarah Palin
July 4th, 2009 11:23 AM
In announcing that she was stepping down as Alaska Governor on Friday, Sarah Palin noted the unrelenting hostility of liberal media elites. In the barely ten months since she burst onto the national scene, Palin has been scorned and mocked by journalists -- including many supposedly objective reporters -- like few other politicians. Here are a few of the choicer attacks, as compiled from MRC's…
Katie Couric Named 'Giant of Broadcasting
July 4th, 2009 10:32 AM
Although having the lowest rated broadcast evening news program, Katie Couric was just named a "Giant of Broadcasting."Such was announced by the Library of American Broadcasting (h/t TVNewser):Honoring a lengthening line of excellence tracing back to broadcasting’s beginnings. Under the guidance of Charles Osgood, America’s Master of Ceremonies, at noon on October 1, 2009 (11:30 Reception &…
Heavy Coverage of Sanford’s Woes, But Where Are Democratic Scandals
July 2nd, 2009 12:09 PM
In the week since South Carolina’s Republican Governor announced he had flown to Argentina to carry on an extra-marital affair, the broadcast morning and evening news shows have gone full bore on the scandal, cranking out 49 stories even in the midst of other major stories like Michael Jackson’s death and the continuing repression in Iran.
The morning after Sanford announced his affair, on…
CBS's Logan Relays Concerns U.S. Troops Withdrawing Too Soon in Iraq
June 30th, 2009 3:07 PM
On Monday's CBS Evening News, correspondent Lara Logan relayed to viewers concerns that U.S. troops may be pulling back too quickly for the sake of security in some parts of Iraq. As Logan filed a report about the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Mosul, as part of the security arrangement supported by the Iraqi government, the CBS News correspondent reported that some Iraqi military officers would…
CBS on Anniversary of Gay Protest: ‘A New Day for Human Rights
June 30th, 2009 2:39 PM
Marking the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riot in New York City on Sunday, CBS’s Anthony Mason declared: "A night of violence that led to a new day for human rights... Stonewall triggered the modern gay rights movement." Filling in for Sunday Morning host Charles Osgood, Mason explained: "...it was around 2:00 that morning that young gay patrons started fighting back against police raiding a…
ABC Hits Reverse Discrimination Case From Left; CBS Skips It Entirely
June 30th, 2009 2:38 PM
Following up on Monday’s Supreme Court ruling in favor of New Haven firefighters who were denied promotion after no black applicants passed a written exam, ABC’s Bob Woodruff on Tuesday’s Good Morning America approached the decision from a liberal perspective, wondering if “the ruling really make future workplace discrimination harder to prove” — as opposed to wondering whether the ruling will…
CBS’s Smith Calls Middle America-hating Megan Fox a ‘Nice Person
June 30th, 2009 12:01 PM
Teasing an upcoming interview with actress Megan Fox on Tuesday’s Early Show, co-host Harry Smith gushed: "...this woman has jumped from virtual unknown to Hollywood A-lister. It doesn’t hurt she is one of the most beautiful women on the planet...And a very nice young person." Smith failed to make any mention of the "Transformers" star’s controversial comments in a June 5 interview, in which she…
CBS’s Schieffer: Should Republicans ‘Shift’ Away From Social Iss
June 29th, 2009 6:09 PM
In an interview with Republican Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour on Sunday, CBS’s Bob Schieffer wondered: "Do you think that Republicans now should sort of shift the emphasis, though, from stressing social and family values and shift to more – to economic issues and be a party of economic conservatives rather than putting so much emphasis on these social issues?"Schieffer began the Face the…