Flashback: 'The Unnewsworthy Holocaust: TV News and Terror in Cambodia
August 23rd, 2007 5:38 AM
In the wake of President George W. Bush's reminder Wednesday about how the “killing fields” of Cambodia followed the 1975 U.S. pullout from Vietnam and the region, a look back at a study, by William C. Adams and Michael Joblove, which documented how from 1975 to 1978 the three broadcast network evening newscasts, as well as the New York Times and Washington Post, virtually ignored the ongoing…
Nets Ignore Lowest Congressional Approval Rating in 33 Years
August 22nd, 2007 5:41 PM
If George W. Bush's approval rating hit a low point for any president in 33 years, do you think the network evening news programs would have reported it? Maybe as the lead story, right? Well, a new Gallup poll was released on Tuesday stating that the approval rating for Congress tied the lowest point since Gallup began tracking such a thing, and none of the broadcasts networks thought it was…
Will Nets Notice? After Iraq Visit, Previously Anti-war Dem Opposes Q
August 17th, 2007 4:52 PM
On November 17, 2005, Rep. Jack Murtha (D-Pa.), who had previously supported the Iraq war, announced his call for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The story led all three broadcast network evening news reports.A mirror-image shift of position was reported today: a previously anti-war Dem has announced, after a visit to Iraq, that he now opposes withdrawal at this time. Will the MSM give anything…
CBS's Plante Defends 'Smart-assed' Rove Question
August 16th, 2007 3:21 PM
Admitting it was "smart-assed," CBS White House correspondent nonetheless defended his now-infamous "If he's so smart, how come you lost Congress?" quip from Monday's White House South Lawn farewell for Rove. Interviewed by CBSNews.com blogger Matthew Felling, Plante did concede that he welcomes scrutiny of how the press functions, especially in live press conference settings. Said Plante at the…
Couric Praises Pelosi's New Congress for Promises Kept: They 'Worked M
August 8th, 2007 5:45 PM
When Nancy Pelosi rose to be the House Democrats’ leader in 2002, Katie Couric said to NBC colleague Ann Curry: "Is it okay to say, ‘You go girl!’?" That cheerleading spirit continued in her Monday "Katie Couric’s Notebook" commentary (featured at her blog Couric & Co.) lauding the new Democratic Congress: "this new crop worked much harder than the last. A big accomplishment was in…
Broadcast Networks Ignore Murder of Oakland Post Editor
August 4th, 2007 3:21 PM
When a member of the journalism community is murdered, wouldn't you expect most news agencies to report it? Well, on Thursday morning, Chauncey Bailey, the editor of the Oakland Post, was gunned down by an at that time unknown assailant. On Friday morning, Oakland police arrested seven people at Your Black Muslim Bakery in connection with Bailey's murder. Yet, ABC, CBS, and NBC haven't said a…
Bridge to Bias: In 1989, S.F. Bridge Collapse After Earthquake Blamed
August 2nd, 2007 6:07 PM
If anyone in the media blames the Minnesota bridge collapse on "cheap Republicans" who like tax cuts, it would not be the first time. In 1989, after a memorable San Francisco earthquake, an interstate highway bridge collapsed and killed hundreds. Media figures demanded new taxes, and some even suggested the Proposition 13 ballot initiative may have caused unnecessary deaths. We reported in the…
