Studds Had to Die to Get NBC to Remind Viewers of His Sex with a Teen
Gerry Studds had to die for NBC Nightly News to inform viewers of how the former Democratic Congressman had a sexual relationship with 17-year-old male congressional page, misconduct for which the House in 1983 censured him, but did not prompt Democratic House Speaker Tip O'Neill and other leaders to force his resignation -- nor raise calls for O'Neill's resignation. Despite the Democratic…
CBS and NBC Report Nuke Test Confirmation; ABC Suggests Doubt, Could B
Friday's broadcast network evening newscasts (6:30pm EDT feeds for ABC and CBS, 7pm for NBC) delivered contradictory reports on whether U.S. officials believe North Korea conducted a nuclear test last weekend. On the CBS Evening News, Jim Axelrod reported from the White House lawn: “The first tests on air samples from near North Korea have been completed and U.S. intelligence agencies now…
Nets, Particularly CBS and Couric, Treat 655,000 Iraqi Death Guestimat
Despite how the estimate of 665,000 Iraqi deaths caused by violence since the war began -- a number forwarded in a new report from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health -- represents quadruple the highest monthly rate as tracked by the UN and is 13 times larger than the total compiled by the Iraq Body Count group, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric set up a Wednesday story on the…
CBS Ignores How Most Say Foley Makes 'No Difference,' Stresses Bad New
A new CBS News/New York Times poll discovered, that despite day after day pounding from the news media, two-thirds said the Foley matter will make “no difference” in how they vote -- with 72 percent of independents saying so as well as a majority of Democrats (51 percent). But, Monday's CBS Evening News ignored that response as Katie Couric and Bob Schieffer found plenty of other bad news for…
Couric Makes Sure Page Scandal 'Is Not Going Away'; Nets Bury Unemploy
Friday's CBS Evening News led again with the Foley/page scandal, even though the two stories aired offered virtually no fresh information, as anchor Katie Couric justified the news judgment by declaring the issue is “still the talk of the town,” “is not going away” and “is overshadowing every other election issue for the moment” -- all self-fulfilling assessments sustained by the decisions of…
Media Focus on Foley, Ignore Good Economic Signs
Yesterday the Dow Jones average hit its third straight record high while a retail report for September showed strong sales at most retailers, including apparel and department stores.Yet ABC, CBS, and NBC all ignored both developments in their newscasts.For more, see my story at the MRC's BusinessandMedia.org Web site.
