Mostly (But Not All) Katie: Combined Big 3 Evening Newscasts' Decline
Interest in the presidential election should be driving up ratings for the Big Three networks' evening news shows, right? Wrong. Here is how evening news viewership at ABC, NBC, and CBS for the two most recent available weeks compares to the analogous weeks of 2007 (From Media Bistro's TV Newser: April 7, 2008; March 31, 2008; April 9, 2007; April 2, 2007):
Bill and Hillary's Unfavorable Ratings Skyrocket, Media Mostly Mum
On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported results of a new poll it undertook with ABC News wherein Hillary Clinton's unfavorable rating skyrocketed to its highest point ever.In the same poll, her husband Bill's unfavorable rating rose above 50 percent for the first time since August 1998 when he was embroiled in the Monica Lewinsky scandal.Although some media outlets other than the Post did…
ABC Highlights Clergy Sex Abuse, Spins Pope’s Message on Immigration
All three broadcast networks on Tuesday led their evening news programs with Pope Benedict XVI’s arrival at Andrews Air Force Base to begin his visit to the U.S., as well as his comments during a press conference on the plane about the priest sex abuse scandal. ABC’s "World News" and CBS’ "Evening News" especially focused on the scandal. In addition to this, "World News" also highlighted what the…
Time to Play: 'Who Said It
What pundit uttered the following liberal canard that makes it sound like Republicans don't care about poor people?"He's [John McCain] a conservative. The way he breaks out of it, though, electorally, is to be Teddy Roosevelt, and this is gonna be the toughest thing for his campaign. He's got a group of people around him, and frankly a group, a party that doesn't want the government to do…
Former NBC and CBS Fill-In Anchor Blames Deregulation for Fall of TV N
Never mind nightly TV newscasts are geared toward older generation. Never mind scandals like Dan Rather and the falsified National Guard documents leading up to the 2004 presidential elections have caused people to look for their news from other sources like the Internet and talk radio. Former "CBS Evening News" weekend and fill-in anchor and NBC's "Meet the Press" and "Nightly News" co-anchor…
Obama Channels Marx on Masses' Reverence for Religion
CORRECTION: This item originally cited Ace of Spades as having uncovered that Obama's mentor was Frank Marshall Davis, a man with Communist roots. It was in fact Cliff Kincaid at Accuracy in Media. I regret the error. Religion is the opiate of the masses. -- Karl Marx, 1843It's not surprising that they get bitter, they cling to . . . religion . . . as a way to explain their frustrations. --…
Morning Shows Hit Snooze Button on Court Overturning San Fran Gun Ban
None of the April 11 editions of the network morning shows: ABC's "Good Morning America," CBS's "The Early Show," and NBC's "Today," noted the April 10 unanimous ruling of the California Supreme Court striking down a San Francisco handgun ban.I mean, what other reasons could this possibly be newsworthy besides that:
Biased Access: Mrs. McCain Talks Adultery, Hillary Talks Housework
Cindy McCain granted an interview to Access Hollywood anchor Nancy O’Dell, and NBC’s Today picked right up on it Friday morning – shamelessly repeating O’Dell’s questions recycling the unsubstantiated New York Times story alleging Sen. John McCain had a sexual relationship with lobbyist Vicki Iseman. (Access Hollywood is produced by NBC Universal.) Some might wonder why Mrs. McCain would agree to…
Morning Shows Ignore Rockefeller Smear of McCain, Military Pilots
Our news analysts at the MRC have combed through the April 9 editions of ABC's "Good Morning America," CBS's "The Early Show," and NBC's "Today," and found zero mentions of the comments that Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.V.) made smearing McCain and military pilots past and present.[See a related NewsBusters item by Clay Waters here.]Yesterday I noted how news agencies were slow to cover the story,…
NBC News Can’t Seem to Find a Water Bottle it Likes
Last summer NBC told viewers bottled water was bad for the environment because of its packaging and transportation demands. This time, NBC's April 9 "Today" warned viewers some reusable water bottles are bad for society because they contain a dangerous substance. "[M]any of those sturdy, reusable plastic bottles contain a chemical, bisphenol-A, that many scientists are worried about," NBC…
CNBC on the Future of Network Newsgathering: 'That Ship has Sailed
It's no longer profitable for networks to have their own news organizations, according to CNBC's David Faber. In the wake of the news that CBS is in negotiations to outsource its news division to CNN, Faber explained on CNBC's April 8 "Squawk on the Street" CBS's news division is a victim of an evolving business. "The news that CBS is once again considering a deal under which it would…
