CBS Evening News Wakes Up to Find Non-profit Gets Funding

Free Market Project ^ | 3/30/05 | Dan Gainor

[CorbyCard]

Report criticizes National Sleep Foundation for drug industry financing, but ignores backing for Public Citizen, as well as its own advertisements.

by Dan Gainor March 30, 2005

CBC Evening News employed an obvious double standard in its coverage of a new study indicating Americans aren’t getting enough sleep. Rather than simply focus on the study, reporter Sharyl Attkisson attacked the group that did the research because it gets funding from the sleep industry.

According to Attkisson, the issue was “Whether America's sleepiness is a real epidemic or just a pipe dream of the drug industry.” She relied on comments from “Consumer watchdog” Dr. Sidney Wolfe. Attkisson failed to mention that Wolfe is the Health Research Group Director for Public Citizen, a left-wing advocacy group that advocates for increased regulation, against tort reform and produces a publication about House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) that is called “DeThrone DeLay.”

Despite that obvious political bias, Attkisson never asked Wolfe about his funding – while using funding to undermine the reliability of the National Sleep Foundation. “But before you're convinced that we've become a nation of walking zombies, you might want to consider what we found when we checked into who funds the National Sleep Foundation: companies that make - you guessed it - sleeping pills and other insomnia remedies,” she explained.

[CorbyCard]

Typical of CBS. They stick it to industry and treat left-wing groups like Public Citizen like they were part of the team.

That's right, they are.

[MikeHu]

So what now?

They're ONLY using biased sources?

[RJL]

Yet another example of the MSM's numerous layers of editorial oversight to guarantee fair and balanced reporting.

Oops, wrong network, CBS certainly isn't fair and balanced.

[perfect stranger]

Between the accidental release of the TS death story, and the 60min episode about guns last week it seems they are doing this on stuff on purpose simply to soil the reputation of MSM in general.

IOW if they fail they will take all others with them.

If this is true I support this fully.

[CorbyCard]

No, they are soiling the reputation of the media because that seems to be all they know how to do.

[duck duck goose]

What happened to the days of unbiased, original, self sufficient journalism??

Some say the internet.

[perfect stranger]

We should give them the credit for hastening their own demise. It would seem they are on ourside of this argument.

[CorbyCard]

Not likely. Remember Walter Cronkite declaring the war in Vietnam lost on the newscast in 1968? This has been going on a long time -- my whole life for sure.

[duck duck goose]

Oh I know. I just get sick of the whole "MSM" agenda. I was talking to someone the other day about Dan Rather and the day Kennedy was assasinated, how he took credit for "breaking" the story. What a tool, even back then.