CBSNEWS PUSHED BOOK IT OWNS; '60 MINUTES' DID NOT REVEAL PARENT COMPANY'S FINANCIAL STAKE

Drudgereport.com ^ | 3/22/04 | Drudge

[NYC Republican]

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX MON MARCH 22, 2004 12:04:25 ET XXXXX

NEWS FOR SALE: CBS PUSHED BOOK IT OWNS; '60 MINUTES' DID NOT REVEAL PARENT COMPANY'S FINANCIAL STAKE IN CLARKE PROJECT

CBSNEWS did not inform its viewers last night that its parent company owns and has a direct financial stake in the success of the book by former White House terror staffer turned Bush critic, Dick Clarke, the DRUDGE REPORT can reveal.

60 MINUTES aired a double-segment investigative report on the new book "Against All Enemies" -- but did not disclose how CBSNEWS parent VIACOM is publishing the book and will profit from any and all sales!

ETHICAL BREACH

CBS even used heavy promotion for the 60 MINUTES/book launch during its Sunday sports shows.

It is not clear who made the final decision at CBSNEWS not to inform the viewer during 60 MINUTES how they were watching a news story about a VIACOM product.

60 MINUTES pro Lesley Stahl is said to have been aware of the conflict before the program aired.

[CBSNEWS.COM did add a disclaimer to its Internet coverage of the book over the weekend: "Against All Enemies," which is being published Monday by FREE PRESS, a subsidiary of SIMON & SCHUSTER. Both CBSNews.com and SIMON & SCHUSTER are units of VIACOM." And CBS RADIO did carry a disclaimer in its news coverage of the book.]

SIMON & SCHUSTER INFO-COMMERCIAL

Earlier this year, it was Stahl who also profiled another author on 60 MINUTES -- for another book owned by VIACOMCBS -- without any disclaimer!

"The Price of Loyalty" by former Treasury Secretary, turned Bush critic, Paul O'Neill was financed, produced and released [and rolled-out at CBSNEWS] by VIACOM's SIMON & SCHUSTER.

Coming in future weeks, best-selling author Bob Woodward is set to release his PLAN OF ATTACK, a fresh look at the Bush White House.

Will the Woodward VIACOMSIMON&SCHUSTER product debut on: VIACOMSIMON&SCHUSTERCBS's 60 MINUTES?

[EDITOR'S NOTE: STAHL'S INTERVIEW WITH CLARKE ON '60 MINUTES' WAS THE TOP-RATED SHOW OF SUNDAY NIGHT WITH 11.9 RATING/19 SHARE.]

[magua]

kudos to DRUDGE

[Thermalseeker]

CBS: COMMUNISTS BASTARDS SOCIALISTS

When you see CBS you see-BS......

[ClintonBeGone]

Sorry, BIG YAWN. Drudge knows that CBS doesn't own Simon & Schuster. Viacom does. And Viacom owns CBS. I don't see the outrage.

[NYC Republican]

Excellent points! Sometimes, he'll lob shells our way, but usually he's really fair.

[Coop]

I wrote 60 Minutes this morning and suggested they report last night's "news" story as a legal contribution to the Kerry campaign. Wouldn't want to see them get into any trouble...

[NYC Republican]

LOL. Gotta keep them honest. Riiiiight...

[Helms]

Drudge and Rush have developed a great symbiosis. FR is part of the loop and the Right Wing Attack machine.

[sharktrager]

Imagine this scenario:

I have a step-brother who sells crack (not really, of course), and I am a reporter pushing for the reduction of sentences for anyone convicted of selling crack.

You can't tell me for a second that, at very least, I am going to give the appearance that point 1 influences point 2.

[Peach]

CBS phone # 212-975-3247. They answered when I called and took my message.

What Clarke would just as soon we forget:

Okay - here are just a FEW of the links between terrorism and AQ specifically and Iraq.

Read about what the press was saying in the 90's about the links between Iraq and AQ:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/946809/posts?page=1

Growing evidence of AQ/Iraq link:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/946997/posts

Saddam and Bin Laden vs. the World:http://www.guardian.co.uk/alqaida/story/0,12469,798270,00.html

Saddam link to bin Laden:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/866105/posts

The Al Qaeda connections:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/866105/posts

NYT - 1998 - OBL and Iraq agree to cooperate:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/985906/posts

Document links AQ and Iraq:http://tennessean.com/nation-world/archives/03/06/34908297.shtml?Element_ID=34908297

Iraq and terrorism:http://www.nationalreview.com/robbins/robbins091903.asp

WSJ - Iraq and AQ: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/987129/posts

Iraq and Iran contact AQ: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/981055/posts

Proof Saddam worked with AQ: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2003%2F04%2F27%2Fwalq27.xml

Saddam's AQ Connection:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/969032/posts

Terrorist killed in Iraq after refusing to train Al Qaeda terrorists:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/08/25/wnidal25.xml

Osama's Best Friend: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1007969/posts

Case Closed - OBL and Iraq agree to work together:http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/378fmxyz.asp

Terrorist behind 9/11 trained in Iraq:http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1039898/posts?page=154

The Clinton view of Iraq/AQ ties: http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/527uwabl.asp

Saddam's ties to terror: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1005579/posts

NYT - tape shows Wesley Clark tying AQ and Iraq: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1056113/posts

[imintrouble]

Good Thought!!!

I just wrote them about not disclosing their Viacom connection to the publication they were promoting....

I can see a legality in the Kerry contribution too haha...

At least we'll make the little e-mail reader wake up for a while.

What do they do with these e-mails? Insulate their walls to keep the FCC from hearing their plans?

Naw - we are sent into cyberspace no doubt with the poke of a finger.

Let's see - the sponsors are the best ones to frighten...
Anyone remember who they were on that segment last nite???

[dirtboy]

Sorry, BIG YAWN. Drudge knows that CBS doesn't own Simon & Schuster. Viacom does. And Viacom owns CBS. I don't see the outrage.

It's a signficant conflict of interest for any news outlet to be putting the author of a book on the air without revealing that the parent company of the news outlet stands to promote the book as a result of the story. And Viacom's financial interest in the controversy gave 60 Minutes a STRONG disincentive to present the other side of the issue.

And above and beyond that clear issue, the entire process created an incentive for Clarke to make some wild claims about the Bush Administration in order to create sufficient controversy to justify a 60 Minutes story to publicize his book - at the expense of American foreign policy partisanship.

It is notable that Joe Lieberman steadfastly refused to endorse Clarke's claims - he understands the damage done by them.

[Peach]

I don't think Clarke looked hard enough for links to Iraq and AQ. (snicker)

[LurkedLongEnough]

WABC talk radio in NYC hosted him this morning. After he finished, the host (John Gambling) said something like, "Now, we all have to remember that Clark is selling a book"... HAHAHAHA

[roses of sharon]

Call them at 212-975-3247, and ask how many investigative reporters they have looking for Osama? Or looking at Syria? Or Hamas? Or Arafat?

Ask them why, in the middle of a war on terrorists, and this being the 30th year of Islamic suicide cults world-wide murders going on with impunity, DO THEY CHOOSE TO ONLY INVESTIGATE THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES?

[NYC Republican]

Great recap.

A little off-topic, but today's Rasmussen poll shows:

Bush at 48%

Kerry at 45%

[Peach]

I just saw that. Those numbers will sink in light of Clarke's lies, although the administration is doing a good job getting people out there.

Now if we could only reach FNC with this information about Clarke and the ties Iraq had to AQ...

[NYC Republican]

John Gambling is really, really good. It takes a while to warm up to him, he's much calmer than Rush, Sean, and the others, and sometimes gives the impression that he's not as passionate on the issues... He certainly is, and his program is a good one.

[ReleaseTheHounds]

Notice that CBS News doesn't provide an easy to access email address -- they would be flooded!

[ClintonBeGone]

You make some good points, but its not worthy of a Drudge headline. It happens so often I just don't see the masses in an uprise over it.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

I am sure Rush will hit this today. He will probably say, "why should any of us be surprised."

The Partisan Media is what Rush has been calling it.