MRC's Noyes on CNBC Tonight About Nightline Controversy(Will Koppel Use Dead US Soldiers As Props?)

MRC ^ | Thursday April 29, 2004 | BrentBaker

[fight_truth_decay]

Rich Noyes, the MRC's Director of Research, will appear tonight on CNBC's Capital Report which airs from 7 to 8pm EDT.

Topic: The controversy over Nightline's plan to devote the entirety of Friday's program to reading the names, of all those killed in combat in Iraq, as pictures of them are displayed on screen.

Today, the MRC distributed this message to radio talk show hosts:

Honoring the Dead, or Exploiting Them?

Will ABC News use dead American soldiers as props in a one-sided anti-war program?

On Friday's Nightline, Ted Koppel is slated to read the names of more than 500 U.S. servicemen killed in the Iraq since the war began March 19, 2003. Executive producer Leroy Sievers acknowledged that the roll call of the dead is a take-off of an anti-war Vietnam project undertaken by Life magazine in 1969, in which the names and faces of 217 of the 242 soldiers killed in one week of that war were assembled.

But Sievers told the New York Times that ABC's venture has "no intended political statement." As for the program airing right at the May 1 anniversary of the President's declaration of the end of major hostilities -- a declaration that has been often distorted by Bush's anti-war critics as some sort of promise of no further casualties -- Koppel incredibly told the Times: "That is purely a coincidence."

It would be a fine thing if on Friday ABC truly honors those who have lost their lives in the service of their country. But ABC's coverage has carried an anti-war slant since before the first shot was fired, so it's fair to wonder whether this is really just another biased attempt to push public opinion against the war by highlighting its tragic costs without also underscoring the positive results for both America and the liberated people of Iraq.

For more on Nightline's plans, go to: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/business/media/28TUBE-LONG.html

END of E-Mailed Message

-- Brent Baker

[Diogenesis]

Will Koppel and ABC flag the deaths which THEY CAUSED by betraying the United States?

[GLDNGUN]

Simple question: Has Koppel and Nightline had a show to read the American soldiers that have died in Afghanistan? If not, why not?

[Rocko]

No reading of the deaths of 9/11, either. That would take hours.

[samadams2000]

These tired old "journalists" are going down kicking and screaming. To be known as a fool when I pass..is the worst fate.

[Tacis]

But, who will actually watch the show? Some folks, parents and friends, might watch until the one they knew is mentioned and then, in pain, change channels. Many of our very sensitive liberal friends will SAY they watched the whole thing but, if Hollywood Squares was on, we know they lied. Some few, really vicious American hating traitors, maybe the ANSWER folks and the dem leadership, might actually watch from end to end.

Won't sponsors recognize that NO ONE sat through the whole thing?

[Dr. Frank fan]

Question: if this is not a political ploy why are they not reading the names of the fallen in Afghanistan. Why the artificial separation between Afghanistan & Iraq? Aren't our servicemen dying in both places?

"Ah, but you see, the separation is not artificial, it's obvious that the two are apples and oranges, because in our expert opinions we happen to think the Iraq war was wron... er, I mean, we're OBJECTIVE!" says the Nightline guy.

[GulliverSwift]

That's why it's purely a political ploy. No liberal is going to watch this because they hate the military and around half of them hate America. Conservatives will be disgusted at the sick opportunism of Alfred E. Neuman. "Independents" will be too bored to watch.

All this is is an attempt to get free publicity for Nightline. Nothing more.

[fight_truth_decay]

The broadcast will also be shown on the Jumbo screen in Times Square.

[dalebert]

Its all about ratings. Nice to know that Koppel is willing to sell our dead soldiers for ratings.

[GOPJ]

Let's return the "respect" Nightline gives to our dead troops.

How about getting some anti-homosexual Christian TV evangelist to read the names of gays who die of AIDS. We can even show their pictures, and maybe interview a few crying relatives.

Would the media see this as creepy? Tacky? Sick? Would they see it the way we see Nightline?