As Doug Forrester likes to say before calling for the "retirement" of Dan Rather, "a free press is essential to a free society."That is true. But the dirty little secret is that broadcasting is not merely an addition to communication of truth, it is selective addition to the expressive power of certain people to the comparative disadvantage of we-the-people generally. Think of it this way: an American who is watching ABC television is an American who is not reading FR.
And a license to broadcast at a certain power at a certain frequency at a particular location would be no big deal except that you and I are censored from being able to broadcast in competion to the FCC licensee. Reread the First Amendment and justifiy to yourself that its intent is to allow the federal government to favor Dan Rather's employer over your right to communicate, or mine!
CBS AND ABC take a credibility hit
Shocking admission by ABC. I've written to my local affiliate and told them they are off my list along with CBS!
I wonder if this guy is related to the Commie Halpern Clinton tried to get as head of some department, but the Republicans wouldn't allow it.
RATHER interesting, isn't it? I hope it gets reported a lot.
The first version published of yesterday's Note included what was intended as a SATIRICAL report of a fictional ABC News/Washington Post poll. No such poll was conducted. The questions and results listed were not from a real poll.
But on this day when John Kerry has a chance for wins in Tennessee and/or Virginia that just might get the Southern monkey off of his back -- and take an opponent out of the race -- and after two full news cycles in which Kerry's transient upper hand over President Bush doesn't seem to have been removed by the "Meet" appearance -- on this day, let us tell you again what we tried to say yesterday.
Like every other institution, the Washington and political press corps operate with a good number of biases and predilections.
They include, but are not limited to, a near-universal shared sense that liberal political positions on social issues like gun control, homosexuality, abortion, and religion are the default, while more conservative positions are "conservative positions."
They include a belief that government is a mechanism to solve the nation's problems; that more taxes on corporations and the wealthy are good ways to cut the deficit and raise money for social spending and don't have a negative affect on economic growth; and that emotional examples of suffering (provided by unions or consumer groups) are good ways to illustrate economic statistic stories.
More systematically, the press believes that fluid narratives in coverage are better than static storylines; that new things are more interesting than old things; that close races are preferable to loose ones; and that incumbents are destined for dethroning, somehow.
The press, by and large, does not accept President Bush's justifications for the Iraq war -- in any of its WMD, imminent threat, or evil-doer formulations. It does not understand how educated, sensible people could possibly be wary of multilateral institutions or friendly, sophisticated European allies.
It does not accept the proposition that the Bush tax cuts helped the economy by stimulating summer spending.
It remains fixated on the unemployment rate.
It believes President Bush is "walking a fine line" with regards to the gay marriage issue, choosing between "tolerance" and his "right-wing base."
It still has a hard time understanding how, despite the drumbeat of conservative grass-top complaints about overspending and deficits, President Bush's base remains extremely and loyally devoted to him -- and it looks for every opportunity to find cracks in that base.
Of course, the swirling Joe Wilson and National Guard stories play right to the press's scandal bias -- not to mention the bias towards process stories (grand juries produce ENDLESS process!).
The worldview of the dominant media can be seen in every frame of video and every print word choice that is currently being produced about the presidential race.
That means the President's communications advisers have a choice:
Try to change the storyline and the press' attitude, or try to win this election without changing them.
So we ask again: What's it going to be, Ken, Karen, Mary, Terry, Nicole, and Dan?
Lamestream media continues to flounder!
Just emailed ABC News. Suggest all others do the same.
I called ABC News partisan hacks who lack any ethics or honor. Good thing is that since ABC jumped on CBS and Rather...well, turnabout is fair play!
A related subject...I've just looked at the instant polls after the debate. Even Fox says Kerry won, but only because of a push by the DNC (more unethical crap) to flood the polls with Democrat votes. I don't know why the polls are even conducted.
God, I hate Democrats!
I remember hearing this in 2000.....yes I do.
"Why have we given George W. Bush such an easy ride when-until now, that is-when actually his qualifications are questionable?"
-Christiane Amanpour on September 13, 2000, at RTNDA2000's Murrow Awards Ceremony
I heard Clintonite Halperin say months ago on the Charley Rose show, "No good news for Bush, no bad news for Kerry." He later posted these remarks on ABC's The Note. He was saying the MSM was going to go to work to re-elect Kerry because none of them wanted Bush as President. There were some other reporters on the program--one was with Time magazine.
Part of his bio on ABC reads, "In 1992, ABCNEWS Political Director Mark Halperin worked full-time as an off-air reporter assigned to travel with the presidential campaign of then Governor Bill Clinton. He covered President-elect Clinton during the transition in Little Rock and Washington and was assigned to White House coverage for the first two years of the Clinton Administration. "
It's time for the MSM to go away. They serve no purpose anymore.
After the ABC Memo was reported by John Cameron, Brit jumped in and said Mark Halprin was a decent guy. Hey, Brit, if Halprin is deliberately rigging the news coverage to favor Kerry he's not a decent guy.
We got DNCBS & Dan Rather promoting fraudulent documents from the DNC and now ABDNC & its news director directing his minions to be tougher on Bush than on Kerry!
The OLD MEDIA is just keeps getting busted for is blatant bias!
My e-mail/note to local ABC stations:
"I'm glad that your political unit head, Mr. Mark Halperin, has come out as biased towards Senator Kerry and against President Bush in his recent E-Mail to the staff at ABC News. This lets the American people know that "liberal bias" at the mainstream media is not a myth, but a fact.
From this day forward, I, and my family, will boycott any and all sponsors/advertisers of your network. Rest assured that I will be writing those companies to let them know of my decision. Good day."
Here they are, if you want to write them:
http://abc.go.com/abc/utility/localstations.html