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Since Memo, ABC Does Twice as Many Fact Checks on Bush as Kerry
MRC ^ | Wednesday October 13, 2004 | BrentBaker

Posted on 10/13/2004 9:07:54 AM PDT by fight_truth_decay

ABC News "fact check" corrections for President Bush now at four-to-two over those for Senator Kerry since ABC News Political Director Mark Halperin's memo last Friday calling upon his colleagues to hold Bush more accountable since "the current Bush attacks on Kerry involve distortions and taking things out of context in a way that goes beyond what Kerry has done." After Friday's debate, ABC corrected two Bush claims but just one Kerry allegation and, in the first "fact check" since then, Tuesday's World News Tonight corrected two supposed Bush misstatements in a campaign speech, but just one Kerry charge.

ABC's fresh corrections of Bush were for marginal misstatements at best: How Bush claimed Kerry "earned his ranking as the most liberal member of the United States Senate" when that rating was just for 2003 and over his career the same publication actually ranked Kerry as the "11th most liberal Senator" -- as if that means he's not liberal -- and how Bush charged that in Kerry's health plan eight of ten people covered will be added to a government program when it's really a mere 6.5 in ten.

Peter Jennings on Tuesday also failed to take advantage of the "fact check" slot to correct his own inaccurate Friday night correction of Bush. Jennings had scored Kerry correct and Bush incorrect on whether Bush owned an interest in a "timber company," but FackCheck.org, Kerry's source, noted the day after the debate that "the Lone Star Trust now owns 50 percent of the tree-growing company, but didn't get into that business until two years after the $84 in question" which Kerry had cited as Bush's income from a timber company. FactCheck.org acknowledged: "So we should have described the $84 as coming from an 'oil and gas' business in 2001, and will amend that in our earlier article."

For FactCheck.org's September 23 posting modified on October 9: http://www.factcheck.org/article265.html

FactCheck.org's post-debate rundown of candidate errors, with their earlier misstatement noted: http://www.factcheck.org/article275.html

After Friday's debate, Jennings asserted: "First of all, there was this question of the President being accused by Senator Kerry of owning a timber company, or having a part interest in a timber company and taking $84 in a tax rebate. Mr. Bush looked up and said, 'I own a timber company?' We all sort of looked at one another and said who was right? Well, it turns out Senator Kerry was right and here's how he figured it out, that under the Republican definition and based on the President's federal income tax returns of 2001, he reported $84 of business income from his part ownership of a timber-growing enterprise. He shifted it in 2002 and 2003 when he reported his timber income as royalties on a different tax schedule."

ABC's Jake Tapper then corrected Bush's claim that 75 percent of al-Qaeda operatives had been captured and Kerry on how General Shinseki lost his job after he criticized the Bush policy on Iraq and called for more troops to be used.

For more about Halperin's memo and a full rundown of ABC's "fact check" corrections after Friday's debate, see the October 9 CyberAlert: http://www.mediaresearch.org/cyberalerts/2004/cyb20041009.asp#4

Fast forward to Tuesday's World News Tonight, and Jennings brought Tapper back aboard for another session:

"Couple things the President said today made us want to get in touch with our fact-checking team. We asked them to check on Senator Kerry, too. Here's ABC's Jake Tapper."

Tapper: "It has become one of the President's favorite lines." George W. Bush, in Tuesday campaign speech: "My opponent has shown why he earned his ranking as the most liberal member of the United States Senate."

Tapper: "That remark is based on rankings given by the non- partisan National Journal magazine, which says the President has his facts wrong."

Patrick Pexton, Deputy Editor of the National Journal: "The Bush campaign has been misleading in the way it's used our vote ratings. John Kerry was the most liberal senator in 2003, a year when he missed many votes because he was on the campaign trail. But over his lifetime, he's only among the most liberal Senators."

Tapper: "The 11th most liberal, to be exact. The President was using a different study when he made that claim about Senator Kerry's health care plan today."

Bush: "The facts are eight out of ten people who get health care under Senator Kerry's plan would be placed on the government program."

Tapper: "The Bush campaign says that figure is based on a study by the Lewin Group. What does the Lewin Group say?"

John Sheils, Lewin Group: "It's not eight out of ten people."

Tapper: "The Lewin Group says it's closer to 6 and a half out of 10, not 8. Those are mostly people near the poverty line moved from no insurance to Medicaid. Senator Kerry yesterday unleashed a new line of attack against the President on why gas prices are so high."

John Kerry: "And one big reason is because of President Bush's gross mismanagement and miscalculation regarding the war in Iraq."

Tapper: "A check of the facts:"

Seth Kleinman, PFC Energy: "There are a host of other reasons at play here. There's issues in Russia. There's rampaging Chinese demand growth. There's a lack of tankers. There's a shortage of refinery capacity. So it's not exactly accurate to lay all of the blame for expensive gasoline on the war in Iraq."

Tapper: "It's often said that facts are stubborn things. Jake Tapper, ABC News, Washington."

ABC treated the Lewin Group as an expert source to discredit a Bush claim, but ABC never picked up on how the Lewin Group also countered a Kerry claim. One of FactCheck.org's post-Friday debate items:

"Kerry closed by saying 'I have a plan to provide health care to all Americans.' He doesn't. His plan would extend coverage to between 24 and 27 million Americans who don't have it now, depending on which estimate one chooses. But none of the estimates predict 'all' would be insured. A study by the independent Lewin Group, for example, projects that 92% would have coverage, up from just under 86% in 2003."


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Editorial; Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: abc; factcheck; jennings; kerry; markhalperin
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1 posted on 10/13/2004 9:07:54 AM PDT by fight_truth_decay
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To: fight_truth_decay

the news media is the old media and becoming more and more transparent every day.


2 posted on 10/13/2004 9:12:36 AM PDT by sasafras (sasafras (The road to hell is paved with good intentions))
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To: fight_truth_decay

We should write ABC and volunteer to do the fact checking on the Democrats. Obviously they just don't have the time and resources to do the job. We have an excellent record and reputation of uncovering fraud and finding the truth.


3 posted on 10/13/2004 9:15:22 AM PDT by fritzz
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Comment #4 Removed by Moderator

To: fight_truth_decay

we didnt punish ABC....we needed to do a real jiHAD on them and we let it go.....shame on US!!...they are showing us they dont care what we think they will get Kerry elected..


5 posted on 10/13/2004 9:22:07 AM PDT by ArmyBratCutie ("Four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:soap, ballot, jury, ammo in this order!")
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To: fritzz
Obviously they just don't have the time and resources to do the job.

More like a lack of desire.....

6 posted on 10/13/2004 9:22:45 AM PDT by SpinyNorman (Kerry's "global test" doesn't pass the smell test. Come to think of it, neither does Kerry.)
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To: SpinyNorman

Amen to that.


7 posted on 10/13/2004 9:24:23 AM PDT by fritzz
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Truth may be hard to find during tonight's presidential debate Sayre Evening Times
8 posted on 10/13/2004 9:26:44 AM PDT by fight_truth_decay
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To: fritzz
Obviously they just don't have the time and resources to do the job.

It's called "bias".

9 posted on 10/13/2004 9:30:29 AM PDT by BigSkyFreeper (Real gun control is - all shots inside the ten ring)
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To: masher

I sent this article to Mr. Copps and copied the others on my e-mail with this comment:

Mr. Copps,

Because you seemed SO concerned about fair play concerning the Sinclair Broadcasting story, I just KNOW you want to jump on this one about ABC.

I'll be waiting for your public statement about ABC's bias. And I know, like the Sinclair story, you will make your announcement this very same day.

Oh wait, ABC's vice president told his people to report President's Bush bad facts but not Kerry's mistakes last week. I guess I just missed your public statement then?


10 posted on 10/13/2004 9:32:34 AM PDT by BushisTheMan
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To: fight_truth_decay

Bush misquoted Kerry when he said the challenger stated "I'll have (the troops) out of there in six months." Kerry actually said he believed he could significantly reduce the number of troops in Iraq within six months of taking office.

Doesn't it mean the same thing? Not the exact words but my reading of this says the troops are going to be "significantly reduced". So explain "significantly reduced" to me Mr. Kerry. All? 95% where you leave the other 5% to get killed?
What?


11 posted on 10/13/2004 9:36:10 AM PDT by BushisTheMan
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To: BigSkyFreeper
Obviously they just don't have the time and resources to do the job.

Just in case anyone is wondering it was intended as sarcasm.

12 posted on 10/13/2004 9:36:53 AM PDT by fritzz
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To: fritzz

I was aware of that from the git-go.


13 posted on 10/13/2004 9:44:49 AM PDT by BigSkyFreeper (Real gun control is - all shots inside the ten ring)
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To: fight_truth_decay
Related link:

More People Get Their (Biased) News From ABC

14 posted on 10/13/2004 11:56:08 AM PDT by Mike Bates (Just in time for your Halloween gift giving needs: THE book.)
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To: Mike Bates

Thanks..read the link.


15 posted on 10/13/2004 12:52:27 PM PDT by fight_truth_decay
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To: All; Mike Bates

Visit Mike Bates' website or email him at mikebates-AT-prodigy.net (change "AT" to "@"). Mike Bates is the author of Right Angles and Other Obstinate Truths, which is available at Barnesandnoble.com, Booksamillion.com, Amazon.com or iUniverse.com and can be ordered through most bookstores.

http://www.mensnewsdaily.com/archive/a-b/bates/2004/bates101304.htm

A Plug ;)


16 posted on 10/13/2004 12:55:03 PM PDT by fight_truth_decay
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To: fight_truth_decay
ABC's fresh corrections of Bush were for marginal misstatements at best: How Bush claimed Kerry "earned his ranking as the most liberal member of the United States Senate" when that rating was just for 2003 and over his career the same publication actually ranked Kerry as the "11th most liberal Senator" -- as if that means he's not liberal

This is the sort of thing that just kills me. Did Bush specify WHEN Kerry was voted the most liberal member of the senate? NO! So how can they say he was wrong?

Another example even on factcheck.org bothered me when I read it. It was in regards to the 98 votes to raise taxes. Bush and the Bush Ads did not specify that it was 98 seperate tax bill votes but 98 VOTES, a vote is a vote is a vote and each time he voted it was FOR the raising of the taxes. Arguing that it was for a smaller number of specific legeslation is just squabbling over semantics.

17 posted on 10/13/2004 1:00:53 PM PDT by Even Keel
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To: fight_truth_decay

Plugs are always welcomed. Thanks!


18 posted on 10/13/2004 1:02:53 PM PDT by Mike Bates (Just in time for your Halloween gift giving needs: THE book.)
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To: fight_truth_decay

The Newsies would not know a fact if it bit them in the ass.


19 posted on 10/13/2004 2:55:44 PM PDT by American in Israel (A wise man's heart directs him to the right, but the foolish mans heart directs him toward the left.)
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To: fight_truth_decay

Hell, that's not too tough! They only do positive things on Kerry.


20 posted on 10/13/2004 2:59:03 PM PDT by Toespi
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