Leveling the media playing field

San Diego Union Tribune ^ | 10/15/04 | Joseph Perkins

[dalereed]

UNION-TRIBUNE October 15, 2004

Is The New York Times a liberal newspaper? "Of course it is." – Daniel Okrent Public editor, The New York Times

"Where I work at ABC, people say conservative the way people say child molester." – John Stossel Correspondent, ABC News

"The media, I think, want Kerry to win." – Evan Thomas Assistant managing editor, Newsweek

For much of this election year, George W. Bush has been under attack not only from John Kerry and his fellow Democrats, but also from the preponderantly liberal "mainstream" media.

In just the past month, CBS News has aired a scurrilous report, based on likely fraudulent documents, abetted by discredited sources, casting aspersions upon Bush's Vietnam-era service in the Texas Air National Guard.

Meanwhile, ABC News staffers have been advised by political director Mark Halperin that they need not hold Bush and Kerry " 'equally' accountable" for the claims they make during the presidential campaign.

Bush deserves more critical coverage, Halperin suggested, in an internal memo, because of supposed Republican "efforts to win the election by destroying Senator Kerry at least partly through distortions."

So it is abundantly clear, to all but the most disingenuous (or dishonest), that the mainstream media have chosen sides in the presidential election. The news networks, the major newspapers (and magazines) overwhelmingly favor Kerry.

That's why it is so ironic that the Kerry campaign, that the Democrat Party, is in such high dudgeon over plans by the Sinclair Broadcast Group to televise a special next week examining the Democrat standard-bearer's post-Vietnam anti-war activism.

Sinclair, which owns the nation's largest chain of television stations and reaches nearly one-quarter of American households, has instructed its stations to block out time to air the 42-minute documentary "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal."

In the film, produced by Carlton Sherwood, a decorated Vietnam veteran and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, former prisoners of war tell the stories of their brutal captivity in North Vietnam.

They recall the additional hardships they suffered at the hands of their Communist captors who read them the words of anti-war activist Kerry accusing American soldiers of atrocities, who demanded that the American POWs confess to the "war crimes" young Kerry alleged.

Democrats accuse Sinclair of tilting to Bush for scheduling "Stolen Honor" so close to Election Day.

"It's beyond yellow journalism," sneered Kerry campaign spokesman David Wade. "It's an "illegal in-kind campaign contribution to the Bush-Cheney campaign," snarled Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

Meanwhile, a group of 20 Democrat senators, led by California's Dianne Feinstein, wrote a letter this week to the Federal Communications Commission urging the regulatory body to investigate Sinclair.

The lawmakers asked the FCC to determine whether the broadcast group's plan to televise "Stolen Honor" over its 62 stations "represents a proper use of public airwaves or if, instead, it would violate fairness rules now in place."

The Democrats are hypocrites. They don't mind that The New York Times is a liberal newspaper, as Okrent acknowledged, that ABC hates conservatives, as Stossel confirmed, that the media want Kerry to win the presidential election, as Thomas attested.

But they despise talk radio, because conservatives like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage dominate the medium. They hate FOX News, because it does not bend to the left like its network news rivals.

And, now, they have added Sinclair Broadcast Group to their list of media enemies. Because the television chain dares to air a documentary that reflects badly upon their party's presidential nominee.

Democrats have enjoyed preferential media coverage for so long that they are kicking and screaming now that the media playing field is inching closer to level.

They wish they could go back 20 years ago – before Rush, before FOX News, before Sinclair – when they could count on the media to be almost exclusively on their side.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Perkins can be reached via e-mail at joseph.perkins@uniontrib.com.

[Carry_Okie]

"It's beyond yellow journalism," sneered Kerry campaign spokesman David Wade. "It's an "illegal in-kind campaign contribution to the Bush-Cheney campaign," snarled Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

I would take in trade Stolen Honor for all the in-kind pro-Kerry issue mongering and "news" media advertising in an instant.

Any takers?

[Clive]

I note that the plan to air Moore's movie on election eve has now been cancelled.

Note that this plan had passed without criticism even as outrage was sustained against Sinclair.

The United States has freedom of speech limited only by the minor constraint that the speech must conform to standards set by the DNC.

[billhilly]

It has taken a long time, but parity is on the way. They (the democrats)know it, and it scares the very soul out of them. It is also one reason that we need to expect a ferocious effort to hang on to power. If they are able to hold on, they will find extralegal means to punish their enemies.

[searchandrecovery]

I note that the plan to air Moore's movie on election eve has now been cancelled. Note that this plan had passed without criticism even as outrage was sustained against Sinclair.

I thought it was almost ok to show F911 on election eve - it was pay-per-view from what I understand. Not a free broadcast. Not defending the Moore garbage in any way, but it didn't seem like a big violation to me (mean-spirited, yes, but those who would pay money to see it would probably already be in the choir).

[EdReform]

BTTT

[q_an_a]

they want the old media and the OLD CONGRESS. The problem is neither is coming back as they remembered it.

[Edgerunner]

I wish that Murdock would jump in and have his stations take the feed from Sinclair...

[talleyman]

Shouldn't the Kerry Kampaign count the operating budgets of the lamestream media as campaign contributions ?

[MeekOneGOP]

Democrats accuse Sinclair of tilting to Bush for scheduling "Stolen Honor" so close to Election Day.

"It's beyond yellow journalism," sneered Kerry campaign spokesman David Wade. "It's an "illegal in-kind campaign contribution to the Bush-Cheney campaign," snarled Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

Ha! The [former POW's] truth hurts, eh, Terry!? Good.

By the way, I look forward to seeing your boy tommy da$$hole in the unemployment line after November 2nd!!

[jmstein7]

BUMP!

[SwinneySwitch]

Leo Garza's 'Nacho Guarache'

http://www2.mysanantonio.com/opinion/cartoonarchive/leo.cfm

[hosepipe]

If anything the FCC should be investigated.. Outright in you're face sedition in Iraq (all over the world really) and domestically by the MSM is downright obvious in so many reports they are past counting.. The FCC should be gone through with a fine tooth comb.. What they will find is ALL the management are democrat socialists.. You know their budget is 280 million this year.. either they are way overpaid or eat up that budget with make work jobs.. probably both.. We could use an FCC but a lean mean license revokeing machine would restore some sanity.. and make the MSM be grateful for their licenses. They NOW think they have a RIGHT to spread propaganda.. Who to challenge them.?. THE REPUBLICANS... You'd need a backbone for that...

[Woogit]

Like President Bush said in his O'Reilly interview...'I'm not so stupid as to take on the media during a campaign'...Maybe after he's reelected?