Posted on 04/18/2009 7:00:47 AM PDT by stan_sipple
Radio and TV talk show personalities are distorting the public debate on critical issues with bias and misinformation, Sen. Ben Nelson said Friday.
Too many Americans “get their news from entertainers (who) tell them what to be angry about today,” Nelson said.
Nelson pointed the finger at personalities on both the right and the left during a speech to the Nebraska Public Policy Center on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus.
Both Jon Stewart on Comedy Central and conservative radio icon Rush Limbaugh “slant the news to fit their agenda,” Nelson said.
Then he added Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity of Fox News and Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow of MSNBC to his list.
“There’s a lot of inaccurate and incomplete information out there thanks to talk shows from either the left or the right,” the Democratic senator said.
“Facts often get in the way of a good rant,” Nelson said.
Far too many citizens who complain about government or a specific issue are doing so with a lack of accurate information, he said.
Citizens need to be “accurately informed and actively involved,” Nelson said.
But they won’t be adequately informed by “a shouting head on TV,” he said.
“Responding to the talking points of either extreme is not the way to enact good public policy,” Nelson said.
On other matters, Nelson said most economists believe the alternative to federal economic stimulus spending would be a longer and deeper recession.
Nelson supported an $878 billion economic stimulus package after helping negotiate $108 billion in cuts to acquire bipartisan Senate support for the legislation.
Critics at this week’s anti-tax Tea Party rallies failed to come to grips with the possibility that the nation could slide toward a depression if action had not been taken to jolt the economy, he said.
And they seemed to ignore the fact that the stimulus plan included middle-class tax cuts that are pumping more than $9 million a month into the pockets of Nebraskans, he said.
Answering questions from students, Nelson said he wants major union organizing legislation to receive “full consideration,” but he did not commit his vote for a cloture motion that would end a Senate filibuster by opponents.
Later, in an interview, Nelson said it’s apparent the Employee Free Choice Act will not be able to acquire the 60 votes required for cloture even with his vote.
Nelson opposes the bill in its present form.
I guess that we can rely on our elected leaders for the
truth?
And so he would ban free speech?
Blame the messenger is a tired worn out tactic from the left.
No one is buying their song and dance.
Nelson styles himself a moderate Democrat, he is a socialist in drag
Wrong, a-hole. There's a lot of bad information out there because politicians lie to their constituencies and work hard to obscure the truth with spin.
Sorry Nelson, but if you guys would actually listen to the people your suppose to serve rather your self serving interests, there wouldn't be people that were angry about Washington.
>>“get their news from entertainers (who) tell them what to be angry about today,”
Actually I’m reminded that Air America/prog talk radio has given us the likes of Janeane Garofolo, Al Franken, Jerry
Springer, Stephanie Miller (once a comic)...
William F. Buckley's weekly one-hour PBS Firing Line was all the electronic media balance conservatives got. Is it time to return to that balance? Yes! say victims of PSS,
Headline?
"We can't control public issues anymore."
Anguish Hobbles Liberals, Postfairnessdoctrine Stress Syndrome
"Not fair. We need balance like it was before 1987."
after helping negotiate $108 billion in cuts to acquire bipartisan Senate support for the legislation
SPHINCTER, SNOWE-JOB and SUZI Q!!! May you three rot in hell. Using these 3 lying demonrats as proof of "bipartisanship" must be the misinformation he refers to.
can you believe the RINOS wanted him to switch parties to GOP and that Bush courted him for AG Sec?
This is the first season I have watched "24" and it will be the last if she is not GONE from the program next season! Why would she have been cast on that program to begin with?
Does this include Jay Leno??????? I noticed he does NOT bash the ‘golden’ 0 in his monologue.
“And they seemed to ignore the fact that the stimulus plan included middle-class tax cuts that are pumping more than $9 million a month into the pockets of Nebraskans, he said.”
Gee, that's so generous. According to the Internal Revenue Service's 2007 data, you're stealing 19 billion a year from Nebraskans, or about $10,000.00 per person. You're pumping in about $5.88 a month per person, of which you are borrowing or printing out of thin air.
And you have the audacity to lecture “tea party” participants on economics.
isn’t that $9million Maobama’s reduced tax withholding that we’ll have to pay back on our 1040s?
There are two Nelson’s. Which one is this?
Nebraska, when he retires he will get a job as a carney who can talk out of both sides of his mouth will sitting on a 15 foot high fence
I could think of a few things they should have given her to do...
DLTSDHYITAOTWO, twit.
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