Posted on 12/15/2010 4:07:54 PM PST by patriotgal1787
Like Dogs to Vomit, Media Matters Cleans Up Liberal Media Messes
Just like dogs that merrily slurp vomit to the last chunk, bloggers at the Democratic party front group Media Matters for America follow behind liberal media outlets, lapping up their latest noxious dousing of conservatives. Then with a satisfied smirk, Media Matters gloats "what vomit?" when conservatives complain about being puked on by the press.
The latest example of Media Matters' vomit fetish is their defense of the attempted smear of Sarah Palin during her humanitarian trip to Haiti last weekend by the Associated Press and others as a hair-obsessed diva. The former Alaska governor, accompanied by her husband Todd and their eldest daughter Bristol, was a guest of the Rev. Franklin Graham and Samaritan's Purse.
A photo of Palin in Haiti transmitted by the AP bore the caption, "Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, center, has her hair done during a visit to a cholera treatment center set up by the NGO Samaritan's Purse in Cabaret, Haiti, Saturday Dec. 11, 2010. Palin arrived Saturday in Haiti as part of a brief humanitarian mission. Dieu Nalio Chery / AP." The caption failed to note that the person fixing Palin's hair was her daughter Bristol.
Outlets including USA Today, the Huffington Post, the U.K.'s Daily Mail and the Guardian, as well as liberal blogs and Twitterers keyed on the captioned AP photo to attack Palin as being more concerned with looking good for the cameras than the Haitians she traveled to help.
The Huffington Post: Reading the Pictures: Palin Does Haiti Cholera: How's My Hair (and, Did AP Lend a Curl?). "Damn right it's revolting seeing Sarah getting her hair made up like this field hospital is her movie set..."
The Daily Mail: Ready for her close-up... Sarah Palin lands in Haiti (well, she wants to look just right for those poor cholera-stricken residents). The Mail snarked their caption of the AP photo, "So long as she brings the cameras: Sarah Palin has her hair fixed during a visit to a cholera treatment center set up by the NGO Samaritan's Purse in Cabaret, Haiti, on Saturday."
The Guardian led its article with the AP photo captioned, "Sarah Palin gets her hair fixed during a visit to a cholera treatment centre in Haiti," followed by the lede, "Earthquake. Cholera. Political strife. And now Sarah Palin."
An expose posted at Free Republic Sunday night called out the media for accusing Palin of bringing a hairdresser to Haiti started a firestorm that prompted corrections by the AP and Huffington Post.
Despite those corrections, in an entry titled, Palin's media defenders attack AP over non-existent "hairdresser" slight , Media Matters blogger Eric Boehlert employed his by now familiar technique of dissembling and lying-by-omission, accusing conservatives of falsely charging the Associated Press with claims that Palin had brought a hair stylist with her to Haiti. At the same time Boehlert, citing the Free Republic article, ignored the media attacks on Palin based on the AP's photo and caption.
But oops, Eric! Free Republic never made that claim about the AP. In fact, the writer of the Free Republic article, a co-author of this report, quoted the AP caption that said Palin "has her hair done" and wrote:"Here's the problem: The AP never reported Palin brought a "hair stylist" or a "hairdresser." Those phrases came from Free Republic. It's true: Free Republic rushed into (sic) to defend Palin from the AP allegation that Palin had brought a "hair stylist" or "hairdresser" with her to Haiti.
"But oops! The AP never made that claim."
"The AP photographer who sent the caption would have known that it was Bristol Palin, but by not mentioning her the AP was able to do a media hit on Palin but still be able to claim they told the "truth" with the caption."(emphasis added for Media Matters bloggers.)That statement proved prescient, as Boehlert characterized the AP caption "accurate" even though AP had already run a correction.
By running the captioned "getting her hair done" photo of Palin with a two-person video crew seen prominently behind her, the AP created a meme that Palin was having her hair styled for the cameras while touring a cholera treatment facility.
AP did not have to use the words "hair stylist" or "hairdresser". The photo frame and caption did it for them.
USA Today picked up the AP's meme with an online article and photo published December 12 in the Entertainment section. USA Today rewrote the AP caption to include an extra dig at Palin:
"Husband Todd Palin looks on as his wife, reality TV star and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, gets her hair done during a visit to a cholera treatment center in Cabaret, Haiti, Dec. 11, 2010."
The photo led a brief item headlined Reality TV star, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin visits Haiti.
This paragraph from the brief USA Today article marked the third time Palin was dubbed a "reality TV star". USA Today also accused Palin of getting "prepped for the camera shots."
"USA TODAY's Lorena Blas here, with celebrity news this Sunday afternoon. The former GOP VP candidate provided access on her tour only to the Fox News cable network, reports the Associated Press, which added that the reality TV star mostly avoided crowds and other news media. However, AP was able to take some photos as she was being prepped for camera shots."
(For the record, Samaritan's Purse set the rules for media access on the trip, not Palin.)
Comments by "mschultz2k" following USA Today's article prior to publication of Free Republic's expose perfectly illustrated the effect of AP's photo and caption (bold face emphasis added for Media Matters readers):
"I find it odd that someone who is there to help the people is pimping (sic) before going on camera. It really isn't about her and how she looks..or is it? I suspect the true motivation behind this trip was not so much her Christian duty (considering how much time she spends perpetuating hate) and more so a photo op to make her look Presidential. Most people who go to Haiti to help out aren't getting hair and makeup before the cameras roll it's about the Haitians who need the help. The photo accompanying the story speaks volumes.After being called out on Twitter by Sarah Palin, the AP issued a correction and a weak explanation:"Opps..should read "primping" but maybe it was a Freudian slip seeing as how she's pimping out the Haitians to boost her image."
This takes the cake. Really? MT @amandacarpenter: AP flubs Palin got "her hair done" in Haiti. Bristol helping mom out. http://bit.ly/hPWgycabout 1 hour ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® Retweeted by 100+ people
SarahPalinUSA
"AP spokesman Paul Colford explained to The Cutline that it wasn't "immediately clear" that the person photographed next to Palin was her daughter. "Once we figured out it was Bristol Palin," he said, "we amended the caption accordingly.""AP photographer Dieu Nalio Chery was not kept away from Palin in Haiti. In fact, other photos by Chery were taken in close proximity to Palin. For AP to say they did not realize Bristol Palin was the one fixing her mother's hair stretches credulity.
And though they initially cheered the AP's hit on Palin, the Huffington Post was honest enough to at least acknowledge the photo was designed to give Palin bad press.
Notice of the AP's correction was published "Mon Dec 13, 12:09 pm ET". Four hours later, "December 13, 2010 4:39 pm ET", Media Matters' vomit sucker-upper Eric Boehlert proclaimed the AP innocent.
Now that's dedication.
Accuracy befitting Pravda c. 1967. The lamers in the lamestream media have been pared down to their sickest operatives now. There is no lie beyond their telling.
It is remarkable that within a week of Tiger Woods crashing his Escalade, the MSM mediots found every woman with whom Tiger had an affair in the past few years, with photos, text messages, recorded phone calls and other data.
The same mediots even knew his wife used a Wedge from Tiger’s golf bag to break the windows in his Escalade, and they knew which wedge.
Everyday, they gave America more updates on Tiger’s Sex-Rehab stay, his wife’s plans for divorce and of course the tournaments and dates he would play after his Rehab.
Obama has been in office for close to two years, and the same press mediots still can’t find any of his childhood friends or neighbors, or locate any of Obama’s college papers, grades or how this ‘poor’ lad paid for a Harvard Education.
Nor could they find which country issued his Visa to travel to Pakistan in the 1980’s.
They continue to ignore Obama’s connections with George $oreA$$, and Obama’s election funding from the phoney non profits controlled by George $oreA$$.
They have unsuccessful in finding Michelle Obama’s Princeton Thesis on racism.
Yet many of the public still trusts the same mediots and MSM to give them the whole truth each day, 24/7.
TRULY REMARKABLE!!!
Where’s the barf alert?
Hey.... give the current version of Russian TV a break! It is a viable alternative. Trouble is only the two coasts get a chance to see the product.
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Media Matters - run by a homo paid by George Soros
Huff Post - run by beard/ex-wife of a millionaire homo
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I didn’t know that the USA Today ran an despicable false piece as well....This is disgusting where the media continues to lie and present half truths
Quite true. Similar to the democrats in the House of Representatives.
The latest example of Media Matters' vomit fetish is their defense of the attempted smear of Sarah Palin during her humanitarian trip to Haiti last weekend by the Associated Press and others...
I was thinking more like flies on crap.
This is how the media operates. Most people only get one side of the story. The media is full bore on getting 51% to vote DemonRat so that their liberal politicians can take a big dump on 49% of the electorate, who are supposed to (in the words of Zero) “come along for the ride but sit in back”.
The Leftist MSM, The Leftists no matter whom are so afraid of Sarah Palin. They are as afraid of her as they were of Anita Bryant that they had to do everything they could to take her out.
Do YOU remember Anita?
Might be a bad analogy, but the Left, and the Leftist MSM went after Anita Bryant with everything they could muster as she fought the gay agenda.
Could the media and their little helper, Media Matters, be any more contemptible? What a bunch of weasels. Glad you guys nailed them on this.
Good points! Our vigilant watchdogs in the press are more like sleepy puppies when it comes to Obama.
“Like Dogs to Vomit, Media Matters Cleans Up Liberal Media Messes”
This is the HANDS DOWN best headline I’ve seen in a long time!
It tells the whole story by itself.
These leftist moonbats just didn’t get taken to the woodshed enough when they were youths.
Useless, welfare sucking, disposal trash all of them.
In all fairness,the title of the Free Republic article did contain the word "hairdresser".
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