Network Vet: “Dukakis Was No Liberal and Neither Was Mondale”

Media Research Center ^ | August 12, 2003 | Brent Baker

[PJ-Comix]

Wonder how reporters, as cited in recent CyberAlerts, can describe Howard Dean as a “fiscal conservative,” a “centrist” and even claim “there’s a lot in his record that looks...not only moderate, but even conservative”? Well, they probably see the world through the same very liberal prism as former NBC and CNN political reporter Ken Bode who, on the Chris Matthews Show over the weekend, seriously maintained that neither Walter Mondale nor Michael Dukakis were liberals.

     I’m not kidding.

     Bode generously conceded that George McGovern “was a liberal,” but then insisted: “Dukakis was no liberal and neither was Mondale. Both of them had several people to the left in those primaries. It was what the Republicans did to them once they got the nomination that made them seem to be liberals in both cases.”

     By that reasoning, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bob Dole and George W. Bush cannot be considered conservative since they had people to their right in their primaries. But you’ll never hear Bode or any other journalist suggest any such thing though, compared to Alan Keyes, George W. Bush is not conservative.

     Bode is very experienced political reporting veteran whose way of seeing the world probably matches much of the Washington press corps. Before joining NBC News in the 1980s, Bode worked for the 1976 presidential campaign of the liberal Morris Udall, though he’d probably claim Udall was a just a misunderstood moderate. By the early 1990s he’d jumped to CNN and then he put in a stint as moderator of PBS’s Washington Week in Review. Until fairly recently, he served as Dean of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. He is now a Distinguished Professor of Journalism at DePauw University in Indiana.

     MRC analyst Geoffrey Dickens took down Bode’s ideological assessment as expressed on the August 10 Chris Matthews Show, a weekend program carried by NBC-owned stations and otherwise syndicated in cities without an NBC O&O.

     Matthews set up Bode in a discussion of the Dean campaign: “Let me go to Ken. You say, Ken, you know the McGovern campaign, an upstart from out West, but a man of the left. Certainly Jimmy Carter, a man of the, a bit of the right or center. He beat the pack and then Gary Hart, another outsider. What’s this guy look like? He’s an outsider, is he gonna win?”
     Bode argued: “Well the, the rap, the rap on Dean is that he’s like Dukakis and Mondale and McGovern. Well McGovern was a liberal but we had an issue and that was the war. Dukakis was no liberal and neither was Mondale. Both of them had several people to the left in those primaries. It was what the Republicans did to them once they got the nomination that made them seem to be liberals in both cases. Now Dean, when you examine his record, is gonna come off to be a far more moderate person than he is, appears now because right now his issue is the war, it’s Bush, it’s manipulation of intelligence and, and he’s very strong and that’s moving him.”

     DePauw’s announcement, about Bode joining their faculty, includes a photo of him: www.depauw.edu

     The MRC’s 1996 booklet, “Team Clinton: The Starting Line-Up of the Pro-Clinton Press Corps,” featured a page on Bode. See: www.mediaresearch.org

     Bode’s personal liberalness regularly came through in his coverage. In a February 13, 1992 story for CNN this is what Bode recalled about the 1988 presidential race:
     "David Duke’s exploitation of white working-class fears about blacks echoes a theme from the 1988 election. Then the issue was crime. This is the Maryland State Penitentiary. Inside resides the most politically notorious convict in America...William Horton, Jr., the focal point of a national campaign designed to exploit white fear of black crime." .

     Back in 1988, during NBC’s prime time coverage of the Republican Convention, this was what most concerned Bode about then-Vice President Bush’s pick of Dan Quayle for a running mate:
     "But last night, the first decision that he made...He put a Senator on the ticket who doesn’t have a great civil rights record, who voted against the civil rights bill and voted to sustain a veto on the civil rights bill."

[PJ-Comix]

Liberal reporters, such as Bode, are unwilling to label liberals as liberals. And Walter Mondale was the very embodiment of a liberal.

[.cnI redruM]

I think that only considering Bode liberal is well, rather liberal of you.

[gedeon3]

if my aunt had balls, she'd be my uncle.

[OldFriend]

Bush's manipulations of the intelligence????????????????

No bias there, none at all.

[lepton]

Inside resides the most politically notorious convict in America...William Horton, Jr., the focal point of a national campaign designed to exploit white fear of black crime." .

National campaign?

[foreverfree]

Back in 1988, during NBC’s prime time coverage of the Republican Convention, this was what most concerned Bode about then-Vice President Bush’s pick of Dan Quayle for a running mate: "But last night, the first decision that he made...He put a Senator on the ticket who doesn’t have a great civil rights record, who voted against the civil rights bill and voted to sustain a veto on the civil rights bill."

As in any article, whatever the slant, what's omitted is sometimes as interesting as what isn't reported. To which "civil rights bill" did Bode refer in '88?

foreverfree

[foreverfree]

what's omitted is sometimes as interesting as what isn't reported.

Change reported to omitted. My bad.

foreverfree

[Timesink]

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[Timesink]

Until fairly recently, he served as Dean of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.

Where he was not at all liked.

[Uncle Miltie]

“Dukakis was no liberal and neither was Mondale."

Thanks for the laugh!

[squidly]

Bode isn't all that different from the freepers who say Dubya isn't conservative.

[longtermmemmory]

Liberal-left (or regressives)

have to LIE about who they are...

It comes from Mein Kamf, a lie which is big enough will be believed. Thus the LIE that "Mondale is not a liberal" is such a collosal lie that it would be believed. It is simple and concise.

This is no different than any other revisionist leftist drivel. Journalists have a DUTY to call leftist on this. Any journalist, ANY JOURNALIST, who does not is in colusion.

[cyncooper]

Matthews set up Bode in a discussion of the Dean campaign: “Let me go to Ken. You say, Ken, you know the McGovern campaign, an upstart from out West, but a man of the left. Certainly Jimmy Carter, a man of the, a bit of the right or center.

What the ...?

This on top of Arianna saying "everyone" knows Davis is being recalled because he's a conservative.

Who came up with this latest craze to call liberals conservative.

I see Matthews is off this week, maybe carted off to a nice quiet place.

[Graybeard58]

"I see Matthews is off this week, maybe carted off to a nice quiet place".


I got a nice laugh when I heard Oreiley say that his show that repeats at 3AM for the SECOND time beats Matthews in the ratings.

[goldstategop]

The press corps is 90% Democrat and liberal. They label non-liberals "conservatives" since to their way of thinking, no decent and reasonable-minded person could be one. Their insularity accounts for why they can perceive fellow liberals like Mondull and Dukecanned as misunderstood moderates. Its the mean Republicans fault for exposing these characters. But I don't understand: if liberalism is such a great philosophy and you're proud to be a liberal, why act like its politically radioactive and you have to hide who you are? The American people thought Mondull and Dukecanned were liberals. Ken Bode disagrees with their judgment. Its nice to know after a decade the more that's changed, the more its remained the same. And liberals still won't step out of the closet.

[OldFriend]

Everyone on the left is truly insane and they hope WE all have memory loss.

[ovrtaxt]

They're banking on the percentage of neophytes out there who are uninformed and gullible enough to believe this crap.

[brownie]

It's funny to me that even liberals think that being a liberal is bad, and will lie about being liberal to be elected. If you are afraid to tell someone what you are, what you believe, maybe there is something wrong with what you believe. Therefore, these people's fear to be labled liberal, should tell them something about their beliefs.

[PJ-Comix]

Who came up with this latest craze to call liberals conservative.

The same ones who started labeling the hard line commies as "conservative" when they became unfashionable with the Left here.

[PJ-Comix]

It's funny to me that even liberals think that being a liberal is bad, and will lie about being liberal to be elected.

The codewords now that they use for "liberals" are either "progessive" or "populist." And often they just flat out lie and call liberals "conservatives" as is often done now in the case of Howard Dean.