Monthly Archives: February 2009

George Will: Bringing You Climate Disinformation Since 1992

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Steve Rendall

George Will's history of misquoting data to distort the climate change debate goes back nearly two decades–that we know of. As Extra! reported in 2003, in 1992Will trashed Al Gore (Washington Post, 9/3/92) for being "cavalier with the truth" in … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

David Broder Goes to the Mat for Bipartisanship

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Jim Naureckas

With left-of-center columnists critiquing the Beltway obsession with bipartisanship even in outlets like the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post, it's no wonder that David Broder is upset (Washington Post, 2/19/09). He calls the idea that Obama should stop worrying … Continue reading →

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NYT Corp. Ignores Solution Costing Corps.

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

While the U.S. economy's current ills have proven "that the people who run Citigroup, J.P. Morgan, Wells and other major financial institutions may not be the sharpest knives in the drawer," Dean Baker (Beat the Press, 2/18/09) wants to know, … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Only English Gaza News Shut Out of U.S. Cable

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Even though "Al Jazeera English is also on the cusp of a carriage deal in Canada," Broadcasting & Cable's Marisa Guthrie reports (2/18/09) that the channel has "had little luck getting picked up by U.S. cable and satellite providers." As … Continue reading →

Posted in International | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

NPR's 'History Scrub' of U.S. Fault in Afghanistan

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

"A rather major problem with nearly all of NPR's reporting" has been identified by NPR Check blogger Mytwords (2/18/09) and named the "history scrub." The definition: "If the essential background history to a story reflects poorly on the actions of … Continue reading →

Posted in International | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Bipartisanship Amid 'the Charred Ruins of American Prosperity'

Posted on 02/19/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Calling it "obvious" that "promises to get beyond partisanship are the most perfunctory sort of campaign rhetoric, almost as empty as the partisanship itself," the latest from Thomas Frank (Wall Street Journal, 2/18/09) explains the corporate media's fetish for bipartisanship: … Continue reading →

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Noam Chomsky Excavates the George Will Memory Hole

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

In a blog post about how it must have been "So Much Nicer To Be George Will Before The Internet" (2/17/09), A Tiny Revolution's Jonathan Schwarz looks back over how "on Sunday George Will made things up so he can … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, International, Media Criticism | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

On the 'Complexity and Dangers' of Official Sources

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Journalist, author and Guantánamo prisoner advocate Andy Worthington gives the lie (Future of Freedom Foundation, 2/16/09) to Washington Post reporters' exclamations over "'the complexity and dangers of the issue' of reviewing the prisoners' cases" after Obama's promise to close the … Continue reading →

Posted in International, Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The Media's Real Problem: Media Critics!

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Peter Hart

ANew Republic editorial (3/4/09)about the decline of the mainstream media points a finger squarely at media critics: The master narratives of both the right and the left have come to include the same villain: the hypocritical, biased elite media. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged | 2 Comments

Who's 'More of an Advocate Than the Corporate Press'?

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

In a discussion with Jessica Newman of Campus Progress (2/17/09), Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman gives her motivations for entering journalism: "I just always saw it as a way to pursue issues of social justice, to hold those in power accountable, … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Stimulus Law Requires Neutrality for (Some of) Net

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Free Press has some good news (2/17/09) about the "$7.2 billion to expand broadband access" contained in President Obama's new American Reinvestment and Recovery Act: The law attaches open Internet conditions to broadband funds and directs the Federal Communications Commission … Continue reading →

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Action Alert: George Will's Climate Change Baloney

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Jim Naureckas

In the wake of a George Will column (Washington Post, 2/15/08) attempting to refute the reality of climate change with a string of inaccurate claims, FAIR has an action alert calling on media activists to write to the Washington Post … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

USA Today: Obama's War, No Critics Allowed

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Peter Hart

USA Today's "Obama's War" cover story today (2/18/09) is long by that paper's usual standards, but can't seem to find any space for critics of the plan to send 17,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. Quoted in the piece: –Barack Obama … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , | 3 Comments

NY Times Amplifies Pentagon's Budget Worries

Posted on 02/18/2009 by Peter Hart

Today's New York Times features a piece by Thom Shanker thatdwells onsuspected budget cuts at thePentagon. As theheadline tells us,"After Stimulus Package, Pentagon Officials Are Preparing to Pare Back." The piece gives little reason to believe that there are any … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Support Wanes for Caricature of Fairness Doctrine

Posted on 02/17/2009 by Jim Naureckas

Politico reported (2/16/09) that a new poll shows that support for the Fairness Doctrine has dropped. Unfortunately, the policy described in the poll question bears no relationship to the Fairness Doctrine as it actually existed. The Rasmussen polling firm asked … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged , | 4 Comments