Monthly Archives: April 2011

WashPost: Obama/GOP Budget Cuts Are What the People Ordered

Posted on 04/11/2011 by Peter Hart

Washington Post reporter Dan Balz (4/10/11) presents the Obama/GOP budget deal asevidence that the White House wasmerelyrespondingto public opinion: Most important was showing the country that he could make Washington work. "Like any worthwhile agreement, both sides had to make … Continue reading →

Posted in Polling, Washington Post | Tagged | 97 Comments

NYT 'Obama to the Center' Headline Apparently Serious

Posted on 04/11/2011 by Peter Hart

This New York Times piece by Jeff Zeleny on the budget deal was actually headlined: President Adopts a Measured Course to Recapture the Middle Zeleny explained: President Obama opened the week by calling on Democrats to embrace his re-election campaign. … Continue reading →

Posted in Barack Obama, Economy, Election, New York Times | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The Missing Economic Context of Budget Impasse Reports

Posted on 04/08/2011 by Jim Naureckas

In coverage of the budget negotiations in Washington, which have largely revolved around how much money will be cut from the federal budget, it's rarely acknowledged that the standard economic assumption is that reducing government spending at a time of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, New York Times | Tagged | 12 Comments

NYT Calls for Protecting Libyan Civilians by Escalating War–Like in Fallujah

Posted on 04/08/2011 by Peter Hart

Afraid of NATO killing civilians in Libya? The New York Times editorial page (4/8/11) sees the way forwardby ramping up the war: There is a much better option: the American A-10 and AC-130 aircraft used earlier in the Libya fighting … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, Libya, New York Times | Tagged | 5 Comments

Paul Ryan, Serious Numbers Geek (Aside From His Fuzzy Numbers)

Posted on 04/08/2011 by Peter Hart

The uncritical coverage of Paul Ryan's budget plan continues.In the new issue of Time magazine,Michael Crowley and Jay Newton-Smalltell us that Ryan is "the new face of federal frugality": Just 41 years old, with jet black hair and a touch … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Healthcare, Time | Tagged , , , | 59 Comments

The Washington Post and Paul Ryan's Wonky Math

Posted on 04/06/2011 by Peter Hart

Dean Baker's Beat the Press is thebest Early Warning Media Mythbuster. It's simple: You read it every morning before you read the papers (he is up before you are, trust me) and you're well prepared to deal with the economic … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Healthcare, Washington Post | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Can I Skip the 2012 Election?

Posted on 04/06/2011 by Peter Hart

A Drudge Report headline today (4/6/11) representsthe tip of the rotten iceberg: RACE BASE: Obama looks to Rev. Al Sharpton for help in re-election…

Posted in Barack Obama, Election, Internet | Tagged , | 3 Comments

NPR: And Now, a Word From Our Sponsor

Posted on 04/06/2011 by Julie Hollar

NPR Morning Edition (4/5/11) keeps its audience informed about important business news (that just so happens to be about an image-burnishing campaign by the company whose heiress gave them a 9-figure bequest a few years ago): RENEE MONTAGNE: And our … Continue reading →

Posted in NPR | Tagged , , , | 28 Comments

Is There Really a Goldstone 'Retraction'?

Posted on 04/05/2011 by Peter Hart

The big Israel-Palestine news of the weekis Richard Goldstone's op-ed in the Washington Post on Sunday (4/3/11). The short version you pick up from the media is that Goldstone has "retracted"his UN-sponsored report on war crimes during Israel's Operation Cast … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel/Palestine, Washington Post | Tagged , | 28 Comments

Not Tea Party? Not News

Posted on 04/05/2011 by Peter Hart

Protests were held across the country yesterday to pay tribute to the legacy of Martin Luther King and to push back againstattacks on workers' rights. AlexSeitz-Wald at Think Progress provides thistake onone D.C. rally: In Washington, D.C., today, an estimated … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged | 40 Comments

The Bob Woodward School of Journalism

Posted on 04/05/2011 by Peter Hart

OnSunday's episode of NBC's Chris Matthews Show (4/3/11), the panelactually talked about criticism of the mainstream media, with some citing the media's Iraq War debacle as a major factor inthe riseof blogosphere-based media criticism. The discussion got somewhat confused along … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism, NBC, Politics | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Maddow Wonders Why Libyan Journalists Aren't Being Targeted

Posted on 04/05/2011 by Jim Naureckas

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow had a discussion last week (3/31/11) about the U.S. role in the Libya War with Col. Jack Jacobs, an MSNBC military consultant. Jacobs described the U.S. military's "ability to jam communications that take place between units or … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, Libya, MSNBC | Tagged , | 16 Comments

Afghan War Is Over (If You Want It)

Posted on 04/04/2011 by Peter Hart

The Los Angeles Times' Michael Muskal explains Obama's 2012 campaign: Running for reelection is different than running for the first time because the incumbent has a record that voters can evaluate. Obama will cite healthcare insurance overhaul, his administration's response … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Barack Obama, L.A. Times | Tagged | 9 Comments

LAT Finds Anonymous White House Truth-Teller

Posted on 04/04/2011 by Peter Hart

Abrave, truth-telling whistleblower has emerged to tell the White House's side of the story in the Libya War. The inside scoop appears in a Los Angeles Times article by Christi Parsons(4/2/11) headlined, "For Obama, a Carefully Calculated Delay on Justifying … Continue reading →

Posted in Barack Obama, L.A. Times, Libya | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Only Hotheads Talk About the Effects of Budget Cuts

Posted on 04/04/2011 by Peter Hart

Corporate media's preference for"centrism" canoftentranslate intoreporting that casts two sides of a debate as equally belligerent or unwilling to compromise. ABC reporter Jonathan Karl's report yesterday on This Week (4/3/11) offers a perfect example of the absurdity of this worldview. … Continue reading →

Posted in ABC, Economy, Healthcare, Media Criticism | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments