Monthly Archives: October 2011

Up Is Down, Down Is Up: Bill O'Reilly Explains OWS

Posted on 10/31/2011 by Peter Hart

On his Friday night show, Bill O'Reilly took his viewers to a magical place–one where the right-wing Koch brothers have no connection to the Tea Party movement, while Occupy Wall Street is a secret project directed and financed by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Fox News, Media Criticism, protest | Tagged , , , , , , , | 39 Comments

The Nonconspiratorial Worldview of Michael Gordon

Posted on 10/28/2011 by Peter Hart

In Wednesday's New York Times (10/26/11), Michael Gordon wrote a piece headlined "Papers From Iraqi Archive Reveal Conspiratorial Mind-Set of Hussein," about some Iraqi archives that give an inside-the-bubble picture of Saddam Hussein's rule. Not surprisingly, Hussein comes off as … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, New York Times | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

Occupy Charlie Rose!

Posted on 10/28/2011 by Peter Hart

With the bad news we've been talking about on the public broadcasting front, it's worth pointing out a bright spot: On Monday (10/24/11), Charlie Rose featured a discussion of Occupy Wall Street with Chris Hedges and Amy Goodman. Goodman made … Continue reading →

Posted in PBS, protest | Tagged , , , , | 24 Comments

NYT: Trade Deals Are Big Job Creators

Posted on 10/28/2011 by Peter Hart

A New York Times story today (10/28/11) by Jennifer Steinhauer on the state of bipartisanship in Washington noted: Outside of a few recent flashes of light–the passage of three trade bills this month, and an agreement on patent reform–there have … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, New York Times, Trade | Tagged , , | 13 Comments

Iraq, Finally Learning to Ride Its Bike

Posted on 10/26/2011 by Peter Hart

Richard Engel on NBC Nightly News (10/21/11), speaking about the end of the Iraq War: The training wheels off, Iraq will have to succeed or fail without American troops on the ground to guide the way. That's quite a metaphor–invading … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, Media Criticism, Polling, War/Military | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

PBS Makes Time for the One Percent

Posted on 10/26/2011 by Peter Hart

Sending a letter to PBS NewsHour in response to their pro-inequality segment? Leave a copy of your letter in the comments section below.

Posted in Media Criticism | 55 Comments

NYT Misses News in New NYT Poll

Posted on 10/26/2011 by Peter Hart

The New York Times has a fascinating new poll out today (10/26/11); too bad the paper doesn't emphasize the most newsworthy findings. The headline is: New Poll Finds a Deep Distrust of Government That's based on the poll's finding that … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, New York Times, Polling, Taxes | 14 Comments

A Tax Plan Favoring the Wealthy? That Would Never Fly

Posted on 10/26/2011 by Peter Hart

When he's not sharing his thoughts about Barack Obama's birth certificate, Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry is apparently unveiling a tax plan. It's a flat tax, with a few other details explained by the Washington Post (10/26/11): Perry also would … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, Taxes, Washington Post | Tagged , | 15 Comments

Occupy Oakland Crackdown: Tear Gas, Rubber Bullets…and Cats

Posted on 10/26/2011 by Peter Hart

Last night by many reports the police crackdown on the Occupy Oakland encampment was severe: Tear gas and flash-bang grenades were used to disperse a crowd trying to retake the park. Reading about the events in the nation's capital, though, … Continue reading →

Posted in AP, protest, Washington Post | Tagged , | 36 Comments

ABC to Affiliates: Don't Interview That Movie Star–Yet!

Posted on 10/25/2011 by Peter Hart

No matter where you live, local TV newscasts tend to be pretty awful: a mash-up of crime, spectacle and celebrity–along with sports and weather. According to an item in the Hollywood Reporter, though, ABC has told its local affiliates not … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Richard Cohen: OWS Isn't Anti-Semitic–Just Clueless, Repugnant

Posted on 10/25/2011 by Peter Hart

Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen (10/24/11), tipped off by at least one of his Post colleagues, decided to pay a visit to Liberty Plaza to see the festival of anti-Semitism firsthand. Lo and behold, he found none: Reckless Jew that … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism, protest, Washington Post | Tagged , , | 42 Comments

Meet the Press Panel: From GE to Morgan Stanley

Posted on 10/25/2011 by Peter Hart

There's an old joke about how the pundit spectrum in corporate media debates goes from GE all the way to GM. On Sunday's Meet the Press, viewers got a chance to see that joke come to life. On the panel … Continue reading →

Posted in NBC, Politics | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

Conservative Pundit Thinks Listeners Deserve Someone More Conservative

Posted on 10/21/2011 by Peter Hart

Conservative writer/commentator David Frum–the man responsible for writing the Bush "axis of evil" speech–has been doing left/right debates for the public radio show Marketplace. Until now, that is. This week (Marketplace, 10/12/11), Frum came to the conclusion that while he's … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, radio | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

John McCain, Libya Expert

Posted on 10/21/2011 by Peter Hart

As one would expect, corporate media reacted to the developments in Libya by turning to one of their favorite sources: Republican Sen. John McCain. He was on CNN this morning (and last night as well), and odds are that he'll … Continue reading →

Posted in CNN, Libya, War/Military | Tagged | 12 Comments

NPR, Lisa Simeone and Biased Opera Reporting

Posted on 10/20/2011 by Peter Hart

There's quite a controversy brewing over freelance radio host Lisa Simeone for her participation with an activist group occupying a park in Washington, D.C. It's a worth a look at how this unfolded– especially since it appears to have cost … Continue reading →

Posted in NPR | Tagged , , | 24 Comments