On Fox, Luntz asked debate focus group of Clinton and Obama: "[H]ow many of you want them to make love to each other?"
On Hannity & Colmes, while conducting a focus group analysis of the February 21 Democratic presidential debate, Frank Luntz asked the focus group participants: "How many of you want [Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton] to really argue? Raise your hands." Luntz then asked: "And how many of you want them to make love to each other?" Read More
O'Reilly aired clip of Bennett defending McCain without disclosing he's McCain's attorney
While discussing a New York Times article on Sen. John McCain's relationship with a lobbyist, Bill O'Reilly aired a clip of McCain's attorney Robert Bennett defending McCain against the article's allegations, but did not disclose that Bennett represents McCain and was reportedly hired for the explicit purpose of dealing with the controversy. Read More
Wall Street Journal, CNN's Cafferty latest to apply "straight talk" label to McCain despite his growing list of falsehoods
A Wall Street Journal article by Jonathan Kaufman stated that Sen. John McCain's "war record and straight-talking approach could make him appealing to many working-class men," an assertion repeated by Jack Cafferty on The Situation Room. Kaufman and Cafferty join a long list of media outlets that have adopted McCain's self-characterization as a "straight-talker," despite repeated falsehoods by McCain, as well as his stark inconsistencies on numerous issues, including the Iraq war, immigration, and tax cuts. Read More
Brewer and Stoddard failed to note FCC chairman's criticism of McCain's letter for Paxson
On MSNBC Live, discussing the New York Times article on Sen. John McCain's ties to lobbyist Vicki Iseman, Contessa Brewer asked A.B. Stoddard, "[I]n Washington, is it unusual if you get a letter from a constituent or a lobbyist on a matter, and you're concerned about it, that you would move on it?" Brewer was referring to the Times' reporting that Iseman "asked Mr. McCain's staff to send a letter to the [Federal Communications] commission to help Paxson [Communications], now Ion Media Networks." Stoddard replied, "Senators and members of Congress act all the time on behalf of concerns from their constituents, as well as lobbyists, if they think that they are valid points to make, and they're acting on their own beliefs." But neither Brewer nor Stoddard noted that then-FCC chairman William E. Kennard expressed concern about McCain's letter, calling it "highly unusual." Read More
Armstrong Williams: NY Times story on McCain "causes those of us in the media to lose credibility"
On MSNBC Live, Armstrong Williams said of the New York Times article on Sen. John McCain's relationship with a telecommunications lobbyist, "I think what it does more than anything else, it causes those of us in the media to lose credibility. People begin to question what we print, whether there's any truth to it, whether we do our research." But Williams himself has been embroiled in controversy that undermined his "credibility," reportedly receiving $240,000 from the Bush administration to promote President Bush's No Child Left Behind legislation. Read More
Echoing McCain, Lowry misrepresented Obama's comments on Pakistan
On Hannity & Colmes, National Review's Rich Lowry aired a clip of Sen. John McCain falsely asserting that Sen. Barack Obama said he's "going to bomb a country that is a sovereign nation," a distortion of Obama's statement about Pakistan that McCain has repeatedly made. Lowry then echoed McCain by saying that Obama "detailed his willingness to bomb suspected terrorist cells in Pakistan." In fact, Obama said: "If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and [Pakistani] President [Pervez] Musharraf won't act, we will." Read More
Bloomberg quoted McCain's reaction to Renzi indictment, didn't note McCain named Renzi campaign co-chairman
A Bloomberg News article about the indictment of Rep. Rick Renzi reported Sen. John McCain's reaction to the indictment, but did not report that McCain named Renzi a co-chairman of his presidential campaign in Arizona, months after it was reported that Renzi was under federal investigation.
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Fox's Rosen on crowd cheering Obama blowing his nose: "That kind of spontaneous affection Chairman Mao only dreamed of"
Responding to a video clip of Sen. Barack Obama saying, "I'm going to blow my nose here for a second," followed by the audience cheering, Fox News Washington correspondent James Rosen then said, "That kind of spontaneous affection Chairman Mao only dreamed of." Rosen joined other media figures associating Democratic presidential candidates with communists. Read More
MSNBC Live featured "facial decoding expert" identifying "almost a crocodile smile" on Clinton
On MSNBC Live, author Dan Hill claimed that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is "often showing what I would call almost a 'crocodile smile.' " NBC News' Peter Alexander replied: " 'Crocodile smile,' we will add that to our lexicon. Dan Hill, a facial decoding expert." Hill also claimed that during the February 21 Democratic presidential debate Clinton "had a true smile, which for Hillary Clinton is about as rare as a lunar eclipse, I have to tell you." Read More
During CNN debate, John King falsely claimed Obama "refused" to disclose earmarks
During the February 21 Democratic presidential debate, CNN's John King cited a report stating that Sen. Barack Obama was "responsible for $91 million in earmarks" in the 2008 fiscal year, and asked Obama: "And you have refused to say where the money went, what it's for. Why?" In fact, Obama disclosed his "earmarks" for the 2008 fiscal year in a June 2007 press release. Read More
Savage on Obama: "We have a right to know if he's a so-called friendly Muslim or one who aspires to more radical teachings"
On his radio show, Michael Savage falsely asserted that Sen. Barack Obama is a Muslim, claiming that "[w]e have a right to know if he's a so-called friendly Muslim or one who aspires to more radical teachings." The Obama campaign website states that Obama "has never been a Muslim, was not raised a Muslim, and is a committed Christian who attends the United Church of Christ." Read More
Following other media outlets, NBC, CBS both uncritically air McCain's false, misleading attacks on Obama
Both the CBS Evening News and NBC's Nightly News repeated accusations by Sen. John McCain regarding Sen. Barack Obama's statements on Pakistan and his commitment to use public financing in the general election, without offering a response from Obama or assessing the accuracy of McCain's allegations. Read More
CNN's Bash falsely claimed McCain filled out public financing questionnaire
During a report on Sen. John McCain's criticism of Sen. Barack Obama for allegedly "reneging on a pledge" to accept public financing that would limit his campaign spending in the 2008 general election, CNN's Dana Bash falsely claimed that McCain filled out a "survey from a watchdog group" and that he and Obama "both said yes, they'd accept public financing." But according to the Midwest Democracy Network, McCain has "yet to answer a single question from the questionnaire." Read More
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