Broadcast networks falsely suggested that Clark criticized McCain's service
All three network evening newscasts misrepresented retired Gen. Wesley Clark's comments about Sen. John McCain on Face The Nation, with none noting that Clark praised McCain as a "hero" for his Vietnam war service. ABC's David Wright asserted that McCain's experience as a POW made Clark's comments "especially provocative." CBS' Dean Reynolds falsely suggested that Clark had questioned McCain's patriotism and had "critici[zed]" McCain's "service, including five years as a POW." And NBC's Brian Williams falsely suggested that Clark had impugned McCain's "war record." Read More
NY Times' Zeleny uncritically repeated false charge that Clark "impugn[ed]" McCain's "heroism"
The New York Times uncritically repeated the false charge that, during his June 29 appearance on CBS' Face the Nation, Wesley Clark "impugn[ed] Mr. [John] McCain's heroism." In fact, Clark praised McCain as "a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the Armed Forces as a prisoner of war." Read More
Drudge, Lowry revived falsehood that Obama didn't vote to condemn MoveOn Petraeus ad
The Drudge Report and the National Review's Rich Lowry falsely claimed that Sen. Barack Obama didn't vote to condemn MoveOn.org's 2007 newspaper advertisement critical of Gen. David Petraeus. In fact, Obama did vote for an amendment by Sen. Barbara Boxer that condemned the ad, as well as other attacks on past and present members of the armed forces, as the USA Today blog post to which the Drudge Report linked points out. Read More
Media continue to falsely claim Clark criticized McCain's service
Several media reports falsely claimed that Wesley Clark criticized Sen. John McCain's military service during a June 29 appearance on CBS' Face the Nation, including CNN anchor John Roberts, who said that "Clark took a weekend hit at McCain, targeting his history as a war hero and his possible future as president." In fact, Clark praised McCain as "a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the Armed Forces as a prisoner of war." Read More
MSNBC's Barnicle misrepresented Obama's comments about gas tax holiday, overstated savings
On Hardball, Mike Barnicle said of Sen. Barack Obama's reaction to Sen. John McCain's proposal for a summer gas-tax holiday: "[P]oliticians have got to be very, very careful when they tell people living right at the margin, right at the edge, that $30 a week isn't a whole lot of money." But what Obama has said of McCain's proposal is that "[i]t would save you a total of about $28 for the entire year" -- not "$30 a week" -- and several analyses support Obama's claim. Read More
Media in a frenzy, but Clark's comment not extraordinary or unprecedented
The media frenzy that has followed Wesley Clark's June 29 comment on CBS' Face the Nation that Sen. John McCain's military heroism alone does not establish his qualification to be president is partially based on the false premise that the comment is in some way extraordinary or unusual. In fact, in 2004, numerous media figures argued that Sen. John Kerry's military record alone did not qualify him to be president. Read More
Print reports on Clark's comments didn't note that McCain camp's response included Swift Boat Vet Bud Day
July 1 reports by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Reuters noting that John McCain's campaign organized a "conference call" of supporters to respond to Gen. Wesley Clark's recent comments about McCain did not mention that among those supporters was Bud Day, a member of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, whose smears against Sen. John Kerry were criticized by McCain himself. Read More
Ignoring GOP filibuster, Politico falsely claimed Medicare bill needed 60 votes for passage
The Politico falsely claimed that "[a] Democratic bill that would have blocked a 10.6 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors fell just one vote short of the 60 it needed for passage Thursday." In fact, the vote in question was a cloture vote, which required a supermajority of 60 votes to overcome a Republican filibuster of a motion to proceed to consideration of the bill. The bill itself would have required a simple majority to pass. Read More
Savage repeatedly referred to Pelosi as Mussolini, called her "the Mussolini in a skirt"
On his radio show, Michael Savage repeatedly referred to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as Mussolini, at one point calling her "the Mussolini in a skirt." He later referred to her as "Nancy Pelosi Mussolini" and the "Mussolini-like woman of the day." Read More
Matthews: "They're the working-class white voters ... the regular folks"
On the June 30 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, host Chris Matthews teased an upcoming segment by saying: "Up next: They're the working-class white voters Hillary won and Barack didn't. Can Obama win over the regular folks against John McCain?" During the following segment, which he started by asking "who will win the working-class vote this election, Barack Obama or John McCain," Matthews said to Reihan Salam, associate editor of The Atlantic, "I want you to tell me how the Republican Party can win the working stiff, the regular person who makes a regular income." Read More
CBS Evening News aired portion of Floyd Brown's anti-Obama attack ad, failing to report Obama is not a Muslim
The CBS Evening News aired a clip of an attack ad against Sen. Barack Obama in which the narrator says, "Obama was enrolled in school as a Muslim while living in Indonesia." Nowhere did the report note that Obama is in fact not a Muslim but, rather, a practicing Christian. Read More
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