Media Matters Daily Summary 05-04-10

EXCLUSIVE: George Will's wind energy claims are for the birds
Continuing his pattern of pushing environmental misinformation, Washington Post columnist George Will downplayed the potential long-term impact of the oil spill on bird populations and the environment in general, saying on ABC's This Week that "wind farms kill a lot more birds daily than are probably going to be killed in this oil spill." In fact, the number of birds killed by wind farms is relatively small compared to other causes. Read More

Despite history of extreme rhetoric, Fox & Friends again turns to Scheuer for terrorism commentary
Fox & Friends hosted Michael Scheuer for two segments to comment on the attempted bombing in Times Square, during which he repeatedly attacked President Obama. Scheuer has a history of inflammatory comments, including his statement that "[t]he only chance we have as a country" is for Osama bin Laden to "detonate a major weapon."
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Wall Street Journal falsely claims "unions get a pass" from campaign finance proposal
In a May 3 editorial, The Wall Street Journal falsely claimed that "unions get a pass from new campaign finance disclosure rules" and that "this legislation is not about muzzling spenders generally so much as specific spenders who don't always salute the Democratic agenda." In fact, as Republican Rep. Mike Castle has stated, "corporations, unions, and issue groups alike" are subject to new disclosure rules under the legislation. Read More

Kilmeade falsely accuses Obama of neglecting fight against terrorism
On Fox & Friends, co-host Brian Kilmeade falsely suggested that President Obama isn't serious about fighting terrorism because Obama is "reaching out" to the Muslim world, and because Obama has said that America is not at war with Islam. In fact, the Obama administration has increased resources dedicated to fighting extremists abroad and has achieved significant counterterrorism successes -- often by working in cooperation with Islamic countries.
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Fox revives Christmas bomber Miranda misinformation
Discussing the Times Square bombing suspect on Fox & Friends, Steve Doocy and Byron York rehashed discredited claims that reading the Christmas Day bomber suspect, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, his Miranda rights compromised the government's ability to obtain information from him. In fact, officials have stated that Abdulmutallab provided valuable intelligence both before and after he was Mirandized. Read More

"Drill more": Fox News figures respond to environmental catastrophe by calling for more drilling
In the wake of the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, several Fox News hosts and contributors have responded by calling for a continuation -- and in some instances, an expansion -- of offshore drilling. Read More

Right-wing blog falsely claims alleged NYC bomber naturalized under Obama's "open door policy"
Right-wing blog RightPundits falsely claimed that Faisal Shahzad, arrested as a suspect in the failed attempt to bomb Times Square, was "recently naturalized as a U.S. citizen under the Obama administration's lenient open door policy." In fact, Shahzad reportedly received his student and work visas under previous administrations and was naturalized after marrying an American citizen. Read More