See Today's CyberAlert Extra

1. NBC Blames Global Warming for European Heat Wave
It was inevitable. Whenever someplace in the world gets hot for a few days, sooner or later a network story will blame it on global warming. NBC's Patricia Sabga won the contest on Wednesday night when she warned that "scientists attribute the extreme temperatures to what's been described as a dome of hot air hovering over Europe, a summer weather pattern that may become the norm." Sean Seabrook, identified on screen as a "meteorologist," then asserted: "Scientists appreciate now that global warming is taking place and I think these occurrences of heat waves will become more frequent, so this may be a sign of things to come."

2. Time's Tumulty: "A Lot" in Dean's Record That's "Conservative"
In her Time magazine cover story this week, Karen Tumulty insisted that "Dean's record as Vermont Governor defies ideological labels." Appearing Wednesday morning on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, Tumulty similarly argued that "he is going to be difficult to sort of paint into any particular ideological corner," but she also contended: "There's a lot in his record that looks, you know, not only moderate, but even conservative."

3. Episcopal Battle: "Conservatives" Versus the "Inclusive"
As portrayed by the networks, the battle inside the Episcopal church is between "conservatives" and not liberals, but those interested in a more "inclusive" church. ABC anchor Elizabeth Vargas set up a story: "Some conservative Episcopalians say homosexuality is contrary to scripture and therefore totally unacceptable. But supporters of the decision call this a step toward a more open and inclusive church." The same insistence upon labeling only one side of the debate occurred Wednesday on the morning shows.

4. Reuters: "N. Korea Hails 100 Percent Poll Support for Leader"
Rivaling the public support Saddam Hussein earned in an election last fall, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il received 100 percent of the "vote" a few days ago, Reuters relayed in a dispatch which took the election seriously. "N. Korea Hails 100 Percent Poll Support for Leader," announced the headline over the August 4 story datelined from Seoul. The lead: "North Korea said on Monday that polls in which voters gave leader Kim Jong-il 100 percent support showed the communist state was 'firm as a rock' in the face of economic woes and isolation over its nuclear ambitions."

5. Schwarzenegger a "Social Democrat" Republican Hollywood Can Back
A Republican Hollywood liberals can accept. On Thursday's Good Morning America, actress Jamie Lee Curtis declared of Arnold Schwarzenegger the morning after he announced he's running in the recall election for Governor of California: "I think he will make a fantastic Governor." She soon revealed her rationale: "I actually believe he's really, at his heart, even though he pretends to be a Republican, I think he's a social Democrat at heart."

NBC Blames Global Warming for European
Heat Wave

     It was inevitable. Whenever someplace in the world gets hot for a few days, sooner or later a network story will blame it on global warming and not see it as just a normal temperature variation.

     NBC's Patricia Sabga won the contest on Wednesday night when she warned that "scientists attribute the extreme temperatures to what's been described as a dome of hot air hovering over Europe, a summer weather pattern that may become the norm." Sean Seabrook, identified on screen as a "meteorologist," then asserted: "Scientists appreciate now that global warming is taking place and I think these occurrences of heat waves will become more frequent, so this may be a sign of things to come."

     "Europe is burning, sweltering in one of the hottest summers in memory, temperatures topping 104 degrees from Lisbon to Berlin," Sabga reported on the August 6 NBC Nightly News in translating the European Celsius into Fahrenheit.

     Sabga soon maintained: "It's been more than a decade since Britain has experienced a heat wave this severe. Here in London, temperatures are running 20 degrees above normal. Scientists attribute the extreme temperatures to what's been described as a dome of hot air hovering over Europe, a summer weather pattern that may become the norm."
     Sean Seabrook, meteorologist: "Scientists appreciate now that global warming is taking place and I think these occurrences of heat waves will become more frequent, so this may be a sign of things to come."
     Sabga concluded: "With cooler temperatures not expected until early next week, learning to live with blistering heat may prove a long-term strategy."

     Of course, when a region is cooler than it usually is journalists do not see that as newsworthy evidence undermining global warming.

     "Shivering in the Surf" reads the headline over a Washington Post story on Thursday on a subject which has yet to generate any network coverage. The subhead: "Atlantic's Sudden Temperature Dive a Midsummer Mystery for Scientists." For the August 7 article: www.washingtonpost.com

     As anyone living in the Washington, DC area implicitly knows, the region was cooler in July than it is on average.

     The daily high temperatures in July this year for Washington, DC were lower than the record highs and the average highs.

     See the tables on this page: www.wusatv9.com

     And compare those temperatures to the average and record highs in this table which shows that the historic highs for July in the Washington, DC area on many days occurred decades ago, in years such as 1901, 1919, 1898, 1908 and the 1930s -- years before the industrialization liberals blame for global warming. See: www.wusatv9.com

Time's Tumulty: "A Lot" in Dean's Record
That's "Conservative"

     In her Time magazine cover story this week, Karen Tumulty insisted that "Dean's record as Vermont Governor defies ideological labels." Appearing Wednesday morning on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, Tumulty similarly argued that "he is going to be difficult to sort of paint into any particular ideological corner," but she also contended: "There's a lot in his record that looks, you know, not only moderate, but even conservative."

     Appearing from Chicago the morning after the AFL-CIO forum there with Democratic presidential candidates, Tumulty laid out her case on the August 6 Washington Journal, as taken down by MRC analyst Brad Wilmouth:
     "It's a very interesting record to look at, you know. He is being painted by his opponents as, you know, too far to the left, but the fact is if you look at his record as Governor, he got an 'A' rating from the National Rifle Association, he balanced the budget in Vermont, which is the only state in the Union that does not have a constitutional requirement that you balance it, but he balanced it anyway. He imposed work requirements on welfare recipients two years before Washington did. There's a lot in his record that looks, you know, not only moderate, but even conservative. He argues that his stance on Iraq is, you know, just is basically, you know, that and in itself is just his view of the world. He will point out, for instance, that he thinks we ought to have more troops in Afghanistan. So he is going to be, you know, if, he is going to be difficult to sort of paint into any particular ideological corner, but that war issue right now is, for a lot of people on the left and the right, a real touchstone issue."

     Not a very convincing case. What politician in a gun-owning state takes a liberal position on guns? And advocating higher spending and then hiking taxes to balance the budget does not make you a conservative.

     Can you imagine a major media outlet reporter ever ruminating about how "there's a lot in" George W. Bush's "record that looks, you know, not only moderate, but even liberal"? Indeed there is, from taking a liberal position on affirmative action to signing a huge farm subsidy bill to pushing for more federal spending on and control of local schools to advocating the creation of a massive new entitlement spending program, but to the media Bush is a solid conservative.
     Tumulty's story in the August 11 Time was accompanied by a piece by John Cloud who argued, as recounted in the August 4 CyberAlert, that "the truth" is that Dean "is a rock-ribbed budget hawk, a moderate on gays and guns, and a true lefty on only a few issues." Cloud insisted that "Dean, who has been compared so often to George McGovern and Ralph Nader, is far more like George W. Bush." Cloud's evidence: Dean's patrician upbringing in a Republican family who "belonged to the super-exclusive Maidstone golf club, which for decades had no minority or Jewish members."
    
     For Cloud's Time article in full: www.time.com

     For Tumulty's cover story article: www.time.com

Episcopal Battle: "Conservatives" Versus
the "Inclusive"

     As portrayed by the networks, the battle inside the Episcopal church is between "conservatives" and, not liberals, but those interested in a more "inclusive" church.

     Check out how ABC anchor Elizabeth Vargas set up a story on Wednesday's World News Tonight: "We're going to take A Closer Look tonight at the Episcopal church's decision to ordain its first openly gay bishop. It is an issue that has bitterly divided Episcopalians and caused people of other faiths to take stock of their own positions. Some conservative Episcopalians say homosexuality is contrary to scripture and therefore totally unacceptable. But supporters of the decision call this a step toward a more open and inclusive church."

     The same insistence upon labeling only one side of the debate occurred Wednesday on the morning shows, as noted by MRC analysts Jessica Anderson, Brian Boyd and Geoffrey Dickens:

     -- ABC's Good Morning America. Claire Shipman: "After weeks of lobbying and controversy, the Episcopal Church has elected its first openly gay bishop, and some conservatives are threatening to leave the church rather than accept the Reverend Gene Robinson. He was confirmed last night just hours after being cleared of sexual misconduct allegations."

     -- CBS's The Early Show. Cynthia Bowers: "The vote was close and as anticipated a group of conservative bishops walked out saying they can not abide by this decision."

     -- NBC's Today. Ann Curry: "We've got more now on last night's unprecedented vote approving the election of the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church. The historic vote, a first for any major Christian denomination came just hours after the Reverend Gene Robinson was cleared of last minute allegations of misconduct. Shockwaves from the vote are deeply dividing the Church with conservative, conservatives, rather, saying their grief is quote, 'too deep for words.' NBC's Jim Avila reports."

     Avila cautioned: "Robinson will be consecrated Bishop of New Hampshire in November. But the controversy began immediately. Conservative bishops threatening to leave the Church and appealing to the Mother Church of England."

     Curry once more: "In the news this morning, last night Reverend Gene Robinson was cleared of last minute allegations of misconduct and the Episcopal Church elected him its first openly gay bishop. But the vote now threatens to split the Church. Conservative members had threatened to leave the Church if Robinson was elected. Well earlier on Today, Matt asked Bishop-elect Gene Robinson about that rift.....But conservative bishops unhappy about last night's vote are asking the Archbishop of Canterbury to intervene."

     Curry again in another news update: "The Episcopal Church is at a crossroads this morning after the confirmation of the Church's first openly gay bishop. The Reverend Canon Gene Robinson. Conservative bishops who oppose the confirmation are now asking the Archbishop of Canterbury to intervene. Robinson was elected after being cleared of last minute allegations of sexual misconduct."

Reuters: "N. Korea Hails 100 Percent
Poll Support for Leader"

     Rivaling the public support Saddam Hussein earned in an "election" last fall, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il received 100 percent of the "vote" a few days ago, Reuters relayed in a dispatch which took the election seriously. "N. Korea Hails 100 Percent Poll Support for Leader," announced the headline over the August 4 story datelined from Seoul.

     An excerpt from the top of the story by Paul Eckert, as posted by Yahoo:

North Korea said on Monday that polls in which voters gave leader Kim Jong-il 100 percent support showed the communist state was "firm as a rock" in the face of economic woes and isolation over its nuclear ambitions.

The 61-year-old Kim was one of 687 deputies elected unopposed on Sunday for seats in North Korea's rubber-stamp legislature, the Supreme People's Assembly.

North Korea's official KCNA news agency quoted the Central Election Committee as saying turnout was 99.9 percent of registered voters and that 100 percent of the votes were cast for the sole candidates.

"This is an expression of all the voters' support and trust in the DPRK government and a manifestation of our army and people's steadfast will to consolidate the people's power as firm as a rock and accomplish the revolutionary cause," KCNA said.

DPRK stands for Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the official title of the country of 22 million Kim has ruled since inheriting power upon the death of his father, state founder Kim Il-sung in 1994.

The election of Kim in a military district was "an expression of the absolute support and trust of all the servicemen and the people in him," KCNA said in a separate report....

     END of Excerpt

     For the ludicrous story in full: story.news.yahoo.com

     At least Eckert referred to the "rubber-stamp legislature."

     Picking up on the Reuters story, James Taranto, author of OpinionJournal.com's "Best of the Web" column, recalled how "the anti-American 'news' service won't call Osama bin Laden a terrorist, at least without scare quotes. But it does think North Korea is a democracy."

     Taranto proposed a different rendition of the Reuters story, suggesting that "if Reuterville's denizens used scare quotes to reflect reality rather than to obscure it, here's how they might have written the preceding three paragraphs:

North Korea said on Monday that "polls" in which "voters" gave "leader" Kim Jong-il 100 percent "support" showed the communist state was "firm as a rock" in the face of economic woes and isolation over its nuclear ambitions.

The 61-year-old Kim was one of 687 deputies "elected" unopposed on Sunday for seats in North Korea's rubber-stamp "legislature," the Supreme People's Assembly.

North Korea's official KCNA "news" agency quoted the Central "Election" Committee as saying turnout was 99.9 percent of registered "voters" and that 100 percent of the "votes" were cast for the sole "candidates."

     END of mock story

     Taranto observed: "Incidentally, this dispatch is datelined Seoul. If North Korea is such a democracy, how come Reuters can't even get a correspondent inside the country?"

     For Taranto's daily "Best of the Web" reports: www.opinionjournal.com

Schwarzenegger a "Social Democrat" Republican
Hollywood Can Back

     A Republican Hollywood liberals can accept. On Thursday's Good Morning America, actress Jamie Lee Curtis declared of Arnold Schwarzenegger the morning after he announced he's running in the recall election for Governor of California: "I think he will make a fantastic Governor."

     She soon revealed her rationale: "I actually believe he's really, at his heart, even though he pretends to be a Republican, I think he's a social Democrat at heart."

     Curtis appeared during the 8am half hour on the August 7 GMA to plug her new movie, Freaky Friday, but Diane Sawyer first asked whether she would vote for Schwarzenegger, with whom she co-starred in the 1994 film, True Lies. Curtis responded, as taken down by MRC analyst Jessica Anderson:
     "I think he will make a fantastic Governor. I think he's a fantastic guy. Look at who he is, from where he came from, and what he's done with his life. Look at his family life, look at his business life, look at his heart. You know, nobody knows what this man does. I don't think he's ever really sought publicity for the inner city games that he's created. He travels the world on behalf of Special Olympics, and I mean for years and years now. I think he's going to absolutely put up what he says he's going to do, and I think what else does California need except somebody who's going to do what they say they're going to do. He's charismatic, he's smart, he's fiscally responsible, and I believe-"
     Sawyer, laughing: "I hope you get a Cabinet post!"
     Curtis exclaimed: "I actually believe he's really, at his heart, even though he pretends to be a Republican, I think he's a social Democrat at heart. I think he's going to be a fantastic Governor, and there you go, and I hope he's taking his family to see Freaky Friday this weekend, or else I'm going to have to flick him on the tip of his lovely nose."

     For a picture and bio of Curtis, see her page on the Internet Movie Database: us.imdb.com

     And for a look at True Lies: us.imdb.com

     Finally, a Republican for whom Hollywood liberals don't have disdain because he's a liberal one, but let's not forget about his wife. He's not as liberal her, and she's reporter for NBC News.

-- Brent Baker