MRC in the News -- August 2003 -- Media Research Center

August 2003

Many media outlets — radio, television and print — regularly feature MRC guests on their programs, quote MRC spokespeople in their articles, and cite MRC research in their stories. Below is a sampling of MRC making news in the news media. Links are provided when available, and were active when posted.

RushLimbaugh.com
Rush's Total Stack of Stuff...
August 20, 2003

Read the wide array of articles that the EIB staff puts together and that El Rushbo reads for show prep. Note: some websites change or deactivate stories after we link them here. Plus, news outlet name and cover pictures link to homepages.

Media Research Center
(Blackout a "Metaphor" for Inadequate Government Regulation)
(Schieffer Suggests Companies, Not Customers, Pay for Grid Fixes)
(ABC's GMA Obsesses Over Possibility Terrorism Behind Blackout)
(Stewing Over Too Low CA Taxes, Applauding Buffett for Saying So)

More on these topics here, here, here and here.

The Washington Times
"Inside Politics," by Greg Pierce
August 19, 2003

Econ 101
"CBS's Bob Schieffer must have flunked Econ 101, or never taken such a course," the Media Research Center's Brent Baker writes at www.mediaresearch.org.

"When, on Sunday's 'Face the Nation,' Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham suggested electricity company customers will need to pay for upgrades to the grid system, an incredulous Schieffer pleaded, 'Wait, wait, wait. Let's back up. So you're saying the customers are going to have to pay for this?' Schieffer recommended another entity pay for it: 'Aren't the companies going to have to bear some of this cost?'

"As if companies, even regulated electrical-utility monopolies, are somehow independent money machines, which don't pass on costs to their customers," Mr. Baker observed.

"Maybe Schieffer was just stunned by the idea that the federal government would not impose a program to use taxpayer money to pay for any such upgrade project."

See column | More on this topic

National Journal
The Hotline
White House 2004; Bush '04: What Happened to the Good Ole Days? Arnold Pushed WMD Off the Frontpage
August 13, 2003

The CA recall and Arnold Schwarzenegger's (R) "candidacy have been a boon" to Bush, "pushing questions about Iraq and stories about the Democratic presidential campaign off the front pages and out of the nightly newscasts." Center for Media and Public Affairs media dir. Matthew Felling: "Arnold has become the weapon of mass destruction, taking the heat off the White House." USC prof. Martin Kaplan: "Karl Rove must be the luckiest man on the planet. The phrase 'yellowcake uranium' has completely disappeared from the public lexicon." Tim Graham, dir. of media analysis at the Media Research Center, "said the story appears as if it's here to stay, barring a huge news event such as another terrorist attack or natural disaster, because there is a finite end-point in the recall election, but the election itself is so unpredictable" (Dinan, Washington Times, 8/13).

Washington Times
August 13, 2003
"Schwarzenegger's run 'taking heat off' Bush," by Stepehn Dinan

...Tim Graham, director of media analysis at the Media Research Center, said the story easily tops other past California election stories. "Other than national races, and especially the Florida [2000 election-recount] debacle, this may be the biggest state election in terms of cable news," Mr. Graham said. He also said the story appears as if it's here to stay....

See story

The Rush Limbaugh Show
August 11, 2003

Unbelievable. Unbelievable. Today, this morning, on the Today show, Katie Couric had as her guest republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon. Before I tell you what she said to Bill Simon, let's go back. I want to play for you the faux commercial that we put together based on a Katie Couric question to two political operatives, I think it was, last Thursday. She was talking about Schwarzenegger and she asked these two political operatives about his chances. Listen to her question that is the primary element in this ad:

[Faux announcer] Arnold Schwarzenegger for Governor? [Actual voice of Katie Couric] He's admitted smoking marijuana, using steroids during his body-building career. He's the son of a Nazi Party member. [Actual voice of Schwarzenegger] I will go to Sacramento and I will clean house. [Actual voice of Couric, accompanied by sounds of men marching and ‘Seig Heil!'] He said he was prejudiced before overcoming those feeling by working with the Simon Weisenthal Center in Los Angeles and the Dean of the Center said an investigation of Schwarzenegger's later father conducted at the actor's request found no evidence of war crimes. Through his publicist he's denied allegations published in Premiere magazine, in March 2001, that he sexually harassed women and committed infidelity. [Faux announcer] No answer is good enough. Gray Davis, California Governor.

Pretty hard-hitting question, was it not? Listen to this! This morning, she scolded Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon as she cited a newspaper report about how a Simon strategist promised to spotlight the actor's raunchy past and liberal social views. Couric then demanded, ‘how dirty will you get?'

Do you believe this! Yes we do. On Thursday she indicts Schwarzenegger far more than Simon has ever even thought of doing. And she cites a newspaper report that Bill Simon strategist — not even Simon himself but a Simon strategist — promised to spotlight Schwarzenegger's raunchy past and liberal social views and then demand, ‘how dirty will you get?'

Here again, let me read to you her question to Democratic strategist Darry Sragow. ‘Let me ask you about his baggage, if you will. He's admitted smoking marijuana, using steroids during his body-building career. Son of a Nazi Party member. Said he was prejudiced before overcoming those feelings by working with the Simon Weisenthal Center in L.A. and the Dean of the Center said an investigation of Schwarzenegger's late father, conducted at the actor's request, found no evidence of war crimes. Through his publicist he's denied allegations published in Premiere magazine that he sexually harassed women and committed adultery — or infidelity. All those things, are they gonna be front and center, do you think in this campaign?' And she scolds a Simon strategist.

Thanks to Media Week for this — not Media Week — the Media Research Center, Brent Bozell's outfit. We didn't get the Today show this morning because of technical problems.... in our state-of-the art New York City building.

Broadacsting & Cable
Top of the Week
"In the Loop," by Paige Albiniak, Allison Romano, John Eggerton, and Steve McClellan
Day Labor Dispute
August 11, 2003

According to a story in the Northern Virginia Journal, noncommercial WETA-TV Washington doesn't want a day laborer shelter in its back yard....The Journal story prompted a media bias alert from the conservative Media Research Center, which hastened to point to stories on public broadcasting about the need to help day laborers.

More on this topic

World Net Daily
"30 years of columns," by William Rusher
August 7, 2003

This week marks my 30th anniversary as a syndicated columnist, and it occurs to me that I should note the occasion with a few appropriate remarks.... Any gaffes? I'm afraid so. Some years ago, the Media Research Center (on whose board I sat) published an issue of "Notable Quotables" – a weekly compendium of silly remarks by liberal journalists – that contained a particularly pungent piece of stupidity by Dan Rather. I couldn't resist quoting it in my next column. But then, on Monday morning, I received a phone call from my old friend Mary Lou Forbes, opinion page editor of the Washington Times. Had I noticed, she asked, the date on that particular issue of "Notable Quotables"? I hadn't, but I quickly checked. It was April 1st! Luckily, there was still time to kill that blooper.

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Washington Times
"Inside Politics," by Jennifer Harper
Attention span
August 7, 2003

To whom is America paying attention?

Ann Coulter, author of the best-selling book "Treason," appeared on Fox News' "Hannity & Colmes" on Monday night, in direct competition with the man touted as the hottest media figure of the week, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who was a guest on CNN's "Larry King Live."

Miss Coulter drew almost twice the audience that Mr. Dean did, according to Nielsen ratings - about 1.5 million viewers. Mr. Dean had 804,000 viewers.

Some in the print and broadcast media, meanwhile, are intent on reinventing Mr. Dean's image "to disguise his liberalness," noted the Media Research Center [MRC] yesterday.

"Before former Vermont Governor Howard Dean can be painted as a far-left ideologue, the national media are coming to his aid, penning stories about how he's not only not liberal, he's really a conservative," noted MRC's Brent Baker.

This week alone, the MRC tracked such tactics on CNBC and NBC, and in the New York Times, The Washington Post and Time magazine.

See column | More on this topic

CNBC
Capital Report
Gay acceptance and what America wants
August 5, 2003

....MURRAY: But, Tim, I look at polls, though, that show that the majority-- a slim majority, but a majority of the American public still thinks homosexual behavior is morally wrong.

Mr. TIM GRAHAM (Media Research Center): Well, and I think the problem is, and I think the piece suggests the problem to some extent, and that is we don't have balance. We don't have debate. We don't have people arguing against domestic partner legislation. We don't have people-- we're getting more of that now.

MURRAY: Well, you're here.

Mr. GRAHAM: That's right. I'm here now, but I'm just saying that, well, for example, on the Canon Robinson issue, "Today" had Canon Robinson on twice. It wasn't till this morning when he had allegations where there actually was someone on each side of the Episcopal debate, so I think we have had a problem over the years of having, you know, 27 people representing the pro-gay point of view, and then there's, like, three people presenting the conservative point.

MURRAY: Well, I watched the Episcopal debate yesterday, and I thought that was an example where you actually did have people coming up on both sides of the issue and making some pretty emotional arguments.

Mr. GRAHAM: Well, if you're watching the debate. But what I'm saying to is is -- and the way the media pres...

MURRAY: You're talking about the press conference?

Mr. GRAHAM: Yeah. The media presents it as -- the interesting thing about it is there's Canon Robinson and his supporters, and then the people that oppose him are described as conservatives. We have no ideological description of the pro-gay side....