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1. Nets Trumpet Anti-War Activists Confronting Rumsfeld's "Lies" Two of the three broadcast networks (CBS and NBC) led Thursday night with how, at an event in Atlanta, a handful of protesters confronted Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and accused him of "war crimes" and "lying" about Iraq. ABC also aired a story, but put the Moussaoui sentencing first. All three featured former CIA analyst Ray McGovern who demanded: "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary?" But all failed to note McGovern's long record of hostility to the Bush administration. CBS anchor Bob Schieffer trumpeted: "Not since the Vietnam War has a Secretary of Defense been under the kind of criticism that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been getting lately. A group of retired generals has called on him to resign, and today he caught it from another front when he went to what has been Bush country -- Georgia -- and ran head on into hecklers that included a former CIA analyst." NBC's Brian Williams saw a greater meaning: "Today the Secretary of Defense received a blunt and personal reminder of the split in this country over the war in Iraq." He then showcased a woman shouting in the audience: "You lied to the American people!...You're a liar!" Keith Olbermann topped Countdown with the confrontation, heralding how the "former CIA analyst cut Rumsfeld to ribbons today using only his own words" and suggested Rumsfeld's answers meant either he has "dementia" or was "lying." 2. Al Gore Has Time Magazine Coming and Going for Liberalism Time's special "TIME 100: The People Who Shape Our World" issue on the 100 most influential people is a bit of promotional popcorn, allowing celebrities and statesmen to praise each other for their brilliance and good works (for example, Les Gelb flatters Condi Rice, Condi Rice flatters Oprah, Oprah flatters author Elie Wiesel). So it shouldn't be surprising that the magazine that made endangered Earth its "Planet of the Year" and used to beg routinely for punishing gas tax hikes allowed Al Gore to both be praised and offer praise on planetary matters. "There could hardly be a more opportune time for the country to be giving Gore another look," cooed the magazine. 3. Katie Couric and Ann Curry Swoon Over Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman" Feminist anthems still draw rave reviews. On Thursday morning's Today, singer Helen Reddy was scheduled for an interview on her new memoir. As "I Am Woman" played in the background, Katie Couric boasted "I know every word to this song" and that it "shaped me in a lot of ways." News anchor Ann Curry, who interviewed Reddy, echoed the swooning: "Oh, that song still gives me the chills." After her session with Reddy, Curry giddily exclaimed: "We just talked to Helen Reddy!" 4. "Top Ten Ways United States Automakers Can Increase Sales" Letterman's "Top Ten Ways United States Automakers Can Increase Sales."
Rumsfeld's "Lies" Matching cable news networks interest during the day, two of the three broadcast networks (CBS and NBC, as well as MSNBC's Countdown) led Thursday night with how, at an event in Atlanta, a handful of protesters confronted Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and accused him of "war crimes" and "lying" about Iraq. ABC also aired a story, but put the Moussaoui sentencing first. All three featured former CIA analyst Ray McGovern who demanded: "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary?" But all failed to note McGovern's long record of hostility to the Bush administration. As McGovern boasted when he first got to the mike (video not shown by ABC, CBS or NBC), he's a co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity and if you Google "Ray McGovern of CIA" you get a plethora of returns from far-left sites (DemocracyNow.org, antiwar.com, truthout.org, alternet.org, TomPaine.com and CommonDreams.org). CBS anchor Bob Schieffer trumpeted: "Not since the Vietnam War has a Secretary of Defense been under the kind of criticism that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been getting lately. A group of retired generals has called on him to resign, and today he caught it from another front when he went to what has been Bush country -- Georgia -- and ran head on into hecklers that included a former CIA analyst." Of course, Atlanta is hardly "Bush country" and CBS offered no proof the protesters were locals. David Martin concluded by admiring the guts of the protesters: "This is not the first time a former CIA officer has accused the Bush administration of misusing intelligence. But, Bob, it's never been done in such an in-your-face way." NBC's Brian Williams saw a greater meaning: "Today the Secretary of Defense received a blunt and personal reminder of the split in this country over the war in Iraq." He then showcased a woman shouting in the audience: "You lied to the American people!...You lied! You lied that Iraq's oil would pay for the war! You lied about everything the CIA told you was lies!..You're a liar!" Jim Miklaszewski next touted how "today's protests join a growing chorus of criticism against the Secretary and follow the calls from at least six retired Generals for Rumsfeld's resignation." Keith Olbermann topped Countdown with the confrontation, heralding how the "former CIA analyst cut Rumsfeld to ribbons today using only his own words" and cheering how "the cone of silence from the old TV series Get Smart this afternoon broke down again for the second time in six days," the first time being "the President's lambasting by Stephen Colbert," and "now today's vivisection of Defense Secretary Rumsfeld." Of Rumsfeld's denial that he ever said he "knew" the location of WMD, Olberrmann charged that "charitably, it's dementia. And not charitably, it's lying." [This item was posted Thursday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org. To share your comments, go to: newsbusters.org ] A couple of weeks ago, ABC and CBS featured McGovern's defense of fired CIA staffer Mary McCarthy who was reportedly relieved for providing Washington Post reporter Dana Priest with information on secret overseas sites used to hold al-Qaeda suspects. McCarthy, a John Kerry campaign donor, has denied the charge. For McCarthy coverage, check the first two articles in the April 24 CyberAlert: www.mediaresearch.org
On the Saturday, April 22 World News Tonight, ABC reporter Liz Marlantes asserted:
The same night on the CBS Evening News, Joie Chen relayed: The May 4 broadcast network evening newscast coverage (plus MSNBC) of the attack on Rumsfeld as he spoke, in an auditorium, to the Southern Center for International Studies -- as compiled by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth who corrected the closed-captioning against the video:
# ABC's World News Tonight. Elizabeth Vargas, in opening teaser:
Vargas soon got to the first segment story:
Schieffer opened: "Good evening. Not since the Vietnam War has a Secretary of Defense been under the kind of criticism that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been getting lately. A group of retired generals has called on him to resign, and today he caught it from another front when he went to what has been Bush country -- Georgia -- and ran head on into hecklers that included a former CIA analyst. Here's David Martin."
David Martin: "Run of the mill hecklers were hauled away while one man simply turned his back on the Defense Secretary in silent protest. But a retired CIA officer waited his turn to ask a question, and then went for Rumsfeld's throat."
Williams led: "Good evening. Today the Secretary of Defense received a blunt and personal reminder of the split in this country over the war in Iraq. While U.S. service men and women serve and fight and die overseas, today's speech in Atlanta by the President's man at the Pentagon was peppered with interruptions and responses like the one you're about to see."
Jim Miklaszewski, at the Pentagon: "Good evening, Brian. Today's protests join a growing chorus of criticism against the Secretary and follow the calls from at least six retired Generals for Rumsfeld's resignation. Under heavy political fire in Washington, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld ran into a firestorm of public protests today in Atlanta."
Olbermann soon opened his show: "Good evening. There have been many explanations offered for why in one of the times of the greatest political turbulence in American history, there has been comparative apathy in places that have been past venues for public protest. One answer that the administration has been outstanding in cherry-picking not just intelligence but also the make-up of the crowds that greet or interact with its key players. Our fifth story in the Countdown, that latter component, the governmental equivalent of the cone of silence from the old TV series Get Smart, this afternoon broke down again for the second time in six days. First, the President's lambasting by Stephen Colbert at the White House Correspondents Dinner and now today's vivisection of Defense Secretary Rumsfeld with only Rumsfeld's own words as weapons at a speech in Atlanta. One of several interchanges with critics, in this case a former CIA analyst, lasting four minutes. Here it is in its entirety..." Later, after quoting Rumsfeld on the March 30, 2003 This Week saying of WMD in Iraq "we know where they are," Olbermann proposed to Newsweek reporter Richard Wolffe: "'Not in the intelligence business' might have been a Freudian slip more than an accurate description, but when somebody goes out there and blithely denies that they said such and such a thing, and the exact thing is on tape and on the public record, how can that not result in some kind of political fallout or even disaster? I mean, charitably, it's dementia. And not charitably, it's lying."
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Going for Liberalism Time's special "TIME 100: The People Who Shape Our World" issue on the 100 most influential people is a bit of promotional popcorn, allowing celebrities and statesmen to praise each other for their brilliance and good works (for example, Les Gelb flatters Condi Rice, Condi Rice flatters Oprah, Oprah flatters author Elie Wiesel). So it shouldn't be surprising that the magazine that made endangered Earth its "Planet of the Year" and used to beg routinely for punishing gas tax hikes allowed Al Gore to both be praised and offer praise on planetary matters. "There could hardly be a more opportune time for the country to be giving Gore another look," cooed the magazine. [This item, by Tim Graham, was posted Wednesday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ] The Gore puffery came not from a celebrity, but from Time reporter Karen Tumulty, who fondly declared that it's time to take another look at Gore, and made no mention of his greased-down, volume-up MoveOn.org jeremiads against Bush: ....Rather than retire to the sidelines of public life, Gore has stayed in the game by continuing to fight for the environment and other causes close to his heart -- whether as a teacher, an investor whose fund puts its money in socially responsible ventures or an entrepreneur who founded a youth-oriented television network. Gore, 58, now finds himself in his unlikeliest role yet: movie star. The lecture on global warming that he has been giving for decades to any audience that would let him set up his flip charts has been turned into the indie documentary An Inconvenient Truth. The movie got raves at the Sundance Film Festival in January and will begin rolling out in theaters across the country in late May. In Los Angeles theaters, the trailers have been getting ovations. There could hardly be a more opportune time for the country to be giving Gore another look, given that the man who edged past him in Florida is at his all-time low in the polls. But while Gore has not entirely shut the door on another run for President, he insists that he is "not planning" to be a candidate again. After all, 2008 is still a long way away. And in the meantime, Gore has decided, there's a planet to save. END of Excerpt
For Tumulty's love note in full: www.time.com ....The energy industry and its apologists continue to distort his findings, and the current White House continues to try to silence him. But Hansen has had the courage to stay and fight for the right to tell the truth as he sees itâ€"and to fight against the pollution-as-usual policies that he describes as "a recipe for environmental disaster." His message is beginning to sink in. The world's premier climate modeler has helped push Americans to their own tipping pointâ€"to the realization that global temperatures are rising dramatically, that the consequences are grave and that there are solutions available that can reverse those planet-altering trends. He not only speaks truth to power -- over and over again -- but he also has succeeded in making concepts such as "dangerous anthropogenic interference" understandable to a world that will be tragically affected by it if we do not change our energy-consumption habits. When the history of the climate crisis is written, Hansen will be seen as the scientist with the most powerful and consistent voice calling for intelligent action to preserve our planet's environment. END of Excerpt
For Gore's piece in full: www.time.com Tim has much more in a second NewsBusters posting: "Time's Hot 100 Especially Slavish In 'Artists' Category." See: newsbusters.org
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Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman" Feminist anthems still draw rave reviews. On Thursday morning's Today, singer Helen Reddy was scheduled for an interview on her new memoir. As "I Am Woman" played in the background, Katie Couric boasted "I know every word to this song" and that it "shaped me in a lot of ways." News anchor Ann Curry, who interviewed Reddy, echoed the swooning: "Oh, that song still gives me the chills." After her session with Reddy, Curry giddily exclaimed: "We just talked to Helen Reddy!" [This item by the MRC's Tim Graham, based on comments caught by the MRC's Geoff Dickens, was posted Thursday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters: newsbusters.org ]
Coming into the 8:30 half hour, Katie Couric announced over the Reddy song and the outside crowd noise: At the opening of the 9:30 half hour, news anchor Ann Curry promised: "We are also gonna be hearing from a woman who is gonna help us all roar. Helen Reddy took the seventies by storm with her hit I Am Woman. And now she's written a memoir of her life. She is here to share her story this morning." When the interview began ten minutes later, Curry declared: "By the 1970s the women's liberation movement was gaining in momentum and one song became a rallying cry. Helen Reddy's 'I Am Woman' made her the first Australian ever to win a Grammy...the song 'I Am Woman,' with her heartfelt lyrics about being both feminine and determined became the stirring anthem of the feminist movement." Over clips of Reddy performing "I Am Woman," Curry blurted out:
"Oh that song still gives me chills. Now Helen Reddy's written a memoir of her remarkable life it's called 'The Woman I Am.' Helen Reddy, good morning."
After a review of Reddy's childhood, Curry turned to the start of her singing career: Hold on one feminist minute. Musical objection: Reddy's first song came out in 1971, which was hardly the Beatles era. There were a lot more female artists than this plastic dystopia: the hit artists of 1971 included Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, Karen Carpenter, Carole King, the Supremes, the Fifth Dimension...it's just an inaccurate feminist memory.
Curry continued: "So nevertheless you became enormously successful. You, you know had nine number one singles, you, several TV shows, you performed and or hung out with some pretty amazing people, Frank Sinatra. I mean just amazing people. Look it, you see Jane Fonda there. Why do you think you were able to go from, 'no, no, no Helen we've already got enough women,' to a woman who roared?"
Then they turned to "I Am Woman," and where feminism has gone these days. Curry: "You wrote the lyrics." Curry was still aglow after the interview ended: "Up next a gourmet picnic in Today's Kitchen but first this is today on NBC. We just talked to Helen Reddy!"
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Can Increase Sales" From the May 3 Late Show with David Letterman, the "Top Ten Ways United States Automakers Can Increase Sales." Late Show home page: www.cbs.com 10. "How 'bout a car horn that plays 'My Humps'" 9. "Rig GPS screens to display Cinemax After Dark" 8. "Switch gas and brake pedals to make driving more exciting" 7. "Zero down! Zero interest! Zero payment until after the bird flu pandemic!" 6. "Cars come with monkey that keeps an eye on your blind spot" 5. "Less rack, more pinion" 4. "Bumpers that make comical 'boing' sound" 3. "Find a way to make objects in mirror appear even closer" 2. "Enhance lovemaking with vibrating backseat" 1. "Fill airbags with delicious butterscotch pudding" -- Brent Baker ![]()
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