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1. NBC Suggests Bill O'Reilly Fueled Murder of Dr. George Tiller NBC, frequently the object of Bill O'Reilly's scorn for its biased presentation of the news from the left, provided him with fresh evidence Monday evening as the NBC Nightly News, unlike the ABC and CBS newscasts, found it newsworthy in a story on the murder of Kansas doctor George Tiller, who performed abortions of viable fetuses, to highlight "on the Internet, questions from critics of commentator Bill O'Reilly about his blunt remarks regarding abortion and Dr. Tiller." 2. ABC's Take on Tiller Murder: 'The Abortion Debate Turns Deadly' Good Morning America's coverage on Monday of the May 31 murder of abortionist George Tiller featured no examples of pro-life organizations condemning the killing. Additionally, co-anchor Diane Sawyer opened the program with an oddly worded tease. "The abortion debate turns deadly. A doctor known for performing late-term abortions gunned down at church." The abortion debate turns deadly? If the procedure is successfully performed, isn't abortion always fatal? Reporter Kofman highlighted glee on the internet over the slaying of the Kansas-based doctor who carried out late-term abortions. He announced, "On Twitter, one person wrote, 'Oh, happy, day. Tiller the baby killer is dead.' Another wrote, 'God bless the gunman.'" Kofman added, "Clearly the passions in this issue have not gone away." Of course, other than a bland observation that "many" on both sides of the debate have condemned the killing, Kofman offered no quotes from organizations, such as the Family Research Council [FRC], who denounced the murder. 3. CBS Early Show Sees No Controversy in Tiller's Abortion Work Reporting on the murder of Kansas abortion doctor, George Tiller, on Monday's CBS Early Show, correspondent Jeff Glor touted the doctor's career, while not depicting it as controversial: "...a doctor in the middle of the abortion debate for 35 years...Tiller, one of only a handful of doctors in the country performing late-term abortions, when the mother's health is at risk." Glor later commented about the murder: "Abortion providers feared a chilling effect." 4. David Shuster Once Again Railing Against 'Hypocrite' Gingrich MSNBC News Live host David Shuster railed against conservative "hypocrite" Newt Gingrich late Monday afternoon, resurrecting a segment from his cancelled program 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The cable anchor slammed the former House Speaker for calling Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor a racist on his Twitter page. Shuster noted that Gingrich supported Bush pick Sam Alito in 2006. He then played a clip of the then-nominee saying that when he has to rule on a discrimination case, Altio would think of people in his own family who have suffered bias. Shuster derided: "Hey, Newt. When you embrace the empathy of a conservative judge, but call the empathy of a progressive judge racist, that's hypocrisy and it's wrong." Now, of course, the obvious difference is that Sotomayor didn't just acknowledge empathy, she asserted in a 2001 speech at the University of California, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life." 5. Matthews Berates 'Jealous, Phony' GOP, 'Pathetic Swipe' at Obama Chris Matthews, on Monday's Hardball, was outraged at the RNC's criticism of the Obamas wasting taxpayer money to go see a Broadway play as he railed that it was a "jealous, pathetic swipe at the First Couple," and remarked: "What a jealous, little political party the Republicans have become." Matthews also took a shot at former President George W. Bush as he contrasted Obama's tastes with Bush's as he claimed the problem he and others had with Bush was his "utter disdain for any kind of thought or culture. His total lack of curiosity toward anything beyond his own backyard." Matthews then questioned if the GOP attack was made out of "jealousy or simple nincompoop anti-intellectualism?" 6. New MRC Web Site, So New Online Location for CyberAlerts The MRC launched a new Web site on Friday, May 22 so for a while there will be a disconnect between the links in CyberAlerts for the online posting of each CyberAlert and where you can see screen shots and videos that illustrate each CyberAlert item. As always, you can click on the links to the NewsBusters posts to access the pictures and/or video. Individual CyberAlert items are now posted online on MRC.org under the "Daily BiasAlerts" heading. The CyberAlert e-mails will continue, but only the e-mail will be called "CyberAlert." We are encountering problems with the new e-mail distribution system and that's why the CyberAlert is so late again today and going out by the same method it has for years. I hope that by tomorrow the problem will have been resolved and I will be able to send the Wednesday CyberAlert via the new system. NBC Suggests Bill O'Reilly Fueled Murder of Dr. George Tiller NBC, frequently the object of Bill O'Reilly's scorn for its biased presentation of the news from the left, provided him with fresh evidence Monday evening as the NBC Nightly News, unlike the ABC and CBS newscasts, found it newsworthy in a story on the murder of Kansas doctor George Tiller, who performed abortions of viable fetuses, to highlight "on the Internet, questions from critics of commentator Bill O'Reilly about his blunt remarks regarding abortion and Dr. Tiller." In the piece from reporter Janet Shamlian, viewers then heard from O'Reilly in a Web video clip from an un-dated episode of O'Reilly's FNC show: "In the state of Kansas there is a doctor, George Tiller, who will execute babies for $5,000." MSNBC shows earlier in the day, as well as Countdown later where Olbermann went on a full rant, played the same O'Reilly clip pushed by far-left Web and blog sites. [This item, by the MRC's Brent Baker, was posted Monday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ] From the story on the Monday, June 1 NBC Nightly News:
JANET SHAMLIAN: ...The anti-abortion group Operation Rescue denounced the killing, but today its founder, Randall Terry, fueled the fire.
ABC's Take on Tiller Murder: 'The Abortion Debate Turns Deadly' Good Morning America's coverage on Monday of the May 31 murder of abortionist George Tiller featured no examples of pro-life organizations condemning the killing. Additionally, co-anchor Diane Sawyer opened the program with an oddly worded tease. "The abortion debate turns deadly. A doctor known for performing late-term abortions gunned down at church." The abortion debate turns deadly? If the procedure is successfully performed, isn't abortion always fatal? Reporter Kofman highlighted glee on the internet over the slaying of the Kansas-based doctor who carried out late-term abortions. He announced, "On Twitter, one person wrote, 'Oh, happy, day. Tiller the baby killer is dead.' Another wrote, 'God bless the gunman.'" Kofman added, "Clearly the passions in this issue have not gone away." Of course, other than a bland observation that "many" on both sides of the debate have condemned the killing, Kofman offered no quotes from organizations, such as the Family Research Council [FRC], who denounced the murder. [This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Monday afternoon, with video, on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ] For instance, FRC President Tony Perkins said in a news release: "We strongly condemn the actions taken today by this vigilante killer and we pray for the Tiller family and for the nation that we might once again be a nation that values all human life, both born and unborn." See FRC: www.frc.org In addition to the Twitter quotes, Kofman noted, "...Randall Terry, founder of Operation Rescue, issued off this statement: 'George Tiller was a mass murderer. He was an evil man. His hands were covered with blood.'" Wouldn't it be fair to at least point out the specific pro-life organizations that have strongly rejected this violent act? A transcript of the June 1 segment, which aired at 7:03am, follows:
7am tease
7:03
CBS Early Show Sees No Controversy in Tiller's Abortion Work Reporting on the murder of Kansas abortion doctor, George Tiller, on Monday's CBS Early Show, correspondent Jeff Glor touted the doctor's career, while not depicting it as controversial: "...a doctor in the middle of the abortion debate for 35 years...Tiller, one of only a handful of doctors in the country performing late-term abortions, when the mother's health is at risk." Glor later commented about the murder: "Abortion providers feared a chilling effect." At the top of the segment, co-host Julie Chen declared: "President Obama says he is shocked and outraged at the murder of Dr. George Tiller, one of the few doctors in the country who provided late-term abortions." Following Glor's report, Chen spoke with Tiller's friend and attorney, Dan Monnat, and wondered: "Can you explain why Dr. Tiller continued his practice all these years, despite all the harassment?" Monnat portrayed Tiller as courageous: "Both Dr. Tiller and his family continually asked the question, if Dr. Tiller is not here to serve a woman's right to choose, who will be here to do it? There are only a handful of late-term abortion providers that remain in the United States, and in the world. Most of them have been terrorized and run off by the protesters." The Early Show coverage made no mention of Tiller's controversial career, including a recent investigation into whether he conducted 19 illegal partial-birth abortions. Read about Tiller's controversial career here: www.kansascity.com [This item, by the MRC's Kyle Drennen, was posted Monday morning on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ] Here is the full transcript of the segment:
7:00AM TEASE:
7:12AM TEASE:
7:16AM SEGMENT:
David Shuster Once Again Railing Against 'Hypocrite' Gingrich MSNBC News Live host David Shuster railed against conservative "hypocrite" Newt Gingrich late Monday afternoon, resurrecting a segment from his cancelled program 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The cable anchor slammed the former House Speaker for calling Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor a racist on his Twitter page. Shuster noted that Gingrich supported Bush pick Sam Alito in 2006. He then played a clip of the then-nominee saying that when he has to rule on a discrimination case, Altio would think of people in his own family who have suffered bias. Shuster derided: "Hey, Newt. When you embrace the empathy of a conservative judge, but call the empathy of a progressive judge racist, that's hypocrisy and it's wrong." Now, of course, the obvious difference is that Sotomayor didn't just acknowledge empathy, she asserted in a 2001 speech at the University of California, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life." [This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Monday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ] The stated concept of "Hypocrisy Watch" is to call out hypocritical politicians. On MSNBC, however, that usually means Republicans. An April 6, 2009 Media Reality Check study by the MRC found that before Shuster's 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue program was cancelled on April 2, the liberal anchor made conservatives/Republicans the target of "Hypocrisy Watch" 71 percent of the time. See fax report: www.mrc.org Liberals/Democrats accounted for only eight percent of those attacked. So, it's not particularly surprising that Shuster has returned to his old habits. Shuster previously slammed Gingrich on March 24. The MSNBC host seemed perturbed that the former House Speaker had criticized Notre Dame for announcing that Obama would be the commencement speaker. Gingrich called the President's policies "anti-Catholic." Shuster could hardly contain himself on that day. Citing Gingrich's past marriages, he complained, "Mr. former Speaker, given the way you've led your life, when you lecture anybody about upholding Catholic values, that's hypocrisy, and it's wrong." A transcript of both the June 1 "Hypocrisy Watch" and the March 24 edition follow: 6/1/09, 4:47pm EDT:
DAVID SHUSTER: Tamron, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich continues his harsh criticism of President Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court. And that takes us to today's "Hypocrisy Watch." First, the background. Gingrich and other conservatives are hammering Sonia Sotomayor for comments she made eight years ago about her Latina background and the empathy she says she brings to court rulings as a result of that background. Gingrich recently wrote on his Twitter page, quote, "Imagine a judicial nominee said, 'My experience as a white man makes me better than a Latina woman.' New racism is no better than old racism. White man racist nominee would be forced to withdraw. Latina woman racist should also withdraw." That's right. Gingrich says Sotomayor is a racist and should withdraw. But there have been other judges who have said they take their background and ethnic experiences into account when deciding cases. Remember Sam Alito?
3/24/09, 6:25 PM EDT:
Matthews Berates 'Jealous, Phony' GOP, 'Pathetic Swipe' at Obama Chris Matthews, on Monday's Hardball, was outraged at the RNC's criticism of the Obamas wasting taxpayer money to go see a Broadway play as he railed that it was a "jealous, pathetic swipe at the First Couple," and remarked: "What a jealous, little political party the Republicans have become." Matthews also took a shot at former President George W. Bush as he contrasted Obama's tastes with Bush's as he claimed the problem he and others had with Bush was his "utter disdain for any kind of thought or culture. His total lack of curiosity toward anything beyond his own backyard." Matthews then questioned if the GOP attack was made out of "jealousy or simple nincompoop anti-intellectualism?" [This item, by the MRC's Geoffrey Dickens, was posted Monday evening, with video, on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org MATTHEWS: Well let's get this straight. President Bush's jaunts to Crawford, Texas were okay by their lights, but President Obama's day trips to New York are cause for outrage? This is the kind of pissant criticism that makes you wonder why Michael Steele still has his job. Is this jealousy or simple nincompoop anti-intellectualism? Whatever it is I like having a president who takes his wife up to Broadway. The following are all of Matthews' teasers and then his anti-RNC rant as it occurred during the "Sideshow," segment of his June 1, edition of Hardball: CHRIS MATTHEWS: And what's wrong with dinner and a Broadway show? Well when it comes to Barack and Michelle Obama just ask the Republicans. Here's the front page of today's New York Post. We'll have the GOP's jealous, pathetic swipe at the First Couple in the "Hardball Sideshow tonight." ... MATTHEWS: Up next President and Mrs. Obama go to New York and take in a show but the Republicans don't seem to like it. They're raining on their little parade. They go up for one day and this phony outrage. Next in the "Sideshow." What a jealous, little political party the Republicans have become. You're watching "Hardball," only on MSNBC. ... MATTHEWS: Back to Hardball. Time for the "Sideshow." I don't think the Republicans get it yet. The problem many of us had with President Bush was not that he was any less intelligent than most presidents or certainly not most journalists. God gave him brains. It was his utter disdain, George Bush's utter disdain for any kind of thought or culture. His total lack of curiosity toward anything beyond his own backyard. Now here goes the Republican Party that should have learned a lesson from this experience, taking a cheap shot at what the voters chose last November, a President â€" excuse me for saying this â€" with interests. You can see Michelle and Barack Obama there returning from their night out at in the Big Apple on Saturday night. The First Couple dined at the West Village's Blue Hill restaurant and took in a Broadway show, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, about black-America in the early 20th century. The President was making good on a campaign promise, that's how he put it, the one that he made to his wife. One that Republicans were all too ready to pounce on. The day after Obama's dream date to New York the Republican National Committee put out this e-mail. "Putting On A Show," they called it. Calling out the Obamas for jetting away at taxpayer's expense. An RNC spokesman piled on adding, quote, "If President Obama wants to go to the theater, isn't the presidential box at the Kennedy Center good enough?" Well let's get this straight. President Bush's jaunts to Crawford, Texas were okay by their lights, but President Obama's day trips to New York are cause for outrage? This is the kind of pissant criticism that makes you wonder why Michael Steele still has his job. Is this jealousy or simple nincompoop anti-intellectualism? Whatever it is I like having a president who takes his wife up to Broadway.
New MRC Web Site, So New Online Location for CyberAlerts The MRC launched a new Web site on Friday, May 22 so for a while there will be a disconnect between the links in CyberAlerts for the online posting of each CyberAlert and where you can see screen shots and videos that illustrate each CyberAlert item. As always, you can click on the links to the NewsBusters posts to access the pictures and/or video. Individual CyberAlert items are now posted online on MRC.org under the "Daily BiasAlerts" heading. The CyberAlert e-mails will continue, but only the e-mail will be called "CyberAlert." We are encountering problems with the new e-mail distribution system and that's why the CyberAlert is so late again today and going out by the same method it has for years. I hope that by tomorrow the problem will have been resolved and I will be able to send the Wednesday CyberAlert via the new system. The HTML version of the "new" CyberAlert will feature all the content previously available only online: Pictures/screen shots, images which will link you directly to online video playback, and embedded links. Don't worry, we will continue to have a plain text version sans anything but the text. Whichever version you now receive is the one you will continue to receive. To read online any of the items in today's CyberAlert, go to the "BiasAlert" page on our new site which is populated with the latest posts: www.mrc.org And to check out the new Media Research Center Web site: www.mrc.org -- Brent Baker
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