Nancy Grace just ripped on & mocked Peterson's family

[Neecy]

Just how insane is this woman??

I was just channel flipping, and came upon Nancy Grace on Court TV, and...oh my god. She was barking and snapping about how 'inappropriate' Peterson's parents were in court today (well, gee, their son was just sentenced to die! I have no idea what they did - I turned it off quickly - but how heartless is this?).

She then went on a lengthy rampage, mocking Peterson's mother for using oxygen that she apparently needs for a health condition, insinuating that it was some kind of cheap trick to get sympathy. Not caring a bit about this Peterson circus, I wouldn't have stopped at the channel for a second but I was shocked that she'd rip into these people on the day their son was sentenced to die.

This woman is just evil, heartless. There was just no reason to pile on this family on the day of the sentence. How can anyone actually *like* the act this woman puts on?

[Hand]

1. Bread and circuses... nt

[Batgirl]

4. bread and circuses and maybe something else too?

Why were so many people obsessed with following this particular case?

My theory: the case resonated with the public on a subconscious level...They were transfixed and horrified that:
• Scott Peterson was revealed to be a world class liar

• He managed to fool a lot of people into thinking he was this nice, affable guy.

• The victim represented goodness, purity and trust.

This drama was playing out during the time when it was oh so slowly becoming apparent that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

Showing that Bush was:
• Revealed to be a world class liar

• Who managed to fool a lot of people into thinking he was this nice, affable guy

• By invading an unarmed country under the false guise of self-defence, Bush robbed our nation of of our goodness and purity, our moral standing in the eyes of the world.

I think many of those who followed the Peterson case didn't realize why it was they just couldn't look away.

I assure you, it's not the most hairbrained theory I've ever come up with.

[hollywood926]

7. it's not that bad a theory!

I'm not sure I think anyone in the White House is smart enough to concoct it, though.

I think it was the fact that Peterson is handsome, she was beautiful, there was an affair going on...you know, the usual soap opera stuff Americans eat up.

[PunkPop]

2. She is grotesque and obnoxious

Her presence on tv is a symptom of our sick country.

[hollywood926]

3. I didn't see it, but...

she's usually hired to talk about the prosecution side of things - that's her deal. But I've read similar cracks on this board just today about the parents of the Rocha family, whose daughter and grandson were violently murdered by this creep.

I guess I have a little less sympathy for the parents of the murderer. Besides, ummm...were they actually shocked that he received the death penalty? It's what the jury recommended, after all. If they didn't want to hear it, they shouldn't have gone today.

[LisaL]

6. Exactly. Just read a post on how a poster here is disgusted

with Mrs. Rocha. I guess that is o'key. As for Jackie Peterson, when she went to Laci's house recently, she had no oxygen tank with her. So, obviously, there are times when she doesn't need it.

[Neecy]

15. no, I don't think it's okay

But whomever posted something negative on a message board regarding the Rochas is hardly comparable to having this hate-filled diatribe broadcast into possibly millions of homes by what used to be a responsible company when it was still controlled by Brill.

I didn't follow this case and I have no idea if the guy did it. But to pile on his family today just seemed in poor taste, especially by someone who is apparently paid to pile on. They didn't kill anyone. It's simple decency.

[Eloriel]

47. Yes, her job IS talking about the prosecution side

and we tend to forget that lawyers are literally TRAINED to be able to take both sides of any given case, and do so with vigor.

I didn't see it and am not overly fond of Nancy Grace anyway, but I'm having a little trouble having quite so much sympathy for the Peterson's as was expressed in the OP. They somehow created a psychopathic monster -- I'm not sure how much "sympathy" they warrant. Maybe a lot, maybe none. But for me the jury's out.

[H2O Man]

5. I like her a lot.

I think she was making reference to a comment Laci's brother made in court today, about Scott's mother. She had been cleaning Scott's thingsout of the house, and was not on oxygen while doing physical labor. I think that it is understandable that Laci's family found her use of a prop for sympathy to be disgusting. So Nancy was merely agreeing with the brother of the murder victim.

[LisaL]

9. Right. I noticed the same thing when they showed it on the news.

Jackie Peterson had no oxygen tank with her while cleaning Scott's things out of the house.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

22. Long Time No See...

What happened was that Laci Peterson's stepfather was saying what a monster Scott Peterson was and Scott Peterson's father called him a liar...


He's lucky I wasn't Laci's father or stepfather because I would have knocked that son of a bitch into next Sunday...

[mitchtv]

23. Lots of people think the world of her

but she gets a little too into her role.
I think its about time she apolgized for all the vicious, untrue things she said about Gary Condit.

[KharmaTrain]

8. Drama Queen Plus...

Nothing makes my channel changer move faster than that sneer and bitchy southern twang. Makes my skin crawl.

Last Friday this wench was on with Wolfie Blitzer putting on this major crying jag about the poor court reporter who was killed and how a wonderful person she was and so on and so on. She called the judge "Barnes" with no mention of his title (guess she's still pissed her real law career wore thin in Atlana) and was so over the top it was comical. What's even funnier is CNNServative kept replaying her bits for the rest of the day. This stuff is now getting laughable. Pathetic.

BTW...speaking of poor taste, I noticed CNNServative showed video of the funeral of the female reporter who was killed...shot in the waiting room of the funeral parlor. As though this family really needed kleig lights and tons of corporate media rats in their time of grief to be used for this made-for-TV horseshit.

[LisaL]

10. Nobody is forcing you to watch her. Why torture yourself?

[KharmaTrain]

34. Who Says I'm Watching...I'm Laughing

I'm very wise to the games corporate media plays and thus immune to the bullshit they spew. The overkill, poor production, stupid reporting, dumb questions and endless speculating make it amusing for the few minutes I'll catch as I scan past on my way to PBS or History Channel or Discovery.

Since people are content to watch this crap and believe it, I'll go along with the joke, too.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

19. I Saw Her Crying At The News Of Judge Barns...

As far as her law career she had 100 convictions and no acquittals as a prosecutor...


Go to opensecrets... She made one political contribution and that was to Hillary Clinton's Senate Campaign...


Her fiancee was brutally murdered and that made her change her college plans and go to law school...


I have empathy for folks who are arrested for victimless crimes but my tear ducts are dry for folks who commit violent crimes...

[LisaL]

25. Exactly. Nancy is not a repuke, far from it.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

26. yep

GRACE, NANCY
NEW YORK, NY 10016
COURT TV CLINTON, HILLARY RODHAM (D)
Senate - NY
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON FOR US SENATE COMMITTEE INC $1,000
primary 10/21/99


http://www.newsmeat.com/media_political_donations/Nancy_Grace.php

[H2O Man]

43. This reminds me of a funny story .....

I was chatting during a break in county court one afternoon, in the mid-1980s, with an attorney who I was friends with. He made a reference to one of my uncles, a senior investigator who was a legendary figure, as "the homicidal detective." (Yes, my friend was a defense attorney.) So I asked him, if a member of his family was the victim of a violent crime .... and before I could get the question out, he said, "Oh, damned right! Your uncle!"

If you have ever had a member of your family brutally murdered, or raped, or attacked by a racist gang of skin-heads, you just have a different view of the legal system.

I like Nancy. I think she has a lot of spunk. I admire people who have that type of quality, especially after life has dealt them a savage blow.

[jayfish]

11. Cheap, Emotional, Tricks Are OK For The Prosecution Though -NT-

Jay

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. Gosh! What was she wearing? Can we get an autograph?

A celebrity is born to entertain the masses.

[tom_paine]

13. I....DON'T....CARE!

You might want to consider the uses of Bread and Circuses as Propagandistic Distraction as Method by Bushevik Propagandists.

And this damned thread should sink to the bottom where it belongs.

[H2O Man]

14. Okay. You must be

glued to the Jackson trial. (grin) Of course, you are correct. But life is not all work; there is justification for occassional recreation.

[northzax]

17. and since the fastest way to do that

is posting on this thread, I think I'll help you kill it!

[Neecy]

20. actually, Tom...

This thread is largely about the propaganda we receive daily, not just from the network and cable news but from programming from a variety of sources.

What does someone like Grace represent? The Bush ideal - to see the world in black and white, good and evil, and to have absolutely zero empathy and to be quick on the draw when it comes to making conclusive judgements, often based on incomplete information. Grace specializes in this, and I think there's a reason she's all over two different networks. She may not push the agenda in the guise of a Republican operative, but she's dangerous because it's a symptom of how this world-think is spreading like a disease throughout even entertainment media.

THAT is the problem I have with her, and with her completely heartless attack on someone's family today. It's all part of a sick mindset that's being foisted by the corporate media on our citizens.

[LisaL]

24. She used to be a prosecutor.

I don't see many of you having problems with defense attorneys, who usually claim everyone is innocent, many times after the person was convicted. Defense attorneys who love to trash the victims and their families.
She used to be a prosecutor, what do you expect?

[jayfish]

30. I Expect Her Not To Be On...

television infecting the rest of the country with her "Guilty Until Proven Innocent" disease.

Jay

[DemocratSinceBirth]

31. Change The Channel

-:)

[jayfish]

33. Trust Me,...

I do and as quickly as possible. I'm just trying to look out for the rest of the cows out there.

Jay

[DemocratSinceBirth]

27. Some Things Are Black And White...

If you are putting the wood to your mistress while your wife is pregnant and then dump her and your unborn child in San Francisco Bay you are evil...

[hollywood926]

21. THEN STAY OUT OF THIS THREAD

I often open threads I don't care about to let everyone know how inferior that topic is to me.

:eyes:

[eissa]

16. The local media were roaming around Modesto today

I was on lunch break and there were all these media asses asking the regular folk what they thought of the ruling. One bleached-blonde, dumb-as-a-doorknob reporter was interviewing a local when I very loudly said to my co-worker "Why are they still talking about this case when there are so many more important issues going on, like the recent ANWR vote, and Iraq?"

[AnnInLa]

18. Gee, I wonder how Laci's parents and family

have felt ever since her headless body washed up on shore with the body of their grandson nearby. Flame away.

[saltpoint]

28. Didn't catch the program but in the past have seen --

-- Nancy Grace behave haughtily toward defendants. I see her in the crowd gathered around the woman taken in adultery in the New Testament account. In this vision, Nancy is toward the very front of the mob and holds the largest throwable stone.

Nancy Grace vandalizes the human spirit.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

29. That's A Poor Analogy

If I saw folks stoning an adulterer I would stop them and offer Christ's admonition about casting the first stone but if I saw folks stoning a man who was schtuuping his mistress while his wife was pregnant and then killing her and his unborn son and dumping them in San Francisco Bay I might join in the stoning...

[hollywood926]

32. I'd hold him down for you. :-) n/t

[saltpoint]

35. The analogy is about judgment.

The courts have done their work in the Peterson case.

No more stoning is required or requested.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

36. He Offed His Wife And Unborn Son...

And Shows No Remorse....


One can not forgive if one does not request forgiveness...

[saltpoint]

38. New Testament accounts suggest that human beings --

-- are not in charge of Good and Evil. We may commit either, but do not dispense judgment based on these currents.

Again: the courts have done their work.

The original post concerned Nancy Grace's tone as a news entity in the media. I agreed with the post and said so.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

40. The Man Is A Sociopath And A Murderer

All Nancy was doing was echoing their judgement...

[saltpoint]

42. The perception of Nancy Grace's "reporting" is that she --

-- does not "echo" others' sensibilities, but instead, cheerleads the mob.

She is frequently graceless and judgmental, to the extent of extra-legal claims. She plays to the crowd. She does not provide thoughtful analysis; she asks for condemnation. Her remarks about Congressman Condit were legally slanderous.

After courts decide innocence or guilt of a given defendent in a given case, the mob should disperse and go home. Grace remains on the courthouse steps, stridently yelping for more condemnation.

I have no respect for her as a journalist at all.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

44. What Mob? What Condemnation?

After courts decide innocence or guilt of a given defendent in a given case, the mob should disperse and go home. Grace remains on the courthouse steps, stridently yelping for more condemnation...


Just because the jury rendered it's verdict should it be verboten to say that Scott Peterson is an evil monster who murdered his wife and unborn child and then dumped them into San Francisco Bay like garbage....

[saltpoint]

45. The point is whether it's good form, not whether it's "illegal."

You're a fan of Nancy Grace.

Fine.

[H2O Man]

46. You err.

The case isn't over. While I strongly disagree with the death penalty, I still recognize the stone throwing isn't over. But that's on the state's list. A TV commentator is absolutely supposed to talk about the case. The two families are in a conflict. She is commenting on it.

[saltpoint]

48. The original post plainly implicated Nancy Grace's lack --

-- of professionalism and her graceless and dismissive tone.

I agreed with those points and still do.

I do not err in citing the woman taken in adultery as being analogous to her unprofessional condemnation, for which she is notoriously famous from early panel work on the Larry King show.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

49. Christ Meant We Shouldn't Be Hypocrites

We shouldn't criticize others for acts we might commit...


I doubt most folks on DU would cheat on their pregnant wife and then kill her and their unborn child and then dump them into San Francisco Bay...


When Nancy Grace turns her wrath on adulterers or other minor miscreants I will join you in the condemnation..

[saltpoint]

50. The original poster did not implicate anybody on DU or --

-- anyone else.

You need to stick to the topic at hand.

The topic at hand is the unprofessional and strident tone of a news entity.

The original post asserted that Nancy Grace is over the top.

I agree with Neecy completely.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

52. She Cited One Specific Instance Out Of Context...

Laci Peterson's mother and stepfather was berating Scott Peterson for killing their daughter and unborn child... Scott Peterson's father had the temerity to call Laci Peterson's stepfather a liar....


Nancy Grace was commenting on that...


What did the Petersons expect Laci's parents to say...

[saltpoint]

55. I have to say, DemSinceBirth, that your decision tonight --

-- to rise in defense of Nancy Grace is startling.

When I want thoughtful analysis of current events, I listen to Bill Moyers when I'm lucky enough to catch him, or I read a Sy Hersh piece in THE NEW YORKER. I also have a lot of respect for the staff of the Independent, for Joan Didion's analyses and commentary in NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS, and so on and so forth.

Nancy Grace couldn't polish these people's boots.

She's on tv BECAUSE she's strident and a jump-the-gun journalist. It cranks up the ratings. The news networks and cable news programs emphasize the Peterson trial, OJ Simpson, Michael Jackson, Kobe Bryant, etc. because they are all lurid and rile up the crowd. Nancy Grace is hired as one more cheerleader to whip the crowd into a ratings frenzy.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

56. Nancy Grace Is A Commentator On Cable Television

She makes no attempts to hide her bias...


Her role is different from that of Seymour Hersh and Bill Moyers; she doesn't even feign impartiality...


on edit- a girl I knew very well was killed by Gerald Stano... Google him..... I also share Nancy's loathing for violent perps....

[saltpoint]

57. She isn't legally bound to feign partiality, but to incite --

-- judgment -- that is, extra-legal and in many instances pre-trial judgment -- is to work the mob for emotional condemnation.

I lay this at her feet and at the people who hired her to crank up their damn ratings.

Shame on them.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

59. Only The Jurors Have An Obligation To Remain Impartial...

Most of the time she is balanced by advocates for the defense...


I like her...


Her boyfriend was murdered... Anybody in that position would go on a crusade...

I hate violent perps with a passion too.... They are weak and they suck because they prey on the weak and the defenseless;

I see Polly Klaas's father and Adam Walsh's father take the same approach... Adam Walsh's father even made a career out of it....

[DemocratSinceBirth]

53. She Cited One Specific Instance Out Of Context...

Laci Peterson's mother and stepfather was berating Scott Peterson for killing their daughter and unborn child... Scott Peterson's father had the temerity to call Laci Peterson's stepfather a liar....


Nancy Grace was commenting on that...


What did the Petersons expect Laci's parents to say...

[Neecy]

51. all well and good...

But did Peterson's parents commit these murders? I must have missed their trial.

You act as though I'm defending what Peterson apparently did - I'm not. A jury found him guilty, and he was sentenced to death. Fine. The legal system at work.

My problem is with the vicious way in which Grace attacked his family today. This shrill discourse doesn't seem to have a stopping point - go after criminal activity, fine, but to draw in the entire family and attack them on the day their son is sentenced to die is coarse, ugly and unnecessary. Isn't it enough for our crime-crusader that he's going to fry? Does she really need to pound his family in the gutter of her self-righteous condemnation? How angry do we really need to be in this country?

On edit: Did you actually see this segment? She didn't offer 'commentary', she attacked these people in a vicious, angry way - sneering, pointing her finger, her face contorted. 'Commentary'? It was hardly that mild. It was vicious.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

54. Scott Peterson's Father Started The Brouhaha

by calling Laci Peterson's stepfather a liar for calling Scott Peterson a murderer..




That's the genesis of this brouhaha and that's what Nancy Grace was commenting about...


He should have kept his mouth shut...

[Neecy]

60. well...

I expect that my father would do the same, if he truly thought that I didn't commit the crime. That's what parents do.

So, a parent should just 'shut his mouth' or face the public wrath of Nancy Grace? That's nice. Maybe his father could have just offed him in the courtroom, and redeemed himself in Grace's eyes (although his mother probably can't - after all, she's just primping for the cameras with her oxygen. How low is that, really? To get publicly taken apart, to task, ripped to shreds - over what?).

[DemocratSinceBirth]

61. He Should Have Kept His Mouth Shut...

This was a day for the victims...

[Tomee450]

63. It was an emotional

day for both families. Nancy Grace did not have to get involved. Despite what Scott Peterson did, his family still loves him and are in a lot of pain. Nancy should have shown a bit of sympathy for a family whose son was just sentenced to death.

[AnnInLa]

37. I will continue to like Nancy Grace

even tho her media personality sometimes grates on one's nerves. I have followed her career since she first starting appearing on TV and have found her to be a very vocal advocate for women when they are crime victims. She has spoken passionately about victims of rape being victimized all over again by the court system. She has spoken passionately about spousal abuse, and about the equal treatment of women in the judicial system. She has spoken passionately about children as crime victims. She is a prosecutor, for God's sake, so if that persona turns you off, turn the TV off. I will continue to watch her and find her opinions right on target, and will continue to admire her.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

41. I Like When She Tore David Westerfield A New One...

eom

[spanone]

39. Can't stand her scowl.

[saltpoint]

58. Well, Neecy, this has been quite a thread. I liked it.

When I agree with you in your original post, it is not to say that I'm unaware of the severity of the crime involved or the impact it has on human beings.

But it is to say that your description sounds right to me. In many other moments on "legal panel" formats and in interviews, Nancy Grace has just "snapped and barked" (to steal your excellent phrase) at defendants. That she was a former prosecutor is no surprise, but I don't think that's the purest profession in the world. A lot of prosecutors have played to the lowest common denominator to advance their careers.

The legal system and the justice system cannot prohibit Nancy Grace from expressing her views on television, but neither do those systems need her to fan the flames, especially post-trial, in a completely unnecessary trashing of the convicted defendant.

It's bad form. And in your word, "heartless."

Well said.

Now I'm heading out the door for an evening's merriment.

Thanks for your post tonight.

[Neecy]

62. kinda lively, eh?

I don't know how my original post suddenly became a defense of someone who murdered a pregnant woman and dumped her body into the bay, but whatever...

Thank you for understanding my point. We might have been outnumbered by the Hang 'em High gang, but at some point we need to return to civil discourse in our media. The screaming, breast-beating, shrill condemnation and broad-brush painting is helping to fuel this posse mentality in our country - one that thinks it's okay to murder Iraqi civilians because we don't like their leader. Fry 'em all. Guilty, guilty, guilty. Let's all be crime-fighters, and screw evidence.

Okay, I'm done now :) Have a good 'un.