Media's picture of Kerry based on RNC distortions - Peter Hart

[swag]

http://www.fair.org/extra/0407/caged-hamster.html

. . . small excerpt

It's good to see that pundits recognize the concept of propaganda; that might have helped them to interpret the Bush campaign's claim that Kerry has voted "for higher taxes" more than 350 times. This number, as commentators like Michael Kinsley pointed out (Washington Post, 3/24/04), is deeply misleading, counting votes to keep tax rates the same, or even to lower them by less than Republicans wanted, as votes for "higher taxes." Even with this dubious definition, the Republican list counts the same votes multiple times.

Nonetheless, some journalists allowed the charge to be repeated without correction. CBS reporter Byron Pitts (3/5/04), for example, announced a Republican claim that the Bush tax cuts would be in jeopardy under a Kerry administration, then turned to Commerce Secretary Don Evans, who stated, "Senator Kerry has voted for tax increases over 350 times." While Evans exaggerated an already misleading claim, CBS viewers were not told that there was anything questionable about the 350 figure.

On rare occasions, some outlets do step back and take a look at the big picture on truth in campaign advertising. A Washington Post report (5/31/04) on Bush and Kerry ads used rather blunt language in concluding that many of the claims made about Kerry by the Bush campaign—on issues like the Patriot Act, No Child Left Behind and gasoline taxes—are simply false. According to the Post, the ads "distort Kerry's record and words to undermine the candidate or reinforce negative perceptions of him," with some ads amounting to a "torrent of misstatements."

When NBC Nightly News (4/6/04) invited Brooks Jackson of Factcheck.org to debunk misleading campaign ads, Jackson called the taxes allegation "so bogus," and dismissed another anti-Kerry ad about his alleged support for a gas tax increase. But anchor Brian Williams neutralized this attempt to set the record straight: "It is hard to tell fact from fiction," he concluded.

. . . more

[papau]

1. Perhaps lovers of truth are correct to not love anchor Brian Williams

and NBC in general.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

2. Why doesn't Williams just, "SHUT UP"!