One of the core debates about federal tax policy concerns the expiring Bush tax cuts. A September 8 "factcheck" segment on ABC World News did more to propagate myths than to set the record straight. The White House position is that the Bush tax cuts, which under current law expire in 2010, should be extended for the vast majority of the population. Rates would go up only for taxable income above $195,550. The Republican counter-argument is that increasing the taxes paid by the wealthy will actually harm small businesses. As anchor Diane Sawyer put it: "Republicans say raising taxes even [...]
Aug
24
2010
Tell NBC: Debate the Afghanistan War
Meet the Press missing antiwar voices
Thousands have signed on to FAIR's petition--add your voice today and keep the pressure on NBC to have a real war debate! July saw more U.S. troop fatalities in Afghanistan than any month since the war began nine years ago. Gen. Stanley McChrystal was removed from his commanding post amid controversy, and WikiLeaks released a trove of classified documents that paint a picture of a failing war and unreported civilian casualties. How has NBC's Meet the Press responded to these developments? By inviting on guests to defend the war and Obama's Afghanistan policy. Sundays on NBC have been a steady [...]
Aug
18
2010
Tell NBC: Sunday Morning Needs a Real War Debate
Meet the Press features a parade of Afghanistan hawks
The war in Afghanistan has re-emerged as a major news story, thanks to the controversies surrounding the removal of Gen. Stanley McChrystal and the WikiLeaks release of classified documents. But on NBC's Meet the Press, the opportunity to engage in a robust debate about the war has taken a back seat to promoting the views of the military and supporters of Obama's Afghanistan policies. The most recent example came on August 15, when Meet the Press devoted the entire episode to a profile of Gen. David Petraeus. Host David Gregory's opening indicated it wasn't going to be a feet-to-the-fire interview: [...]
Aug
04
2010
Does the NY Times Factcheck Op-Eds?
Bogus evidence showing Arab apathy towards Palestinians
On August 2, the New York Times published an op-ed arguing that Arabs do not care much about Palestinians--and that this is a good thing, especially for Palestinians. But the argument relied on a "poll" of the Arab world that does not exist. The piece, by historian Efraim Karsh, intended to show that the "conventional wisdom" about the Israel-Palestine conflict--that Arabs "are so passionate about the Palestine problem"--is wrong. His main evidence is this: "What, then, are we to make of a recent survey for the Al Arabiya television network finding that a staggering 71 percent of the Arabic respondents [...]
Jul
12
2010
PBS, George Shultz and Funny Funding
Do PBS’s conflict of interest rules apply?
Many PBS stations around the country will begin airing a three-part, three-hour documentary tonight (7/12/10) about Reagan-era Secretary of State George Shultz. According to the New York Times (7/12/10), the unusually lengthy, completely uncritical tribute is partially sponsored by corporations linked to Shultz's corporate career. The special, Turmoil and Triumph, was funded by the Stephen Bechtel Fund and Charles Schwab. Shultz was a board member at both companies, and was president of the Bechtel Corporation from 1975 to 1982. According to reviews, the documentary takes an overwhelmingly positive, even gushing stance. The Times' Alessandra Stanley points out, "There is no [...]
Jun
24
2010
Inventing a Nation of Deficit Hawks
WaPo, NYT misread polls on public and spending
Republicans and conservative Democrats in Congress like to argue that public concern over federal budget deficits makes it impossible to pass a new round of job-creating stimulus spending. And corporate media like to echo these sentiments, despite there being little evidence that citizens are as concerned about these issues as inside-the-Beltway deficit hawks. In the June 21 New York Times, John Harwood wrote, "The same polls that show voters upset about joblessness also show them upset about deficit spending, which Democratic leaders consider their only short-term method of reducing joblessness." The Washington Post (6/19/10) put the same narrative on its [...]
Jun
21
2010
NYT, WaPo Misremember Gaza War
Blaming Hamas rockets bolsters Israeli PR
In the aftermath of Israel's May 31 raid on the Gaza humanitarian aid flotilla that killed nine activists, the Washington Post and New York Times have propagated an inaccurate historical context that serves to bolster Israeli claims. The conventional rendition is that Israel invaded Gaza at the end of 2008 in order to stop a near-constant stream of rockets fired by Hamas. This history signals to readers that Israel was merely reacting to intolerable and persistent acts of violence. But that is wildly misleading. For much of the second half of that year, a truce between Hamas and Israel largely [...]
