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For reporting that is an embarrassment to the profession of journalism, and for being beholden to corporate paymasters rather than the citizens of America.
Before we turn this week's Media Putz nomination over to
BuzzFlash reader Tom Wieliczka of Windsor Locks, Connecticut,
we should
note that the Buzz has long differentiated between the generally
liberal NYT editorial page (although they did support the Iraq
War) and the anti-Democratic news section.
The national news coverage of the Times still includes stories
about Iraq without challenging the Administration's propaganda;
it still tends to caricature Democrats while rarely running
a piece about Bush's numerous personal failings and lies;
and was one of the key papers beating the drums for the "investigations" used
by the Republicans to try and impeach Clinton. The Times
also rode the bandwagon of ridiculing Al Gore while generally
giving
Bush a pass in the 2000 election.
The Times has many good, solid reporters and columnists, but
it is clear that its editors lean toward appeasing the Republicans
(including apologizing for running the paid-for MoveOn.org
ad), and its publisher had to be dragged kicking and screaming
before he forced Judith Miller to leave the paper.
It has a secular outlook, but politically its "news" is
tilted toward Bush, particularly in its White House and foreign
policy coverage. Now, Tom, take it away:
"I nominate the entire New York Times Staff, from
the Editor down to every NYT Reporter, as this week's Media
Putzes.
As of October 2nd at 4pm, I did a search on the NY Times
Web site with no date restrictions. I did not find ONE article
that referenced the "Phony Soldier" comment that
Rush Limbaugh made last week.
I also did a NY Times search, going back as far as I could,
and could not find one article about Limbaugh calling Paul
Hackett and Max Cleland "Staff Puke," after they
lost their elections. Again, I found no hits.
It's not like The New York Times does not write anything
about Limbaugh in their paper. Just doing a search on "Limbaugh" by
itself gave me 1,241 hits.
How ironic that when I did a search on the NY Times Web site
for any articles they had about MoveOn and General Petraeus
fiasco, I had 31 hits.
Excuse me but don't all the Republicans and talking heads
on the Rightwing Media always refer to anything written in
The
New York Times as "Liberal" or as "The Liberal
Media"? Years ago, Eric Alterman wrote a book with the
perfect title. It was: "Liberal Media? What Liberal Media?" If
this does not prove that the Mainstream Media we are Reading
and Watching today is very conservative, then nothing will.
The New York Times has dropped the ball big time on how Rush
Limbaugh slanders our soldiers and then gets away with it
in the MSM. They deserve this week's Media Putz Award --
BIG TIME!!"
We aren't as sweeping in our condemnation of the NYT as Tom
is, and don't think the entire staff is at fault (Paul Krugman
is in our pantheon of columnist heroes), but he makes a solid
point, doesn't he?
People forget that news editors make subjective judgments
all the time about what "news" is covered and how
it is reported. In that regard, the political news content
at
the NYT does frequently reach the level of Media Putzdom
-- and the editors call the shots.
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