Grab some popcorn. If there is an organization that can and will call the liberal media out on their crap, it’s the Media Research Center, specifically the Newsbusters division. They record a variety of news broadcasts. From the Big Three—CBS, NBC, and ABC, to MSNBC and CNN—this organization records it all. They also have all news broadcasts dating back to the 1980s. Those are all on tape, and there are quite a few of them. Full disclosure: I was an intern at Newsbusters and a multimedia reporter for its news division, CNSNews.com.
Tim Graham, the executive editor, was one of my bosses. And if you want to try and QB sneak some nonsense past him, you better be wearing a helmet and some pads. He was recently invited to speak on a panel hosted by the Paley Center for Media last week. And he made a point that he doesn’t hate journalists, despite the name of the site he edits, which he noted was ironic, and he doesn’t want to be part of the ‘hate media’ movement, but added that it’s a tad odd that these so-called impartial institutions are now obsessed with the truth. It’s laughable because we all know why there was an eight-year period where this wasn’t an obsession: there was a Democrat in the White House. The media hates Trump, which is how, as Graham noted, you get these slogans like "democracy dies in darkness" and yet these folks couldn't even properly report on President Trump feeding koi fish accurately when he went to Japan. This point was not well received by CNN’s Brian Stelter who was also on the panel (via NB):
Graham shot down Stelter’s argument about “hate movements” on the right, saying of the need to hold journalists accountable: “I want to say to Brian very seriously, I don't hate journalists. I don't want to be part of a hate movement.... Yes, I have a site called NewsBusters. But journalism's important. Journalism's important enough that we need to hold it accountable.”
Speaking directly to Stelter, he explained, “And one of the reasons... why we have media watchdog groups is we have these pompous slogans about ‘Democracy dies in darkness’ and ‘The truth is more important than ever.’ Well, why is it more than ever now? Because you don't like the guy who got elected.”
[…]
BRIAN STELTER: Because [Trump is] lying more, Tim. Tim, it’s about the lies.
TIM GRAHAM: Oh, so the Clintons never lied? Is that what we are trying to say? We had eight months of lying about Monica Lewinsky. That was okay?
STELTER: And he was crushed by the media. Bill Clinton was destroyed by the press corps!
GRAHAM: No, he wasn’t.
CHRISTINE QUINN: Oh My God!
STELTER: He lies every day, Tim.
GRAHAM: Go back and read what we wrote.
STELTER: I understand that when we cover the lies, it does make us seem adversarial.
GRAHAM: It is adversarial.
STELTER: And I understand that many voters it makes us seem biased. For us not to acknowledge the deception and deceit and the propaganda coming from the White House would be a failure of journalism. And that's the tension that we're in. And that's what the struggle for newsrooms right now, how to cover Trump fairly without sounding biased.
GRAHAM: You’re not. It’s not fair.
Yeah, and Obama lied as well. But for all their hatred of Trump, the liberal media knows they need him.
Video: To consternation of @BrianStelter, Ted Koppel contended during 10/1 Kalb Report @PressClubDC: “You would be lost without @realDonaldTrump. CNN’s ratings would be in the toilet without Trump.” Stelter: “Ted, you know that’s not true. You’re playing for laughs.” #NPCLive pic.twitter.com/XGZl9yNzqh
— Brent Baker (@BrentHBaker) October 3, 2018
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