The favorable coverage of the agreed framework for future talks over Iran’s nuclear program continued on Friday morning as the network newscasts hailed the “legacy defining moment now within reach” for President Obama and compared Iranian “hardliners” to deal skeptics in the U.S. and Israel.
Today co-host Savannah Guthrie began the program’s coverage by hailing the “landmark deal” with NBC News national correspondent Peter Alexander fretting that “Republicans and the Israeli prime minister” are “clearly not on board” as “a legacy-defining moment” appeared “now within reach” for the President. [Video forthcoming]
To reach that point, Alexander reported that the President “must now fend off Republican critics already attacking his Iran framework” and include Republican Senator Tom Cotton (Ark.), who “spearheaded that controversial letter last month opposing any deal.”
At one point, Alexander promoted how “[e]ven regular Iranians took to Twitter, posting selfies with President Obama after Iran's state run TV took the unusual step of showing a U.S. President's remarks live and uncensored.”
Following Alexander’s report, Guthrie remarked to Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd that “a lot of people were surprised this deal happened at all, but also that it had as many specifics as it seems to” to which Todd responded that it has been “something of a relief to the administration.”
Shifting gears to how the administration will spin the framework, Todd stated that “one of the things that is benefitting early on is that this deal is being announced while Congress is not in town” and thus provides them “time to sell it on their own without too much push back.”
In a departure from the rest of the coverage across all three networks, Guthrie bizarrely declared to Todd that skepticism about the announcement seemed to be “somewhat muted”:
[I]t seemed to me, in a way, as controversial as the deal is, the response to it, the criticism of it was somewhat muted. You don't see people falling all over themselves to get on TV or issue these dueling press releases and that kind of thing. Are people holding their fire?
Meanwhile, ABC’s Good Morning America proclaimed the agreement to be “historic” with chief foreign correspondent Terry Moran saying from Switzerland that “we witnessed happened here over the last few days and nights would have been unthinkable a few years ago” considering the “poisoned history” between the U.S. and Iran.
Citing the “unprecedented inspections and monitoring” for Iranian facilities agreed upon, Moran reported that Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif received “a hero's welcome” while Iranians “were partying in the streets when the deal was announced last night, hoping for desperately needed economic relief from those crippling sanctions.”
Later in the show, news-reader Amy Robach covered the story by becoming the latest member of the media to compare those against a deal in Iran to those in the U.S. and Israel [emphasis mine]:
President Obama is vowing to convince skeptics in Congress that the historic nuclear agreement with Iran is a win for the U.S. negotiators have come up with a basic framework. Iran has agreed to allow unprecedented inspections and monitoring of nuclear facilities for at least 20 years. In exchange, crippling economic sanctions will be lifted over time but the deal still faces months of talks, as well as opposition from hard-liners in the U.S., Iran and Israel.
Over on the Friday edition of CBS This Morning, co-host Charlie Rose also touted the “joyous reception” to the agreement by Iranians as “[c]rowds mobbed” Zarif “as he returned” to “a hero’s welcome.” State Department correspondent Margaret Brennan said from Switzerland that it was “hard-won diplomatic framework” and also noted that “[t]he jubilant reaction to the deal on the streets of Tehran was not shared by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.”
Besides that, the mood on the newscast was different from that offered by ABC and NBC. Rose led off the top of the show by telling viewers that “even Democrats say they need to know more” as Obama was “hammered by Israel and Congress.” During the excerpts played of her interview with Secretary of State John Kerry, Brennan grilled Kerry on how the U.S. and its allies plan on ensuring that Iran “won’t cheat” despite that fact that “Iran has been clashing with inspectors for years.”
The favorable coverage on the part of ABC and NBC was also on full display during their Thursday evening newscasts. ABC’s World News Tonight promoted the “historic deal” coming after decades of cold relations while NBC’s Andrea Mitchell gushed on NBC Nightly News that the agreement could lead to “the United States...entering a new era in its relations with Iran.”
The relevant portions of the transcript from NBC’s Today on April 3 can be found below.
NBC’s Today
April 3, 2015
7:03 a.m. Eastern[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Developing Story; Controversy Over Iran Nuclear Deal; Obama Touts “Framework” as GOP Pushes Back]
GUTHRIE: Another big story this morning. How this landmark deal to stop Iran from getting the bomb is now being received this morning not only in Washington, but around the world. The President has insisted this is a good deal, but it may proof to be a very tough sell. Let’s get right to NBC’s Peter Alexander at the White House. Peter, good morning to you.
PETER ALEXANDER: Savannah, good morning to you. Here at the White House, they are calling this unprecedented, but the Republicans and the Israeli prime minister clearly not on board. This morning, Benjamin Netanyahu already blasting the framework saying it threatens the survival of Israel. With a legacy-defining moment now within reach.
OBAMA: It is a good deal. A deal that meets our core objectives.
ALEXANDER: President Obama must now fend off Republican critics already attacking his Iran framework.
(....)
ALEXANDER: Even regular Iranians took to Twitter, posting selfies with President Obama after Iran's state run TV took the unusual step of showing a U.S. President's remarks live and uncensored. Now the clock starts again. The deadline for a final agreement is June 30. This is, obviously, complicated stuff as a nuclear expert said think of it as “Honey, I Shrunk the Program.” Still, the devil is in the details here as the President himself conceded nothing is agreed to, Savannah, until everything is agreed to.
GUTHRIE: As is so often the case. Peter Alexander at the White House, thank you. Let’s to Chuck Todd. He is moderator of Meet the Press. Chuck, good morning to you.
MEET THE PRESS MODERATOR CHUCK TODD: Good Morning Savannah.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Developing Story; The President and the Iran Deal; Cites Promise of “Framework” as Israel, GOP Balk]
GUTHRIE: Think a lot of people were surprised this deal happened at all, but also that it had as many specifics as it seems to.
TODD: Not only that, it was better than what had been leaking out and, certainly, that's something of a relief to the administration. They got Iran to concede to some things. You know, there was concern that the sanctions would get lifted before there would be some verification. That wasn't the case at all. You know, Savannah, one of the things that is benefiting early on is that this deal is being announced while Congress is not in town. They’re all broke – they’re all in recess for the holiday, so it gives time to sell it on their own without too much push back.
GUTHRIE: I wondered about that because, Chuck, I don't know if you agree, but it seemed to me, in a way, as controversial as the deal is, the response to it, the criticism of it was somewhat muted. You don't see people falling all over themselves to get on TV or issue these dueling press releases and that kind of thing. Are people holding their fire?
TODD: Call it the Good Friday press strategy, if you want to call it that because, simply, they are not in town and I do think there are some that are going to hold their fire. They want to see how this is going to play out. They want to see the details of the plan. The plan does have more details in it. There is two and a half months before you have the actual signed, sealed, and delivered part of the deal. So, I do think that the timing of it and the timing of the announcement is beneficial simply because so many of the members are out of town.
