All three networks on Tuesday hyped Planned Parenthood’s Cecile Richards appearing before Congress, insisting the pro-abortion leader will “staunchly defend” her organization in the wake of the sting videos. During the news briefs, ABC and CBS didn’t show any of hidden videos.
NBC’s Today played eight seconds of the footage. Co-host Tamron Hall promoted, “The organization's president Cecile Richards is expected to staunchly defend Planned Parenthood’s donation of tissue from aborted fetuses, saying it's a ‘minuscule part of its work providing health services for women.’”
On ABC’s Good Morning America, Amy Robach similarly touted, “In remarks prepared for her appearance, Cecile Richards says she's proud her organization is providing fetal tissue to researchers. She denounces the anti-abortion activists whose secretly recorded videos have raised questions about that practice.”
Robach added that Richards will call “the activists fraudulent and unethical.”
On CBS This Morning, co-host Norah O’Donnell pitted the abortion supporter against “Republican critics.” She continued, “Cecile Richards will defend the way her organization provides fetal tissue to researchers.”
According to an analysis by the Media Research Center, after two months the networks only aired 0.13 percent of the Planned Parenthood videos.
Transcripts of the September 29 segments can be found below:
GMA
8:01AMY ROBACH: Our big story this morning, the president of Planned Parenthood appearing before Congress today to answer questions about those highly controversial undercover videos. In remarks prepared for her appearance, Cecile Richards says she's proud her organization is providing fetal tissue to researchers. She denounces the anti-abortion activists whose secretly recorded videos have raised questions about that practice. She’s calling the activists fraudulent and unethical.
CBS This Morning
7:16NORAH O’DONNELL: At a House committee meeting this morning, Planned Parenthood’s President faces a group of Republican critics. Cecile Richards will defend the way her organization provides fetal tissue to researchers. We just talked about how the issue has been connected to the threat of a government shutdown, Republicans in Congress are using it to try and stop all federal funding for Planned Parenthood.
Today
7:18TAMRON HALL: Planned Parenthood will go before Congress for the first time today since the release of undercover videos. The organization's president Cecile Richards is expected to staunchly defend Planned Parenthood’s donation of tissue from aborted fetuses, saying it's a “minuscule part of its work providing health services for women.” An abortion opponent obtained the video by posing as an executive for a fake company seeking to buy fetal tissue.
