'Today' Show Panel Praises Pop Culture Being 'Ahead of the Courts' on

June 27th, 2013 3:44 PM
Leading off a panel discussion on Thursday's NBC Today applauding the Supreme Court's gay marriage decisions, co-host Natalie Morales proclaimed: "Wednesday's historic ruling on same-sex marriage is being celebrated across the country, but it was sixteen years ago when Ellen Degeneres marked a milestone, breaking a huge barrier in front of millions of people on primetime TV." [Listen to the…

Morning Shows Hype Angelina Jolie's Mastectomies With Nearly 27 Minute

May 14th, 2013 6:23 PM
ABC and NBC led their morning shows on Tuesday with nearly 10 minutes of "breaking news" coverage of Angelina Jolie's double mastectomy. This celebrity-driven story was apparently deemed more important than abortionist Dr. Kermit Gosnell being found guilty of three counts of first-degree murder, as Good Morning America and Today devoted just 38 seconds to the Gosnell trial. (audio clips of…

ABC, CBS and NBC Reluctant to Attach Obama's Name to AP Scandal

May 14th, 2013 4:12 PM
While the Big Three (ABC, CBS and NBC) networks have all done stories on the Obama administration's seizure of Associated Press (AP) reporters phone records, what is striking is their reluctance to attach Barack Obama's name to the controversy. In seven total stories aired on their evening and morning shows, since the story broke on Monday afternoon, Obama's name was used only six times.…

NBC Host Recalls Pilot Urging Passengers to Sign Petition Against FAA

April 24th, 2013 5:34 PM
On Wednesday's NBC Today, news anchor Natalie Morales complained about having a flight delayed due to the FAA furloughing air traffic controllers in the wake of the sequester: "I was traveling to Boston yesterday, which is a 50-minute flight, shuttle. And it took me about two and a half hours to get there....the pilots got on and they said, 'It's not the airline's fault....you can go online and…

Big Three Spotlight 'Backlash' Over President Obama's Compliment; Omit

April 5th, 2013 4:34 PM
ABC, CBS, and NBC's Friday morning shows all devoted air time to President Obama labeling California Attorney General Kamala Harris "the best-looking attorney general in the country" at a fundraiser on Thursday. Unsurprisingly, a panel on NBC's Today tried to explain away the remark. Willie Geist asserted, "I think he [Obama] was making a joke." CBS This Morning's Norah O'Donnell was tougher on…

Al Roker Appalled by Poll Showing 37 Percent Believe Global Warming is

April 3rd, 2013 2:03 PM
NBC's Al Roker was appalled by a poll of conspiracy theories that showed 37 percent of those surveyed believed global warming was a hoax. During a discussion, on Wednesday's Today show, of a Public Policy Polling survey that included respondents' views on everything from the John F. Kennedy assassination to the existence of Bigfoot, co-host Willie Geist reported: "Global warming is a hoax. Thirty…

MSNBC's Contessa Brewer Says Asking for Balance on Gays Is Like Asking

March 25th, 2013 10:24 PM
Social conservative Peter LaBarbera crashed a big liberal-media party in New York – the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association “Headlines and Headliners” fundraiser, hosted by NBC Universal. The long list of media elite guests raised $75,000 for the gay activist group. Former daytime MSNBC anchor Contessa Brewer (now consigned to hosting the Sunday night show "Caught on  Camera")…

ABC Continues Blackout on Obama's Gun Control Setback; CBS, NBC Minimi

March 21st, 2013 3:28 PM
ABC continued ignoring Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's move on Tuesday to drop a proposed federal ban on so-called assault weapons. Neither Wednesday's World News nor Thursday's Good Morning America covered the congressional development. This lack of coverage stands out in light of the network's hype of President Obama's supposedly "dramatic and emotional" lobbying effort for the ban during…

NBC Parrots White House Threat to Cancel Easter Egg Roll, Ignores It D

March 19th, 2013 11:13 AM
On Tuesday's NBC Today, news reader Natalie Morales warned viewers: "With a potential government shutdown looming later on this month, the White House may have to cancel its annual Easter Egg Roll." In the report that followed, White House correspondent Kristen Welker added that the "event might be in jeopardy....due to the ongoing budget battles here in Washington." [Listen to the audio or…

NBC Hypes 'Republican Infighting' at CPAC for GOP 'Trying to Rehabilit

March 18th, 2013 10:59 AM
On Monday's NBC Today, news reader Natalie Morales hyped how "Republican infighting broke out this weekend at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference." In the report that followed, political director Chuck Todd bolstered the meme: "...the party is trying to rehabilitate its image, solve an identity crisis, and it means that feuds are breaking out all over..." [Listen to the audio or…

NBC Proclaims 'Hero's Sendoff' for Chavez, 'A Harsh Critic of the U.S

March 8th, 2013 4:57 PM
Introducing a brief report on Friday's NBC Today about the funeral proceedings for socialist Venezuelan strong man Hugo Chavez, news reader Natalie Morales announced: "In Venezuela, a hero's send-off today for Hugo Chavez, a harsh critic of the U.S. who ruled for 14 years." The headline on screen during the segment read: "Saluting Chavez; World Leaders in Venezuela for President's Funeral."…

CBS, NBC Hype 'The Most Restrictive Abortion Law in the Country

March 7th, 2013 5:01 PM
On Wednesday and Thursday, two of the Big Three networks ballyhooed how the Arkansas state legislature overrode Governor Mike Beebe's veto of a pro-life bill that outlaws abortion once the unborn baby's heartbeat is detected. Scott Pelley hyped "the most restrictive abortion law in the country" on Wednesday's CBS Evening News, echoing the New York Times' label of the new law – "the country's…

Unlike NBC, MSNBC Continues to Fail To Identify Jesse Jackson Jr. as D

February 21st, 2013 3:36 PM
Sadly, MSNBC cannot follow sister network NBC’s lead in reporting the story of disgraced Democrat Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill) and his impending prison sentence for illegally using campaign funds for personal usage.  On the February 20 edition of NBC Nightly News as well as on the February 21 edition of Today, both shows correctly identify Jesse Jackson Jr. as a Democrat, but their MSNBC morning…

NBC's 'Today' Praises Obama and Clinton's 'Very Warm Friendship'; A 'T

January 28th, 2013 4:04 PM
After gushing coverage on Monday's NBC Today over Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton "finishing one another's sentences" in a joint interview, a four-minute panel discussion at the top of the morning show's 9 a.m. et hour was devoted to the topic as well, with co-host Tamron Hall declaring: "I was looking at the body language a lot, other than the words, and they leaned in together...both leaning…