Matthew Balan

a News Analyst
Author Articles

CBS's Stahl Proclaims 'Stately' Al Sharpton's 'Metamorphosis'

CBS's Lesley Stahl played up how Al Sharpton apparently "has gone through something of a metamorphosis" as she spotlighted the "street-protest agitator...now trusted White House adviser" on ...

CBS Heralds Rahm Emanuel 'Weeding Out Corruption' in Chicago

CBS's Cynthia Bowers trumpeted the inauguration of incoming Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Monday's Early Show, highlighting how the former Obama chief of staff went "weeding in a community garden. ...

CBS Gives Obama Over 26 Minutes to Lecture on the Economy

CBS gave President Obama over 26 and a half minutes to answer 12 questions related to the economy during a town hall aired on Thursday's Early Show. Obama got six uninterrupted minutes to answer ...

CBS Plays Up Obama's Mockery of GOP on Border Security, No Opposing Clip

On Wednesday's Early Show. CBS's Bill Plante highlighted President Obama's recent mockery against Republicans on border security, but omitted playing an opposing clip from a GOP politico. The ...

NPR's Liasson Excludes Amnesty Opponents from Immigration Story

NPR's Mara Liasson noticeably left out anti-illegal immigration conservatives on Tuesday's Morning Edition as she reported on President's Obama's latest push for "comprehensive" immigration ...

CBS Omits Waterboarding, Other Key Issues from Obama Interview

On Sunday's 60 Minutes, CBS's Steve Kroft failed to bring up key issues related to the killing of Osama bin Laden during an interview of President Obama. Most prominently, Kroft omitted the ...

NPR Boosts Obama: Bin Laden Death Political 'Game Changer'

On Monday and Tuesday, NPR played up how Osama Bin Laden's death might translate into a political win for President Obama. Mara Liasson trumpeted the "huge victory" for the President and ...

NPR Falsely Claims Vieira 'Passively' Dealt With Trump's Birtherism

On Wednesday's All Things Considered, NPR's David Folkenflik erroneously claimed that NBC's Meredith Vieira "notably failed to contradict Donald Trump or others casting doubt on where Mr. Obama ...

CBS: Ryan Budget Opponents 'Poignant'; Touted 'Nasty' Tea Parties in 2009

CBS's Early Show on Wednesday played up how opponents of Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan shouted down GOP representatives at recent town hall meetings, but downplayed them as "less than friendly," ...

NPR: Arizona 'Dropped a Bomb' in Illegal Immigration Debate with SB 1070

On Thursday's All Things Considered, NPR's Robert Siegel used violent imagery to underline the supposed extreme nature of Arizona's SB 1070 law targeting illegal immigration: "It has been of one ...

CBS Highlights Tea Party Rallies, But Also Plays Up Bad Poll Numbers

CBS's Jan Crawford spotlighted the Tea Party movement on Monday's Early Show, but also played up how it might present a "challenge" for potential Republican presidential candidates due its ...

CBS: GOP Wants 'More Big Cuts'? Presses Cantor for 'Give and Take' on Budget

On Tuesday's Early Show, CBS's Bill Plante forwarded the liberal impression that the proposed budget compromise includes "big spending cuts," despite only reducing $38.5 billion from trillions in ...

CBS Goes to Statue of Liberty to Hype Shutdown's 'Ripple Effect'

On Friday's Early Show, CBS's Betty Nguyen used the Statue of Liberty as a live backdrop to play up how "visitors would miss out on the Smithsonian and its 19 museums...even the National Zoo" if ...

NPR Leans Toward Democrats 7 to 3 on Federal Budget Showdown

NPR's Ari Shapiro slanted towards President Obama and two of his Democratic allies in Congress on Thursday's Morning Edition on the continuing battle over the federal budget, playing seven ...

NPR Highlights 'McCarthyism' Charge Against Wisconsin GOP

On Monday's Morning Edition, NPR's David Schaper slanted towards a professor and his allies in academia who object to a recent open records request into his e-mails from the Wisconsin GOP, playing ...

NPR Carries Water for President Obama's Energy Policy

On Wednesday's All Things Considered, NPR's Ari Shapiro acted as a stenographer for the Obama administration's energy proposals. Shapiro played four clips from the President's recent speech on the ...

NPR: 'Get Tough' Texas GOP No Longer 'Welcoming' of Illegal Immigration

NPR's Wade Goodwyn noticeably minimized the presence of anti-illegal immigration conservatives from Texas on Tuesday's All Things Considered. Goodwyn tilted towards so-called "welcoming" and ...

NPR Uses 'The China Syndrome,' 'On the Beach' to Hype Radiation Threat

On Monday's All Things Considered, NPR's Bob Mondello used movies about fictional nuclear disasters, such as "The China Syndrome" and "Silkwood," to play up atomic energy's hazards. Mondello ...

In CNN Special, Soledad O'Brien Slants Towards Muslims, Omits Woman's Connection to Mosque

CNN's Soledad O'Brien's Sunday documentary about the controversial mosque in Murfreesboro, Tennessee predictably leaned towards the local Muslims who want it built. O'Brien brushed aside an ...

NPR Slants 7 to 2 Towards Backers of Federal Funding of Public Broadcasting

On Thursday's All Things Considered, NPR's Jim Zarroli vouched for continuing federal funding of public broadcasting by lining up seven sound bites from three supporters of the medium, versus only ...