Nets Remember Heston as 'Polarizing' and 'Controversial' --4/7/2008

1. Nets Remember Heston as 'Polarizing' and 'Controversial'
Remembering Charlton Heston, who died Saturday night in his Beverly Hills home at age 84, the ABC and CBS anchors on Sunday tarnished the actor's political activity on behalf of conservative causes, particularly his leadership of the NRA, as "polarizing" and "controversial." Dan Harris, anchor of ABC's World News, asserted: "As President of the National Rifle Association, he became one of the most-polarizing figures in American politics." CBS Evening News anchor Russ Mitchell declared: "Once the quintessential big screen hero, in his later years he drew as much attention for his controversial politics." Those pro-gun rights views were certainly "controversial" to network journalists who disagreed with him and so hit him repeatedly from the left on the issue in 1998 and 2001 morning show interviews, especially Katie Couric.

2. ABC Marks MLK Death By Featuring Jackson's Left-Wing Bombast
In a story from Memphis on the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King in that city, ABC's Steve Osunsami acknowledged great economic progress for black citizens with "a definable black middle class," but warned "there are still large disparities." He then featured a man at the anniversary events who insisted "we're waiting for progress" followed by Jesse Jackson using the solemn occasion to complain about the Iraq war and tax cuts: "We are freer but less equal. To that extent, we spend $3 trillion on the war in Iraq and give tax breaks to the wealthy. You have this body of poverty, growing poverty in our cities. And our response to it is what? First-class jails and second-class schools." The Reverend Bill Kyle, who was with King when he was murdered, rued that "now that we have the right to go to a school, we need the money to pay the tuition," before Osunsami concluded by agreeing King's dream of equality remains unfulfilled: "Not quite what Dr. King had dreamed. But some dreams take a mighty long time to realize."

3. CBS's Early Show Asks: 'Is America Broken?'
Touting a new CBS News/New York Times poll on Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Maggie Rodriguez teased an upcoming segment on the poll's findings: "Is America broken? In a new CBS News poll, 81 percent of Americans believe this country's on the wrong track. Never has that number been so high." Co-host Harry Smith later introduced the segment by declaring: "A new CBS News/New York Times poll shows 81 percent of Americans say the country is headed in the wrong direction. The 14 percent who think we're on the right track is all -- an all-time low in the 25 years that CBS News has been asking the question." Conveniently, as Smith pointed out, CBS News began asking that question in 1983, during the Reagan administration, and never asked the poll question during the Carter administration. If they had, one might suspect that quite a few Americans thought the country was "headed in the wrong direction" at the time.

4. CNN Sympathetically Portrays Obama's Church as 'Under Siege'
CNN correspondent Susan Roesgen, reporting live from in front Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ on Thursday's The Situation Room, presented a sympathetic view of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and his house of worship as being "under siege" -- from the national media. "Beyond what they say is the hurtful glare of the cameras, church leaders also say parishioners are hounded by reporters and they say the church received bomb threats. A church that feels under siege, now getting national support." Nearly the entire three minute segment, outside of Roesgen's voice-overs and on-camera reporting, consisted of soundbites of the supporters of the church.

5. ABC Touts One Sided, Positive Take on Pregnant 'Man'
On Friday's Good Morning America, for the second day in a row, and the third time in a little over a week, the ABC program promoted the story of a transgendered man who is having a baby via artificial insemination. At no time did GMA feature any guest to challenge or question the psychological ramifications for a child who was born from a pregnant "father." During the April 4 segment on the subject, GMA guest news anchor David Muir described Thomas Beatie's decision as "very controversial." One would assume that a controversial decision would have two sides to it. But over the course of three segments, totaling ten minutes and 16 seconds, the closest the network program got was on April 3, when psychologist Jeffrey Gardere mildly advised: "It really is incumbent upon this individual, his wife, to try to give this as much dignity as possible, to not make it a joke, to not make it that something that's cheap."

Nets Remember Heston as 'Polarizing'
and 'Controversial'

Remembering Charlton Heston, who died Saturday night in his Beverly Hills home at age 84, the ABC and CBS anchors on Sunday tarnished the actor's political activity on behalf of conservative causes, particularly his leadership of the NRA, as "polarizing" and "controversial." Dan Harris, anchor of ABC's World News, asserted: "As President of the National Rifle Association, he became one of the most-polarizing figures in American politics." CBS Evening News anchor Russ Mitchell declared: "Once the quintessential big screen hero, in his later years he drew as much attention for his controversial politics."

Those pro-gun rights views were certainly "controversial" to network journalists who disagreed with him and so hit him repeatedly from the left on the issue in 1998 and 2001 morning show interviews, especially Katie Couric.

[This item, by the MRC's Brent Baker, will be posted Monday morning on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]

For instance, check out how Couric pressed him on the June 8, 1998 Today show:

COURIC: Speaking of gun safety and children, Mr. Heston, as you well know, and in fact as everyone in this country knows, there has been a spate of school shootings recently that have been quite disturbing to all Americans. Given the fact that these seem to be happening with greater frequency has it caused you to rethink your philosophy about children and guns and the accessibility of guns for children?...

COURIC: Getting back to kids and guns, if you will indulge me for a moment. You cannot think of any other position the NRA could take in terms of trying to decrease the number of school shootings? You feel like this is not your bailiwick, this is not your problem?
HESTON: Not at all. As I told you the NRA spends more money, more time-
COURIC, cutting him off: Other than education.
HESTON: Well, what would you suppose? What would you suggest?
COURIC: I don't know, perhaps greater restrictions.

Those quotes, with a video/audio clip (Windows Media video, Real video or MP3 audio), are in the MRC's 2006 "Meet the Real Katie Couric: CBS's New Star Adores Liberals, Scolds Conservatives -- And Thinks America Should Be More Like France." Go to: www.mrc.org

For more from Heston's interviews that morning, check the MRC's June 9, 1998 CyberAlert:

Congratulations, Mr. Heston, on your election as President of the NRA. Now, embrace liberal gun control laws and we'll praise you. If you don't, we'll disparage you. So, it seemed, the networks decided. Monday morning Heston made the rounds of the three morning shows and on each was hit from the left on the irrationality of his opposition to gun control....

That's online at: www.mediaresearch.org

Three years later Heston returned to the Today show and tried to promote the DVD release of Bur Hur, but Couric was a lot more interested in pushing further gun control, as recounted in the Wednesday, March 14, 2001 CyberAlert:

Charlton Heston agreed to an appearance on NBC's Today to plug the release on DVD of Ben Hur, but after just a little bit of time on that Katie Couric pounded away at the NRA President on gun control, pressing him with stats and arguments from Handgun Control, Inc.

MRC analyst Geoffrey Dickens took down her arguments in the form of questions on the March 13 show:

-- "Obviously because of your role in the National Rifle Association I want to get a couple of quick comments if I could Mr. Heston from you on this recent shooting. Particularly at, in Santana High School outside of San Diego. When you heard about that, I mean what was your reaction?"

-- "Some people, some people though feel it, it may be about maladjusted kids. But it is about guns as well and, and how easy it is to get guns in this country. Do you think-"

-- "Well, you know, this, this boy Andy Williams' father did have guns in the home. What do you think about some kind of smart technology that would make it more difficult for children to use guns?"

-- "Well, what, I mean is that something you could support as an advocate of the National Rifle Association?"

-- "And do you think gun manufacturers will be more receptive than they have been already? Some are making a move in that direction?"

-- "Handgun Control cites a statistic that our firearms deaths of children under the age of 15 is twelve times that of 25 other industrial nations combined. Is it all about maladjusted kids, if, if those, those numbers are so stunning are there that many more maladjusted kids in this country than there are in 25 industrial nations combined?"

-- "Do you think that, that, that guns are to blame at all in any way shape or form for the increase in violence in this country?"

-- "Do you find that you have, that you have a more receptive audience for that philosophy with, with the Bush administration?"

-- "This is gonna be my last question. Do you, do you feel more comfortable with George W. Bush in the White House? Do you think you have a more receptive administration?"

-- "Alright Charlton Heston. Again, congratulations on the DVD release of Ben Hur."

Nice afterthought.

For that 2001 CyberAlert: www.mediaresearch.org

A portion of the obituary story on the Sunday, April 6 World News on ABC:

DAN HARRIS: As President of the National Rifle Association, he became one of the most-polarizing figures in American politics.
PETER JENNINGS, IN 2002 INTERVIEW: When stand up at the NRA convention and you hold the rifle in your hand and you make that extraordinary gesture. It's not wholly dissimilar from the gesture you made in The Ten Commandments.
HESTON TO JENNINGS: That's true. They call it acting. I know when I stand and I say "from my cold, dead hands," I know that I'm not really doing that. I'm acting.
HARRIS: His acting career started on the stage, just after World War II, struggling to build a career in plays, on televison and in B-movies. When he finally hit the big time, he used his acting to fuel his activism. At first, for the Left campaigning for civil rights, even marching with Martin Luther King. By the 90s, his politics had become decidedly conservative.
HESTON, ARCHIVE VIDEO: Mr. Clinton, sir. America doesn't trust you with our 21-year-old daughters and we sure Lord don't trust you with our guns.

Mr. Heston was a judge for the MRC's "The Best Notable Quotables of 1993: The Sixth Annual Awards for the Year's Worst Reporting." See: www.mediaresearch.org

ABC Marks MLK Death By Featuring Jackson's
Left-Wing Bombast

In a story from Memphis on the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King in that city, ABC's Steve Osunsami acknowledged great economic progress for black citizens with "a definable black middle class," but warned "there are still large disparities." He then featured a man at the anniversary events who insisted "we're waiting for progress" followed by Jesse Jackson using the solemn occasion to complain about the Iraq war and tax cuts: "We are freer but less equal. To that extent, we spend $3 trillion on the war in Iraq and give tax breaks to the wealthy. You have this body of poverty, growing poverty in our cities. And our response to it is what? First-class jails and second-class schools."

The Reverend Bill Kyle, who was with King when he was murdered, rued that "now that we have the right to go to a school, we need the money to pay the tuition," before Osunsami concluded by agreeing King's dream of equality remains unfulfilled: "Not quite what Dr. King had dreamed. But some dreams take a mighty long time to realize."

[This item, by the MRC's Brent Baker, was posted Friday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]

Transcript of the story on the Friday, April 4 World News on ABC anchored by George Stephanopoulos:

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Dr. King was in Memphis to march with the city's striking sanitation workers. At the time, they were making $1.80 an hour. Their work was dirty and degrading, two had been crushed to death by faulty equipment. The strikers still living will never forget King. Nor will those on the motel balcony that evening. Here's Steve Osunsami.

ARCHIVAL NEWS AUDIO: The shot apparently came from an apartment building directly across the street.
STEVE OSUNSAMI: Those who were there, will never forget.
JESSE JACKSON: I remember Andy Young feeling his pulse. I remember Billy Kyle putting a sheet here to at least cover the blood flow.
REVEREND BILL KYLE: I rushed to his side. There was a gaping hole in the right side of his face. There was a bigger wound under his shirt.
JACKSON: I was in trauma then. I'm in pain today. It hurts me. A man 39 years old, who did so much to make America and the world better.
OSUNSAMI: Today, we went back to visit the Memphis garbage workers who dared to stand up for higher wages and equal treatment. Alen Sanders is still on the job and says he'll never forget the struggle. Only the black workers picked up the city's garbage.
ALEN SANDER: Had to work all day. Sleet, snow, ice. You couldn't stop. Couldn't take a break. Couldn't do anything.
OSUNSAMI: In time, the sanitation workers did get their raise. That moment on the balcony, the real start for the battle of economic and not just racial equality. Some of Dr. King's dream has been fulfilled. There is a definable black middle class. And a whole generation of black children who've never had to live the struggle of the 1960s. But four decades later and there are still large disparities.
OSUNSAMI TO A GROUP: How much progress, or how little progress, do you think we've made in 40 years?
DEAN BUTLER: I think it's more of a sign of hope. Not necessarily progress. We're waiting for progress.
JACKSON: We are freer but less equal. To that extent, we spend $3 trillion on the war in Iraq and give tax breaks to the wealthy. You have this body of poverty, growing poverty in our cities. And our response to it is what? First-class jails and second-class schools.
KYLE: Now that we have the right to go to a school, we need the money to pay the tuition.
OSUNSAMI: Not quite what Dr. King had dreamed. But some dreams take a mighty long time to realize. Steve Osunsami, ABC News, Memphis.

CBS's Early Show Asks: 'Is America
Broken?'

Touting a new CBS News/New York Times poll on Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Maggie Rodriguez teased an upcoming segment on the poll's findings: "Is America broken? In a new CBS News poll, 81 percent of Americans believe this country's on the wrong track. Never has that number been so high."

Co-host Harry Smith later introduced the segment by declaring: "A new CBS News/New York Times poll shows 81 percent of Americans say the country is headed in the wrong direction. The 14 percent who think we're on the right track is all -- an all-time low in the 25 years that CBS News has been asking the question." Conveniently, as Smith pointed out, CBS News began asking that question in 1983, during the Reagan administration, and never asked the poll question during the Carter administration. If they had, one might suspect that quite a few Americans thought the country was "headed in the wrong direction" at the time.

Smith then highlighted a restaurant owner in New Jersey, Marianne Cuneo-Powell, who "is cutting costs any way she can." Smith went to show how Powell's situation reflected the poll numbers: "She is among the 78 percent of Americans who believe the economy is in bad condition...Like Marianne, two-thirds of Americans believe the U.S. economy is already in a recession. And they are not encouraged by their leaders in Washington...Only 21 percent of Americans approve of President Bush's handling of the economy." Of course a recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth, not based on what the latest poll numbers say.

[This item, by the MRC's Kyle Drennen, was posted Friday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]

Smith observed: "Voters have more confidence on economic issues in Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, than they do in Republican John McCain." Smith then turned to CBS political analyst Jeff Greenfield, who explained: "Unsurprisingly, when economic times are tough and the Republicans have been in power for eight years, they're more skeptical about the Republican, in this case John McCain, than they are about the Democrats. But nobody gets highly confident marks here."

Smith and Greenfield also discussed the belief that Republicans are seen as favoring the rich with their economic policies:

SMITH: Yeah, it's interesting because when they go then to the question, who do these candidates particularly favor, middle class voters or rich, this is really stunning.
GREENFIELD: It is. Only 13 percent think that Obama would favor the rich. 23 percent Clinton. But more than half of the registered voters say McCain would. That's an endemic Republican problem. Republicans always have to convince voters they're not for the rich, just like Democrats have to convince voters they're tough enough. But in this economic mood it tells you why John McCain is so anxious to separate himself, Harry, from the Bush administration. Four more years is not going to be the chant at the Republican convention, certainly not about the economy.

CNN Sympathetically Portrays Obama's
Church as 'Under Siege'

CNN correspondent Susan Roesgen, reporting live from in front Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ on Thursday's The Situation Room, presented a sympathetic view of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and his house of worship as being "under siege" -- from the national media. "Beyond what they say is the hurtful glare of the cameras, church leaders also say parishioners are hounded by reporters and they say the church received bomb threats. A church that feels under siege, now getting national support." Nearly the entire three minute segment, outside of Roesgen's voice-overs and on-camera reporting, consisted of soundbites of the supporters of the church.

Besides featuring nobody but its supporters, Roesgen also painted the church and its congregations as victims of the controversy and of the news media. "I think they feel angry and they feel used. When they have talked about certain reporters, they were basically talking about reporters who were rude enough to go into the pews and hand out their business cards during the services, something of course CNN would never do."

[This item, by Matthew Balan, was posted Friday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]

The report, which aired 41 minutes into the 5 pm Eastern hour of the CNN program, featured the Rev. Michael Kinnamon of the liberal National Council of Churches; the Rev. Otis Moss, the current pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ; and the Rev. John Thomas, president of the national United Church of Christ. The three appeared at a press conference that was given from behind the pulpit at Trinity, the same pulpit where the Rev. Jeremiah Wright made his many controversial sermons. The three were among those who came to the defense of the "church that feels under siege," as Roesgen put it.

Roesgen herself only mentioned Wright in passing, and then in a relatively good light. "Standing behind the pulpit where former Pastor Jeremiah Wright inspired his congregation and enraged critics, national church leaders defended the church and blasted the news media." She also did not play any of the former pastor's now-infamous remarks, thus failing to provide the context to why these religious leaders were coming to the church's defense.

The full transcript of Roesgen's report from Thursday's "The Situation Room:"

SUZANNE MALVEAUX: Religious leaders are coming to the defense of Barack Obama's church which has been under a very hot spotlight over controversial remarks about race by the senior pastor. Our CNN's Susan Roesgen joining us live. Susan, obviously, there has been a lot of controversy over this. What is happening today?

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well today Suzanne, the church is trying very hard to defend its former pastor and its reputation.
REV. MICHAEL KINNAMON, NATL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES: In recent weeks, I have seen the United Church of Christ more than occasionally portrayed as some kind of radical sect. This, of course, is nonsense.
ROESGEN: Standing behind the pulpit where former Pastor Jeremiah Wright inspired his congregation and enraged critics, national church leaders defended the church and blasted the news media.
REV. OTIS MOSS, TRINITY UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST: We have received unprecedented scrutiny that has taken its toll on our members, our staff, and our senior pastor.
REV. JOHN THOMAS, PRES., UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST: The intersection of politics, religion and race has heightened our awareness of how easy it is for our conversations about race to become anything but sacred.
MOSS: As a church, we say no more. Enough is enough. Today, we -- pastors, members, and supporters of Trinity United Church of Christ proclaim that we take back our sacred space.
ROESGEN: Beyond what they say is the hurtful glare of the cameras, church leaders also say parishioners are hounded by reporters and they say the church received bomb threats. A church that feels under siege, now getting national support.
KINNAMON: If there are threats against one church, as there have been here, all churches are threatened. If the privacy of church members in one place is violated, as it has been here, all places of worship are violated.
ROESGEN: Now Suzanne, Reverend Wright himself was not here at the news conference today. He's been keeping a pretty low profile. And Senator Barack Obama was not here either. We know that he's in Chicago tonight. He's not campaigning, and his press spokesman told me that he has no idea when was the last time that Senator Obama actually attended a service here at Trinity United Church.
MALVEAUX: And Susan, you're there in Chicago at the church. You know, what is the tone of those -- the parishioners there? What sense do you get from them? Are they just fed up with this, or are they moving on, or resilient? What is the feeling there?
ROESGEN: No, they're not moving on Suzanne and that's why they had the news conference today. I think they feel angry and they feel used. When they have talked about certain reporters, they were basically talking about reporters who were rude enough to go into the pews and hand out their business cards during the services, something of course CNN would never do. And also, reporters who called up people who were sick, parishioners who were sick or in the hospital because they had gotten the names and phone numbers off of a prayer list from people who were praying for those particular parishioners. So these reporters actually went to the sickest members of the congregation to try to get their responses to the Wright controversy. And the church says that's horrible and this is a sacred place and we're not going to allow it anymore.
MALVEAUX: Okay, thank you very much Susan.

ABC Touts One Sided, Positive Take on
Pregnant 'Man'

During the April 4 segment on the subject, GMA guest news anchor David Muir described Thomas Beatie's decision as "very controversial." One would assume that a controversial decision would have two sides to it. But over the course of three segments, totaling ten minutes and 16 seconds, the closest the network program got was on April 3, when psychologist Jeffrey Gardere mildly advised: "It really is incumbent upon this individual, his wife, to try to give this as much dignity as possible, to not make it a joke, to not make it that something that's cheap."

[This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Friday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]

On Friday's program, reporter Andrea Canning played a clip from Beatie's appearance on Oprah Winfrey's daytime program and then approvingly described him as "the man the world has been waiting to meet." While discussing the issue on March 26, co-host Chris Cuomo tentatively asked an obstetrician, who approved of the pregnancy, if there were any psychological implications for the child. After being told that only love was necessary, Cuomo quickly concurred and added: "It's a good point to make, doctor. Oddity aside, biology aside, it is all about love of this child and as long as that's present, everything else is really going to be normal." For more on this, see a March 26 NewsBusters posting: newsbusters.org

A transcript of the Friday, April 4 Good Morning America segment, which aired at 8:04am:

DAVID MUIR: We are learning more this morning about the Oregon man who is now six months pregnant. He and his wife are going public with their very controversial decision to have a child. Here's ABC's Andrea Canning.
THOMAS BEATIE [at hospital]: She's kicking. I can't believe she's inside me.
ANDREA CANNING: It's an incredible sight. The first images of pregnant dad Thomas Beatie laying on an exam table, looking at his unborn daughter on an ultra sound as Oprah's cameras capture it all.
BEATIE: Now that we know the pregnancy is healthy, these are tears of joy.
CANNING: The man the world has been waiting to meet appears in People magazine today and opened up to Oprah on Thursday.
BEATIE: I feel it's not a male or female desire to want to have a child, it's a human desire.
OPRAH WINFREY: Okay.
BEATIE: And I'm a person and I have the right to have my own biological child.
CANNING: Thomas is a transgender male who conceived with artificial insemination. His wife Nancy actually performed the procedure herself at home with a syringe. They acknowledge their situation is controversial, but stress their daughter will be raised in a traditional home.
NANCY BEATIE: He's going to be the father and I'm going to be the mother.
CANNING: For now, the Beaties say they are just taking the challenges of their bizarre new life right now.
BEATIE: This is what they look like now. This is all I can do. Unfortunately they don't make man maternity clothes so I'm kind of stuck.
CANNING: For Good Morning America, Andrea Canning, ABC News, New York.

-- Brent Baker