MediaWatch: June 1996
Table of Contents:
The Dick Morris Echo Chamber
At the dawn of the Clinton era, the Democratic Party dominated both the executive and legislative branches. Within months, Democrats peeled away restrictions on abortion on demand, pushed for openly gay soldiers in the military, raised taxes to historically high levels, and promoted universally subsidized health care.
Two years later, in the gloomy days after the Republican sweep of Congress in 1994, Bill Clinton sought the advice of political consultant Dick Morris, who urged him to "triangulate" between the extremes of the ascendant conservative Republicans and the liberals in his own party. Would reporters label liberal Democrats "extreme"?
To analyze the media's use of labels to describe the political parties, MediaWatch analysts used the Nexis news data retrieval system to search for the word "extreme" within 25 words of "Republican" or "Democrat" in the three news magazines (Time, Newsweek, and U.S. News & World Report) and USA Today from January 1, 1993 to May 31, 1996.
Analysts discovered reporters did not use many extremist labels in 1993 and 1994 -- 41 -- but 26 of those were applied to Republicans, compared to ten mentions of dual extremes and only five for the Democrats who ruled both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. But in the first 17 months of GOP control, Republicans were described as "extreme" in 123 stories, while only 15 found "extremes" on both sides. Just two mentioned "extreme" Democrats.
USA Today's Richard Benedetto exemplified reporting on Republican extremism on June 16, 1995: "Democrats are trying to keep a stiff upper lip as they continue to oppose `extreme' GOP cuts." Many of these were attributed to Democrats, but more than 20 came directly from reporters, such as Gloria Borger's March 11, 1996 U.S. News suggestion that "taking on Buchananism would be good for Gingrich. Recall that until Buchanan surged, Gingrich was Washington's resident extremist."
The reports citing dual extremes weren't always perfectly balanced. Witness U.S. News's Kenneth Walsh on July 31, 1995: "The President is trying to position himself as a moderate who occupies a middle ground between liberal Democrats and ultraconservative Republicans."
A rare extreme label for Democrats came in the August 22, 1994 Newsweek, when Joe Klein hit the Clintons: "This President -- and more to the point -- the First Lady have cultivated the most extreme Democratic health-care cultists and boycotted the moderates of both parties." The breakdown by publication:
USA Today described Republicans with extreme terms in 14 news stories in 1993 and 1994, compared to five on dual extremes and two touching on Democrats. More common was Richard Benedetto on June 27, 1994: "Some analysts warn the growing strength of conservative Christians in the GOP, and their reputation for intolerance, will drive moderates and independents to the Democrats, and cause selection of an extremist 1996 presidential candidate who can't win."
USA Today tossed in 62 mentions of GOP extremism in 1995-96, seven of dual extremes, and one on Democrats. Judy Keen and Bill Nichols found just one extreme on March 16, 1995: "Clinton wants to steer a middle course between traditional Democratic liberalism and `extremist' GOP budget cut proposals." The duo explained this "middle course" involved "using the broad theme that the GOP agenda is extremist, callous toward children and the poor, and cuts government more than the nation will tolerate."
U.S. News & World Report contained four mentions of Republican extremism, three of dual extremes, and one of Democratic extremism in 1993-94; but in 1995-96, U.S. News led the magazines with 28 GOP extremist labels, two mentions of dual extremes and just one Democrat extreme. Kenneth Walsh claimed on March 25, 1996: "Clinton's feuds with some allies will make it harder to label him a liberal extremist, as George Bush in 1988 caricatured Michael Dukakis." On October 27, 1995, Walsh happily noted: "President Clinton, playing Horatius at the bridge against the Republican hordes, is finally winning some favorable reviews. Democrats are rallying to his side as he defends the poor and elderly against GOP `extremism.'"
Time carried five mentions of Republican extremism, and zero mentions of dual or Democratic extremes in 1993-94, but forwarded 21 mentions of Republican extremism in 1995-96, compared to three mentions of dual extremes and zero of Democratic extremism. A typical mention was Robert Hughes arguing in an August 7, 1995 cover story that to Republicans, PBS was "a carcass they can toss to their extreme right."
Newsweek was the least tilted in 1993-94, with three mentions of GOP extremism, two of dual extremes, two of Democrats: one came in Klein's story quoted above, the other a Sharon Begley mention of a professional protest group called BEIRUT (Boisterous Extremists for Insurrection Against Republicans and Other Unprincipled Thugs). But in 1995-96, the magazine employed 22 references to GOP extremism, three mentions of dual extremes, and no example of Democratic extremism.
Howard Fineman tapdanced around associating Republicans with Timothy McVeigh on May 8, 1995: "the Oklahoma bombing has illuminated a once dark landscape much farther afield: a radical fringe of militant gun owners, `hate radio' talk-show hosts, racial extremists, and religious cultists. Their numbers are small -- and their GOP ties tenuous at best. But their fervor is influential at the grass roots Republicans call their own." Joe Klein cheered on November 13: "[Colin] Powell has done a great national service by confounding the extremist publicists and fundraisers of the Republican right."
On CNBC's Tim Russert May 25, Time's Jeffrey Birnbaum told of an adversary relationship with the White House, which saw reporters as a group "that was there to be manipulated....the conduit for their talking points." That's all too accurate. The evidence shows reporters aren't stenographers for the White House -- they're stenographers for White House political consultant.
