MediaWatch: September 1992
Table of Contents:
- MediaWatch: September 1992
- Network TV Convention Disparities
- NewsBites: Rather Reveals All?
- Revolving Door: Clinton's NPR Connection
- Media Accuracy Patrol Only Shoots At GOP
- Praised Cuomo, Attacked Conservatives and Buchanan
- Woodruff vs. First Lady
- Just Like Prime Time
- Janet Cooke Award: ABC: Can Quayle's Council
Revolving Door: Clinton's NPR Connection
Clinton's NPR Connection. July's Revolving Door column on former Democratic political operatives covering the Democratic National Convention as reporters listed Anne Edwards, scheduler for the 1984 Mondale-Ferraro campaign, as National Public Radio's (NPR) Senior Editor. While MediaWatch was in Houston to produce ConventionWatch, Jeff Rosenberg, the NPR convention producer, faxed us a resume update. Edwards is now part of the Clinton-Gore campaign advance staff. She should know how to please the media: From 1980 to 1984 she was the assignment editor in the CBS News Washington bureau.
Death in Sarajevo. A sniper's bullet took the life of ABC News producer David Kaplan on August 13. A producer since joining the network in 1972 after a two year stint as Assistant Press Secretary to Senator George McGovern, Kaplan was in the war-torn region with Sam Donaldson to work on a story for Prime Time Live. During his twenty years with ABC, Kaplan worked in the special events unit, for World News Tonight, as White House producer for Sam Donaldson during most of the Reagan Administration and, until joining Prime Time Live in 1989 as a Washington-based Senior Producer, as Senior Capitol Hill producer.
Two-Timing at U.S. News. Liberal MIT economist Paul Krugman, a Contributing Editor to U.S. News & World Report since 1990, simultaneously formulated economic policy for the Clinton campaign this summer. But not anymore. Kathryn Bushkin, the magazine's Director of Editorial Administration who served as Press Secretary in Gary Hart's 1984 presidential campaign, told MediaWatch in mid-August that U.S. News felt things "had reached a point where it was inappropriate for [Krugman] to be, now that Clinton is the nominee, and that he's taken on a more active role with him, we thought it was inappropriate for [Krugman] to be writing for us on economic issues until the election is over. We are not taking any more of his pieces."
Krugman has most recently been responsible for the Democrats' claim that the richest one percent took 60 percent of the income gains in the 1980s, a claim heavily criticized by conservative economists. Krugman publicized the argument in March 23 and June 1 articles.
Clinton press aide Avis Lavelle told MediaWatch that Krugman had been working for the campaign since early July helping to put together debate briefing books and was charged with "developing support for Governor Clinton's economic concepts in the media."
Out of Congress, On to TV. Ohio Congressman Charles Luken decided not to seek re-election this November, and he's already found a new career. In January the Democrat will join Cincinnati's WLWT-TV. The News Director for the NBC affiliate told Electronic Media's Doug Halonen that Luken "will probably be groomed as a news anchor, but is likely to start as a reporter and political commentator."
