MediaWatch: September 1997
Table of Contents:
- MediaWatch: September 1997
- ABC Morning Anchor Leaves a Legacy of Cheerleading for Socialism and Feminism Joan
- NewsBites: Targeted Droughts
- Admiring Diana but Hitting Mother Teresa
- DNC Chairman Downplayed, National Security adviser Ignored by Nets
- Espy's 39 Indictments? Yawn What Sleaze Factor
- Caldwell's Gospel
- Defining Away Bias
- Janet Cooke Award: "Dumbing Down" the NEA Debate
Espy's 39 Indictments? Yawn What Sleaze Factor
On October 3, 1994, Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy resigned after it became clear he had cashed in on his Cabinet position with frequent trips home to Mississippi and free football tickets and goodies from companies regulated by his department. The next morning, CBS reporter Bill Plante concluded: "White House officials hope now that with Espy’s resignation, this story will simply be over."
After Espy resigned, and each network did its obligatory single evening news story, the White House got its wish. Until Espy was indicted on 39 counts on August 27, the network evening news shows, combined, filed a grand total of two full stories on the Smaltz investigation of Espy and those who dangled favors before him.
To be specific, the full reports were a March 1995 Michele Norris update on Espy and then-HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros on ABC’s World News Tonight; and a February 1995 Jim Stewart report on the CBS Evening News criticizing Smaltz for venturing beyond his original mandate. Smaltz was also singled out in part of an ABC "Your Money" segment by John Martin on March 31, 1997: "Today’s GAO report shows that many cases are far from monumental and the time and money spent on them are far from inconsequential. Example, the investigation of whether former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy repaid corporate favors worth perhaps a few thousand dollars.’ Martin emphasized that without any real results, Smaltz had already spent $6.6 million.
The morning shows were worse, airing no full story since the morning after Espy resigned at ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS’s This Morning, and NBC’s Today. Amazingly, CBS This Morning ignored the 39-count indictment as well.
CNN’s Inside Politics aired two full reports on the Smaltz inquiry in that same long period -- but one was a John Camp attack piece on Smaltz, the other a story on guilty pleas by Republican James Lake.
After Espy’s indictment, the networks again aired just a single story. Three of the four networks -- ABC, CNN, and NBC -- underlined that the Smaltz inquiry had so far cost $9 million. None of them noted civil penalties originating from targets of SmaltzÆs inquiry have amounted to more than $3.5 million.
