MRC Exposes ABC's Crusade Against Arrogant American Power - Press Release - March 18, 2003 - Media Research Center
ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- The Media Research Center released a new study today documenting ABC Newss biased war coverage. In examining 234 ABC World News Tonight stories that aired from January 1 through March 7, MRC analysts found the network failed to keep the promise that ABC News President David Westin made in January to offer objective reporting on the crisis.
ABC News has consistently crusaded against what anchor Peter Jennings called the arrogant power of the United States. This only serves to distort the news and mislead the American public, which is about the worst possible thing any news organization can do when a country is about to go to war, said MRC President Brent Bozell.
Key Findings: Four Fronts In ABCs Spin War
Championing France and the UN Over the US. ABC has questioned the purity of the Bush administrations ideological and economic motives for war, and constantly decried a lack of White House respect for the peacemaking efforts of countries like France and the United Nations. ABC did not apply the same skeptical standards on ideology, greed, or "hard line" demands when it came to the policy stands of France or the UN.
Channeling Iraqi Propaganda. While ABC presents Bush administration pronouncements with great skepticism, ABC has channeled propaganda from the Iraqi regime that is renowned for its dishonesty without investigating its accuracy or even treating it with equal skepticism.
Sanitizing Radical Protesters. ABC has touted the size and broadly mainstream nature of protest movements, without serious coverage of their radical organizers, their radical speeches, or their potentially destructive impact on building more than a tiny anti-war minority.
Playing with Polls. ABC has manipulated its own polling numbers, reporting the ones that show slippage for the White House case, and sometimes ignoring their own poll numbers when they have shown growing support for the White House case.
Special Report: Peter's Peace Platoon:
Executive
Summary
Complete Report
Statement
by L. Brent Bozell III
Also of Interest:
Media Reality Check:
World News Tonights Anti-War Agenda
To schedule an
interview with Mr. Bozell, or another MRC spokesperson,
please contact Katie Wright at 703-683-5004 ext. 132
Read the full study at www.mediaresearch.org.
