ABC, NBC Ignore Estimate That Minimum Wage Hike Would Cost 500,000 Jobs; CBS Reports

CBS was the only network on Tuesday evening to highlight a CBO report that President Obama's proposal to hike the minimum wage would cost 500,000 jobs.

The CBO report was released Tuesday afternoon and estimated that the wage increase would boost 900,000 Americans above the poverty line but would also result in the loss of half a million jobs. CBS was the only network to report the news; neither NBC nor ABC touched on the CBO report.

"The Congressional Budget Office looked at what would happen if the minimum wage was raised to $10.10. The report said that nearly a million people would be lifted from poverty. On the other hand, another half a million would lose their jobs altogether," reported anchor Scott Pelley on the CBS Evening News.

The CBO report states that despite an estimated wage increase for "most" low-income workers, "the income of most workers who became jobless would fall substantially."

Below is a transcript of the February 18 CBS Evening News segment:

SCOTT PELLEY: We got a fascinating report today on one of the President's top priorities. The Congressional Budget Office looked at what would happen if the minimum wage was raised to $10.10. The report said that nearly a million people would be lifted from poverty. On the other hand, another half a million would lose their jobs altogether. Nancy Cordes is on Capitol Hill for us tonight. Nancy?

NANCY CORDES: Scott, Republicans argued today that this report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office is evidence that raising the minimum wage will lead to fewer jobs, something they say the economy just can't afford right now. Democrats and the White House, on the other hand, chose to highlight some of the more favorable aspects of the report, like the fact that 16.5 million Americans would see their wages increase to $10.10 an hour, and higher-paid workers could see a bump in their wages as well as a ripple effect works its way through the economy. The Senate's Democratic leader Harry Reid has said he plans to bring a bill to the floor for a vote next month to raise the minimum wage. But even if that bill passes, Scott, it could run into a roadblock in the Republican-led House, where leaders haven't definitively ruled out voting to raise the minimum wage, but they're certainly not enthusiastic about it.

PELLEY: We'll keep following it, Nancy, thanks very much.