As of September 10, 2014, it's been 300 days since ABC's Nightline covered ObamaCare. In the 43 weeks since November 14, 2013, the show has avoided problems with the health care law and instead focused on extremely superficial topics, such as nude reality shows and the royal baby.
When the Associated Press reported [1], "More people newly insured by Medicaid under ObamaCare are seeking treatment in hospital emergency rooms," the hosts of Nightline didn't notice. Two new reports found that ObamaCare has not cut the rate of uninsured children [2]. Again, Nightline was silent. What were the hosts covering instead? See a video montage below to find out. [MP3 audio here [3].]
On September 8, 2014, day 299 of ObamaCare's boycott, Juju Chang excitedly opened the show with this tease: "Have a sexy selfie? So do they. From celebs to the new nude reality stars." She continued, "It looks like everyone is baring it all."
Chang offered this tabloid question: "So, when did it become so fashionable to become undressed?" Reporter Paula Faris replied with her own query: "Why are celebrities taking naked photos of themselves?"
Chang also offered a full report to this topic: "Plus, let the royal baby mania begin. William and Kate announce their little prince is getting a sibling."
Add in a story on a man who goes skydiving near active volcanoes and you have Nightline's entire program on Monday night.
Previous Nightline topics have included "bootleg butt injections [4]" and "extreme open houses."
Instead of covering these superficial stories, the show's hosts could have covered the massive failure [5] of Oregon's ObamaCare exchange and the lawsuits the state has filed against its contractor.
Apparently, questioning ObamaCare problems is too much to ask for a news program that isn't really interested in news anymore – at least when the story reflects badly on a Democratic president.
— Scott Whitlock is Senior News Analyst at the Media Research Center. Follow Scott Whitlock on Twitter. [6]