Couric Celebrates 'Stimulus' Deal by Giggling Along with Pelosi --2/12/2009

1. Couric Celebrates 'Stimulus' Deal by Giggling Along with Pelosi
Katie Couric teased Wednesday's CBS Evening News by excitingly trumpeting: "Tonight, they've got a deal! Congress reaches agreement on an economic stimulus plan." She soon shared her enthusiasm in a taped interview with a triumphant House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as Couric giggled along with Pelosi while asking if she was "surprised how intimately involved" President Obama "is in the whole process?" And, acting like a teenage girl gossiping about a friend's boyfriend, "Can you tell us anything he said to you, like 'get cracking'?"

2. Chris Matthews Charmed: Obama is 'Fred Astaire Out There!'
When Hardball guest and former John McCain adviser Mark McKinnon suggested Barack Obama, in his first few days in office, is discovering what George W. Bush found out, that being President is "a hard job," Chris Matthews, on Wednesday night's show, vehemently disagreed, saying Obama "doesn't look he's having a hard time...he's Fred Astaire out there...he still moves around with incredible alacrity."

3. ABC's Terry Moran to Obama: Why Don't You Just Fire Bank Execs?
Nightline co-anchor Terry Moran on Tuesday interviewed Barack Obama and pressed him from the left, wondering why he didn't simply fire the executives whom the journalist blamed for "wreck[ing] these banks in the first place." The two were discussing the stimulus bill and the current economic problems on Wall Street. As Wednesday's CyberAlert noted, Moran had also seriously wondered: "Why not just nationalize the banks?" After the President suggested that such an idea was unworkable and didn't make sense, the host persisted. Moran challenged: "People are angry." Going further, the ABC journalist queried: "Why shouldn't you just fire the executives who wrecked these banks in the first place and tanked the world's financial system in the process?"

4. On PBS Two Leftists Indict Media for Aiding and Abetting GOP
Last Friday night, PBS star Bill Moyers took up the question of the media's coverage of President Obama. It was not a liberal vs. conservative debate. His panel was two left-wing bloggers: Glenn Greenwald of Salon and Jay Rosen of PressThink. Unsurprisingly, they felt the media weren't "progressive" enough. But Greenwald went far beyond that, making claims that "establishment media venues" forged a political "partnership" with the Republican Party and "the right wing" during the Lewinsky affair that continued and "translated into the media being blindly supportive and reverent of the Bush administration." He also claimed -- against all evidence -- that massive demonstrations against the Iraq war in 2003 were almost ignored: "The media virtually excluded those demonstrations from the narrative."

5. CBS: Netanyahu Win Means Rise of 'Right Wing Fringe' in Israel
On Wednesday's CBS Early Show, correspondent Richard Roth reported on the outcome of the Israeli election and a possible victory for the conservative parties led by former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "So, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims victory, too, with fewer votes, but it's believed more support from his traditional allies in right wing parties...there's a clear sign Israel shifted to the right. It may take weeks to create the next government here, but whoever leads it, is likely to have obligations to parties on the fringe of Israeli politics." Roth also pointed out that conservative victories may hinder Obama foreign policy: "And that could be a setback for the White House, eager to restart a peace process in the Middle East."

6. Tickets Available for MRC's March 19 'DisHonors Awards' and Gala
Every year, we sell out. So don't procrastinate. One of the biggest and best conservative events -- the Media Research Center's annual gala -- is fast approaching. Join us for this year's gala featuring the "DisHonors Awards for the Worst Reporting of the Year" and the annual "William F. Buckley Award for Media Excellence," this year to be presented to Brit Hume. It will take place on Thursday evening, March 19th, at the Grand Hyatt Washington. The MRC gala is one of the most fun events of the year. Rush Limbaugh called it "a terrific show...a great, great, great assemblage of people....Everybody just had a blast!" Sean Hannity exclaimed: "I love this event!"

Couric Celebrates 'Stimulus' Deal by
Giggling Along with Pelosi

KATIE COURIC: Are you surprised how intimately involved he is in the whole process?
HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI: Quite frankly, yes. I said, "Mr. President, neither of us has time for this conversation, especially you," because we really, we understand each other. We know where we need to go.
COURIC: Can you tell us anything he said to you, like "get cracking"?
PELOSI: No, never that. We're always cracking.

Couric proceeded to quiz Pelosi on how soon the House-Senate agreement will be passed. "When do you think this will come to a vote?" And: "What about the Senate? Any idea?"

Before viewers were treated to Couric's chat with Pelosi, reporter Chip Reid assured viewers Obama had put the people ahead of his own desires: "He [Obama] certainly did not get everything he wanted. For example, the bill falls short by billions on health care and education. But in the end, the President decided it's much more important to get this bill passed quickly and put people back to work than to get it exactly right."

[This item, by the MRC's Brent Baker, was posted Wednesday night, with video, on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [1] ]

Couric's interview with Pelosi, as shown on the Wednesday, February 11 CBS Evening News:

KATIE COURIC: One of the key players in getting this deal approved is the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. I talked to her this afternoon as Senate negotiators were announcing the agreement and we spoke right after she had been on the phone with the President.
COURIC TO PELOSI: Are you surprised how intimately involved he is in the whole process?
HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI: Quite frankly, yes. I said, "Mr. President, neither of us has time for this conversation, especially you," because we really, we understand each other. We know where we need to go.
COURIC: Can you tell us anything he said to you, like "get cracking"?
PELOSI: No, never that. We're always cracking. But it was really a moment for us to have an appreciation that in just a little while, maybe a couple of days, we will have passed legislation that will take the country in a new direction, which will begin us down the road of recovery.
COURIC: Is the devil in the details?
PELOSI: I hope the angels are, because what is in the details are how we will create those jobs, how we do it in a transparent way for the world to see with accountability to the public, again to build jobs, build confidence, and stabilize the economy. The bill that we passed one week and one days after the President's speech honoring the promises he made in that speech, 90 percent of that bill is contained in the Senate bill.
COURIC: Is there anything in the Senate version that you think shouldn't be in the package?
PELOSI: I would like to have seen more of an emphasis on job creation. I don't think there's any doubt that the House bill created more jobs. But this bill will create 3.5 million jobs and three weeks ago we weren't even on this path. I always say to my members, respect it for what it does, rather than judge it for what it does not do, because this does an enormous amount. And in order for it to instill the confidence into the American people, I think we have to believe in what we are doing and we believe in what we are doing.
COURIC: When do you think this will come to a vote?
PELOSI: I'm hoping that it, the House will be able to vote for it Thursday or Friday, but I'm hoping Thursday.
COURIC: And what about the Senate? Any idea?
PELOSI: Then we'll send it to the Senate. They have different rules as to how they can bring legislation up, but very soon and certainly meeting the goal of having the bill signed into law before Presidents Day.
COURIC NARRATION: And when asked if she had been too partisan during the process, the Speaker defended the House version of the stimulus package that passed without a single Republican vote.
PELOSI: We had an election and it was about a direction for our country. We have strong philosophical difference in the Congress. This isn't inner-party bickering; this is major differences of opinion on philosophy, on how our country should go forward. We reject the failed Bush administration economic policies which got us where we are today. The proposals that the Republicans put forth were more of the same. We will not go back.

CBSNews.com online version of the interview: www.cbsnews.com [2]

Chris Matthews Charmed: Obama is 'Fred
Astaire Out There!'

When Hardball guest and former John McCain adviser Mark McKinnon suggested Barack Obama, in his first few days in office, is discovering what George W. Bush found out, that being President is "a hard job," Chris Matthews, on Wednesday night's show, vehemently disagreed, saying Obama "doesn't look he's having a hard time...he's Fred Astaire out there...he still moves around with incredible alacrity."

[This item, by the MRC's Geoffrey Dickens, was posted Wednesday evening, on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [3] ]

The following exchange was aired during the February 11 edition of Hardball:

MARK MCKINNON, FORMER JOHN MCCAIN ADVISER: But I'll tell ya he's discovering one thing that President Bush did early on and that, that's this is a hard job Chris. It's a really hard job.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Yeah but he's not saying that.
MCKINNON: Well-
KAREN FINNEY, DNC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: He's saying, "It's the job. I know this is what I signed up for."
MATTHEWS: He doesn't look like he's having a hard time.
MCKINNON: Yeah. Well he is. In fact I think he's being very candid about it.
FINNEY: No, well I think he's working hard.
MATTHEWS: Yeah, he's Fred Astaire out there. He is light-hearted, I mean he's light, he still moves around with incredible alacrity.

ABC's Terry Moran to Obama: Why Don't
You Just Fire Bank Execs?

Nightline co-anchor Terry Moran on Tuesday interviewed Barack Obama and pressed him from the left, wondering why he didn't simply fire the executives whom the journalist blamed for "wreck[ing] these banks in the first place." The two were discussing the stimulus bill and the current economic problems on Wall Street. As Wednesday's CyberAlert noted, Moran had also seriously wondered: "Why not just nationalize the banks?"

After the President suggested that such an idea was unworkable and didn't make sense, the host persisted. Moran challenged: "People are angry." Going further, the ABC journalist queried: "Why shouldn't you just fire the executives who wrecked these banks in the first place and tanked the world's financial system in the process?"

[This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Wednesday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [4] ]

Moran, who spent the day with Obama at a campaign rally in Florida, began the segment by effusively describing the "stoked" crowds at the President's events. Moran rhapsodized, "It's a wildly friendly crowd here. They cheer him on. They amen him. They're ready to vote for him again in four years." The day after the 2008 election, on November 5, Moran sounded a similar theme on the emotion of Obama crowds at the moment of victory. Back then he enthused, "No one who was in Grant Park in Chicago last night will ever forget it. The jubilation. The emotion. The pride." See a November 6 NewsBusters posting for more: www.newsbusters.org [5]

On Tuesday, Moran also conducted a brief joint interview with Obama and Florida's Republican Governor, Charlie Crist, who supports the stimulus bill. The journalist prompted Crist to bash his GOP colleagues in Washington, observing, "What's the disconnect between you as a Republican governor here in Florida and Washington Republicans?" When the governor ignored the question, he tried again: "How do you account for the difference?"

To be fair to Moran, he did offer two somewhat tough questions that weren't from the left. Pressing Obama to explain exactly how much this spending bill will cost, he asked, "Can you say how much, ballpark figure, that will cost the American taxpayer? A trillion, a trillion-five, two trillion?" Later, acknowledging the view of the GOP in the House, Moran charged: "The Republican argument is that you and Nancy Pelosi are using the need for a stimulus bill as an excuse to jack up spending under a traditional liberal Democratic agenda."

For more on Moran's interview, as shown on Tuesday's World News, check the February 11 CyberAlert which detailed how Moran whined to Obama that he "got no honeymoon. Not a single Republican vote in the House on your first major piece of legislation." The host also suggested: "I wonder in coming into the presidency, maybe you were too nice?" For details, and a video clip: www.mrc.org [6]

A partial transcript of the February 10 Nightline:

TERRY MORAN: In Fort Myers, the big plane comes in for a landing. A sleek symbol of the power and reach of the presidency. People gather to wave at the motorcade en route. This is one economically hard-hit town though. The Fort Myers area has the highest home foreclosure rate in the country. The unemployment rate has tripled in two years to nearly 10 percent. The big crowd downtown waiting for him is stoked. Backstage, President Obama is joined by Florida Governor Charlie Crist, a Republican. Given the partisan scene in Washington, that's unusual. And we'll talk to them both about it later. Right now though, it's show time.
ANNOUNCER: The president of the United States, Barack Obama.
MORAN: Out here, the partisan dogfights of Washington seem a long way away.
AUDIENCE CHANTING: Yes, we can. Yes, we can.
MORAN: Governor Crist introduces him and unlike almost every Republican in Washington, he supports the president's stimulus bill.
GOVERNOR CHARLIE CRIST: It's getting harder every day and we know that it's important that we pass the stimulus package. It's important-
MORAN: It's a wildly friendly crowd here. They cheer him on. They amen him. They're ready to vote for him again in four years.

...

TERRY MORAN: So, Treasury Secretary Geithner today has laid out the plan for the banks and judging by the reaction in the markets, Wall Street really doesn't like your plan.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, you know, Wall Street, I think, is hoping for an easy out on this thing and there is no easy out. Essentially, what you've got are a set a banks that have not been as transparent as we need to be in terms of what their books look like. And we're going to have to hold out the Band-Aid a little bit and go ahead and just be clear about some of the losses that have been made because until we do that, we're not going to be able to attract private capital into the marketplace.
MORAN: There's the idea, a strict audit of the banks with the government providing direct help and incentives to get private investors to come in and save the sick financial system. Can you say how much, ballpark figure, that will cost the American taxpayer? A trillion, a trillion-five, two trillion?
OBAMA: I can't say the ballpark figure. What I can say is-
MORAN: Why not?
OBAMA: Well, because ultimately, what happens is going to depend on how the markets respond over the long term, not today or the next day but a month from now or two months from now. How effective we are in actually cleaning out some of these bad assets out of these banks.

...

MORAN: You have been sounding some very dire warnings about the economy in recent days. How close do you think the country is to the kind of economic catastrophe that you're warning about?
OBAMA: Well, you know, I'm constantly trying to thread the needle between sounding alarmist, but also letting the American people know the circumstances that we're in. And the fact of the matter is that we are in not just an ordinary recession. We are in a perfect storm of financial problems and now a decline in worldwide demand that is resulting in huge numbers of jobs being shed. The lowest consumer confidence we have seen, credit locked up. And so this is a big, difficult situation. Now, I think we've got to keep perspective. We're not going through the Great Depression.
MORAN: This time, like the Great Depression, it's the near collapse of the banking system that has helped bring the economy to its knees. There's one option out there the President rules out. Why not just nationalize the banks?
OBAMA: You know, the scale of the U.S. economy and the capital markets are so vast and the problems in terms of managing and overseeing anything of that scale I think would- our assessment was that it wouldn't make sense. And we also have different traditions in this country and we want to retain a strong sense of private capital fulfilling the core investment needs of this country.
MORAN: People are angry. There's so much taxpayer money going into the banks. Why shouldn't the government - why shouldn't you just fire the executives who wrecked these banks in the first place and tanked the world's financial system in the process?
OBAMA: Well, some of them are gone because their institutions have effectively collapsed. You know, keep in mind though there are a lot of banks that are actually pretty well managed. So, what we want to do is to say if you're take money from the taxpayers then you're gonna be constrained in terms of how you give yourself compensation and shareholders are gonna be empowered. If you're not taking money, then you know we'll let shareholders and boards of directors handle things as they generally have handled them.
MORAN: President Obama also plans a huge injection of public capital. Taxpayer money into the economy. The $800 billion stimulus bill, the one Republicans are nearly unanimous in opposing. Arguing that much of the spending won't stimulate anything. The Republican argument is that you and Nancy Pelosi are using the need for a stimulus bill as an excuse to jack up spending under a traditional liberal Democratic agenda.
OBAMA: There are a set of folks who just don't believe in government intervening in the marketplace period. I mean, they're still fighting FDR and the New Deal. What they've been doing is picking the one or two percent of the entire package that fell in the category of policy and then just going after that, ignoring the fact that 98 percent of the package is exactly the kind of stimulus that people would want.

...

MORAN: In Florida today, President Obama is working together with Republican Governor Charlie Crist, who was a top contender to be John McCain's running mate. We talked to both of them just after our interview with President Obama. So, why? Why are you here, governor?
GOVERNOR CHARLIE CRIST: Well, I'm here because it's important to my state and this stimulus package would help us with education, infrastructure, healthcare and we've got a budget that's getting tighter day by day.
MORAN: So, Governor, in Washington, not a single Republican House member voted for this bill. Only three Republican senators. What's the disconnect between you as a Republican governor here in Florida and Washington Republicans?
CRIST: I can't explain that. All I can explain is my perspective. And it's really as being the CEO of Florida and how it affects my state and how it affects our people and that it will benefit them enormously and that's how I look at it. It's no more complicated than that.
MORAN: How do you account for the difference?
OBAMA: Well, I think Governor Crist described it properly. He's on the ground. He's dealing with folks every day. I think in Washington, there's a danger where the debates get very abstract. And frankly, that they're very ingrown. It becomes more of a competition between Democrats and Republicans for power or attention or who's controlling chambers than it is about what's happening on the ground. And that's a danger that both parties can fall into. It's something that I want to fight. That's why it's so useful for me to come out and be on the ground here because it reminds me of what's going on and why I was sent to Washington in the first place.
CRIST: Nothing like the voice of the people.
OBAMA: Absolutely.

On PBS Two Leftists Indict Media for
Aiding and Abetting GOP

Last Friday night, PBS star Bill Moyers took up the question of the media's coverage of President Obama. It was not a liberal vs. conservative debate. His panel was two left-wing bloggers: Glenn Greenwald of Salon and Jay Rosen of PressThink. Unsurprisingly, they felt the media weren't "progressive" enough. But Greenwald went far beyond that, making claims that "establishment media venues" forged a political "partnership" with the Republican Party and "the right wing" during the Lewinsky affair that continued and "translated into the media being blindly supportive and reverent of the Bush administration." He also claimed -- against all evidence -- that massive demonstrations against the Iraq war in 2003 were almost ignored: "The media virtually excluded those demonstrations from the narrative."

[This item, by the MRC's Tim Graham, was posted Thursday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [7] ]

These strange theories erupted without Moyers really demanding an attack on the media elite:

MOYERS: The Rasmussen Poll this week shows an eight point drop in support for the stimulus plan, what do you make of that?
GREENWALD: You know, I think if you go back to the 1990s, what you saw is essentially a partnership between the Republican Party, the right wing, and establishment media venues. And this partnership was formed when they were essentially engaged in their lynch mob over the Lewinsky affair.
And that partnership, those methods that were so successful then, translated into the media being blindly supportive and reverent of the Bush administration. And that partnership hasn't really gone anywhere. And so, I think that Obama, being somewhat new to Washington, and looking at Washington as this culture ready to be changed, and leave behind its old ways - that's what he really believes he can accomplish - may have been somewhat surprised by how potent that process is, when it works together.
And it suffocated his message. It attached the most dreaded label in Washington to what he was trying to do, which is conventional liberalism, that this is just a standard package of liberal economic policies: taxing and spending, and imposing burdens on the American taxpayer. And that message resonated with the media, and therefore, with the American public, and steamrolled the White House in a way that I think demonstrated they weren't really prepared for how vibrant that partnership remains. Moyers was explicit in suggesting the mainstream media have failed to put enough emphasis on protests against the economic forces that are accused of creating the economic "calamity" unfolding, which led to Greenwald's claims of ignored war protesters:
MOYERS: On my computer upstairs, I have a lot of photographs from around the world this week, of protests, demonstrations of people who feel desperate in the midst of economic collapse and calamity. And they're taking to the streets. We don't see that in this country. Will Washington ever get the message unless they feel the pulse of people who are saying we're mad as hell and we're not going to take it any more?
GREENWALD: I think the idea of street demonstrations is probably the most stigmatized idea in our political process. There were huge marches, for instance, prior to the Iraq war, against the war. There were hundreds of thousands of people, millions of people throughout Europe marching in the streets against the war. And yet, the media virtually excluded those demonstrations from the narrative, because they're threatening, and because they're considered to be the act of unserious radicals and people who are on the fringe, and I think that in some sense, that's reflective of the fact that that level of agitation is probably the most threatening to the people who have a vested in having the system continue unchanged.

Despite the fact that PBS stations are subsidized by taxpayers, no conservative media critic from MRC or elsewhere was allowed a rebuttal. On broadcast network morning and evening news shows, the anti-war rally of January 18, 2003 drew a pile of coverage: 26 segments, 14 of them before the rally began. Our argument at the time in our Media Reality Check report was that the rally in that week that was truly "excluded from the narrative" was the annual pro-life march on Washington on January 22: www.mrc.org [8]

CBS: Netanyahu Win Means Rise of 'Right
Wing Fringe' in Israel

On Wednesday's CBS Early Show, correspondent Richard Roth reported on the outcome of the Israeli election and a possible victory for the conservative parties led by former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "So, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims victory, too, with fewer votes, but it's believed more support from his traditional allies in right wing parties...there's a clear sign Israel shifted to the right. It may take weeks to create the next government here, but whoever leads it, is likely to have obligations to parties on the fringe of Israeli politics." Roth also pointed out that conservative victories may hinder Obama foreign policy: "And that could be a setback for the White House, eager to restart a peace process in the Middle East."

Back in 1996, when Netanyahu first served as Israel's Prime Minister, CBS had similar concerns about his "right-wing" leanings. On the May 31 Evening News of that year, then anchor Dan Rather described Netanyahu's election: "Right-wing hardliner Benjamin Netanyahu is declared Israel's new Prime Minister." During CBS's This Morning that same day, then co-host Harry Smith asked: "Let's talk about his words for a second. Because it's not that many months ago that a lot of people were accusing Bibi Netanyahu of fanning the flames of the Israeli right, of setting the rhetorical tone for [Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak] Rabin's assassination."

See the 1996 Notable Quotables featuring CBS labeling of Netanyahu here: www.mrc.org [9]

[This item, by the MRC's Kyle Drennen, was posted Wednesday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [10] ]

Here is the full transcript of the February 11 report:

7:11AM SEGMENT:
RUSS MITCHELL: Israel's election is over, but who will actually run the Israeli government remains up in the air. CBS News correspondent Richard Roth is in Tel Aviv this morning. Richard, good morning to you.
RICHARD ROTH: Good morning, Russ. Well, Israelis this morning learned their election results amount to a split decision. Which has put the country in political limbo. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni celebrated her Kadima Party's slim victory at the polls, but that may be all her supporters have to cheer about. What she'd need to govern as Israel's first female prime minister in more than 30 years is a strong coalition of rivals to back her in parliament and she'll have trouble getting that. So, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims victory, too, with fewer votes, but it's believed more support from his traditional allies in right wing parties. 'I will lead the next government' he insisted to supporters. The fact is, the bargaining that will determine who becomes Israel's next prime minister is just beginning. In the election aftermath, though, there's a clear sign Israel shifted to the right. It may take weeks to create the next government here, but whoever leads it, is likely to have obligations to parties on the fringe of Israeli politics. And that could be a setback for the White House, eager to restart a peace process in the Middle East. Livni or Netanyahu, whoever takes the reigns of government here, may find that restarting negotiations with the Palestinians and moving ahead may now become politically even tougher. Russ.
MITCHELL: Richard Roth in Tel Aviv, thank you very much.

Tickets Available for MRC's March 19
'DisHonors Awards' and Gala

Every year, we sell out. So don't procrastinate. One of the biggest and best conservative events -- the Media Research Center's annual gala -- is fast approaching. Join us for this year's gala featuring the "DisHonors Awards for the Worst Reporting of the Year" and the annual "William F. Buckley Award for Media Excellence," this year to be presented to Brit Hume.

It will take place on Thursday evening, March 19th, at the Grand Hyatt Washington.

The MRC gala is one of the most fun events of the year. Rush Limbaugh called it "a terrific show...a great, great, great assemblage of people....Everybody just had a blast!" Sean Hannity exclaimed: "I love this event!"

The DisHonors Awards winners will be announced "Oscar-style," with videos played of each nominated hilariously-biased quote followed by surprise guests on hand to accept each award in jest on behalf of a media figure.

Cal Thomas will serve as Master of Ceremonies with awards presented by Ann Coulter, Joe Scarborough and Ken Cribb. And, as always, we'll have a fantastic cast of conservatives joining us to roast of the liberal media. "Joe the Plumber" and Andrew Breitbart are amongst the many who have already confirmed.

DisHonors Awards categories: "The Media's Messiah Award," "The Obamagasm Award" "Half-Baked Alaska Award for Pummeling Palin" and the "Dan Rather Memorial Award for the Stupidest Analysis."

Plus, there'll be lots of funny video clips as we mock the media's infatuation with Barack Obama. It's sure to be an entertaining evening.

Tickets for the Gala are $250 per person. If you are interested in joining us or for more information, e-mail Sara Bell at: sbell@mediaresearch.org [11]

Or call, 9 to 5:30 PM EST weekdays: (800) 672-1423.

We have limited space and this event fills up quickly, so please make your reservation soon. The MRC has a reduced rate for the Grand Hyatt Washington, but the deadline to reserve your room is February 18. To book your room, please call the hotel at (800) 233-1234.

We hope you can join us!

Online page with information: www.mediaresearch.org [12]

For a look at all the fun at last year's event, with videos: www.mediaresearch.org [13]

DisHonors/Galas from earlier years: www.mediaresearch.org [14]

-- Brent Baker