Searching for an excuse to explain what went wrong for Democrats in Wisconsin, the
broadcast networks blamed "a record-shattering $64 million poured into"
the recall election by "conservative out-of-st
ate groups" supporting
Republican Governor Scott Walker.
On Wednesday's CBS This Morning, correspondent Bill Plante promoted Obama campaign talking points on the major Democratic loss: "...what it called the 'massive spending gap'. Governor Walker's supporters raised $31 million to $4 million for the challenger, Tom Barrett....with most of that money coming from out of state – a huge chunk of it from the super-PACs." On Tuesday's CBS Evening News,
correspondent Dean Reynolds proclaimed: "Their efforts resulted in an
avalanche of ads attacking Walker's Democratic opponent..."
On NBC's Today,
correspondent Peter Alexander similarly warned about the influence of
super-PACs: "But it may also embolden super-PACs to keep spending. Get
this, a record-shattering $64 million poured into the Wisconsin race. A
whole lot of it from conservative out-of-state groups that supported
Walker."
On Monday's NBC Nightly News, Alexander described how the
state "has been flooded with a record $64 million in campaign
spending...with Walker out-raising his opponent 7-1." He then declared:
"Many voters have had enough."
Reporting on Walker's victory on ABC's Good Morning America on
Wednesday, correspondent Jon Karl noted how the Governor managed to
"beat back" the recall effort "after the Republican Party and
conservative groups poured tens of millions into the state."
One could hardly tell the difference between network reporters and left-wing MSNBC host Ed Schultz, who ranted over the money spent in the campaign [1] on Tuesday's Rachel Maddow Show:
"We are looking at almost a $27 million advantage that Walker had over
Tom Barrett, and this sets the template for the Republicans and
certainly tells the right-wing in this country that, if they can
out-fund their opponent, they've got a real good shot at winning."
Politico used the same spin [2] on Tuesday, insisting: "Only one takeaway from Wisconsin: Money shouts."
-- Kyle Drennen is a news analyst at the Media Research Center. Click here [3] to follow Kyle Drennen on Twitter.