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1. Only ABC's World News Questions Obama's Relationship with Blago
The three broadcast networks started their evening newscasts on Tuesday with stories on Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's arrest and corruption charges. All of the newscasts mentioned Blagojevich's Democratic affiliation, but only in passing. And, only ABC's World News questioned the details about the Illinois Governor's relationship with President-elect Barack Obama, while NBC and CBS brushed over the President-elect's connections with Blagojevich and seemed content to end their investigation of this relationship by reporting on Obama's statement that he was not aware of what was going on.
2. ABC on Caroline Kennedy in the Senate: 'Exciting,' 'Tantalizing'
On Saturday's Good Morning America, various hosts and reporters gushed over the "exciting," "tantalizing" prospect that Caroline Kennedy could replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, should the former First Lady be confirmed as Barack Obama's Secretary of State. ABC News political director David Chalian enthused that "on top of the new Obama administration that she was a huge proponent and supporter of, it [the appointment] would just rise to this moment of, sort of, a return to that age of Camelot." Weekend GMA co-host Bill Weir began the segment by wondering: "And who could upstage a Clinton but a Kennedy?" Later, fellow co-host Kate Snow cooed: "So, tantalizing. Kennedys and Obamas and Clintons, all the talk." Clearly agreeing, Weir enthused: "Exciting to talk about."
3. Matthews Worries About Obama Cabinet: 'Why No Lefties?'
Looks like Chris Matthews is actually disappointed in Barack Obama, but only in the sense that he's worried Obama isn't moving to the left fast enough. Throughout Monday night's Hardball, after reciting recent appointments like Robert Gates, Jim Jones and yes even Hillary Clinton, Matthews repeatedly asked his guests questions like: "What happened to the victory of change, and I hate to use the phrase, the Left? Who won this election?" and "Why do we have no lefties in this cabinet?" Matthews even invited on two "lefties," Tim Carpenter of Progressive Democrats of America and David Corn of The Nation, to blast Obama for not going left enough and offered them regular spots on his show to "Keep the guy [Obama] where he ought to be."
4. Williams and Gregory Fret Over Obama's 'Expectations Management'
In the midst of more self-congratulatory excess over David Gregory becoming moderator of Meet the Press, he and anchor Brian Williams cued up Gregory to discuss Obama's "expectations management." Gregory echoed that Obama must "lower expectations," though, Gregory soon trumpeted: "He doesn't want to hit the ground running. He wants to hit the ground signing, signing a stimulus bill in the very early days of his administration because the economy cannot wait." Williams first told Gregory, who appeared from the Meet the Press set: "Congratulations on your great new job so well deserved and what you know is a great honor." Gregory agreed: "I do know it's a great honor" to host "a treasured platform in the country." Williams posed this tortuous question: "David, you also come to this job from your last position as chief White House correspondent. As such, it changes the way you, I'm sure, have looked a this race and the President-elect including as recently as yesterday's interview with Tom Brokaw. Talk about that, especially in the area so important these days of expectations management."
5. Meryl Streep: Stern Nun Role Similar to War on Terror Absolutists
Actress Meryl Streep, who plays an authoritarian nun battling a "passionate liberal priest" (according to Newsweek) in the new film Doubt, told the Boston Herald on Sunday that the film is actually a metaphor for those who think the war on terror can be won with force. She argued: "It's about someone who thinks you can control evildoers with force and a firm hand and an unrelenting, 'We will not negotiate (with terrorists).'"
Note: Due to illness, there was no CyberAlert on Tuesday, December 9.
 Only ABC's World News Questions Obama's
Relationship with Blago
The three broadcast networks started their evening newscasts on Tuesday with stories on Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's arrest and corruption charges. All of the newscasts mentioned Blagojevich's Democratic affiliation, but only in passing. And, only ABC's World News questioned the details about the Illinois Governor's relationship with President-elect Barack Obama, while NBC and CBS brushed over the President-elect's connections with Blagojevich and seemed content to end their investigation of this relationship by reporting on Obama's statement that he was not aware of what was going on.
ABC and NBC both identified Blagojevich as a Democrat early in their reports. NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams's introduction to the report by Lee Cowan described the charge as "that the two-term Democratic Governor tried to sell a seat in the US Senate to the highest bidder." Brian Ross, reporting for ABC's World News, identified the Illinois Governor as "the boyish looking Democrat branded a greedy, foul mouth politician who tried to sell a US Senate seat to the highest bidder."
The CBS Evening News, however, did not identify Blagojevich as a Democrat until the very end of Dean Reynolds's report when an on-screen graphic identified the Governor as "(D) Illinois" and Reynolds claimed that "fellow Democrats worry that whoever he might pick could wind up tainted politically and could ultimately cost the party a valuable seat in Congress."
[This item, by the MRC intern Lyndsi Thomas, was posted Wednesday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
The first report on World News by Brian Ross only noted that "President-elect Obama said today he was not involved in any way." But Tapper appeared later in the broadcast to recap his research on Obama's relationship with Blagojevich and what contact the two have had regarding the vacant Senate seat.
World News anchor Charlie Gibson first asked Tapper "what contact, or do we know what contacts the Barack Obama camp had with Blagojevich about the Senate vacancy?":
TAPPER: Well, that of course is the big question, Charlie, because Governor Blagojevich in this criminal complaint speaks quite assuredly as if he knows that President-elect Obama's not willing to give him other than, quote, appreciation, for naming his preferred candidate to the Senate seat, so with whom did he speak? We're not getting a lot of answers from the Obama team right now.
Gibson went on to ask, "and, Jake, I know Barack Obama now is not probably going to get within ten thousand miles of the Illinois governor because this is so scandalous but they were close in the past, right?"
TAPPER: Well, I wouldn't say that they were personally close but they had the kind of symbiotic relationship that a lot of state politicians had. Obama advised him in Blagojevich's 2002 run. Blagojevich worked for Obama in his 2004. Obama endorsed Blagojevich for reelection very early in 2005 for that 2006 race. Things started to sour, however, when it became clear that Blagojevich was under investigation and they haven't really had a close relationship professionally in the last couple years. In fact, Obama kept Blagojevich from speaking at the Democratic convention over the summer.
The report filed by Lee Cowan on NBC's Nightly News was less descriptive and failed to identify David Axelrod, Obama's chief strategist turned White House Senior Advisor, as the person who claimed Obama had spoken to Blagojevich about his Senate replacement:
COWAN: Barack Obama has advised Blagojevich in the past, even endorsed him, and according to one senior adviser did talk to Blagojevich about his replacement in the Senate. But today aides said that adviser misspoke, and the president-elect himself said he knew nothing about the behind-the-scenes efforts to fill his former seat.
Later, NBC political director Chuck Todd appeared to discuss Obama's relationship with Blagojevich and claimed that Blagojevich's statements were the "most exculpatory thing" for Obama: "A lot of concentric circles between Blagojevich and Obama. There's no question that there's going to be some folks that Obama's bringing from Chicago to Washington, some that might have actually had conversations with the governor that are going to be in tape recordings that the FBI was wiretapping with. But there's clearly no evidence that anything was going on, and if anything, the quotes from Blagojevich in that amazing indictment are the most exculpatory thing there for the President-elect."
The CBS Evening News was the worst, though, as Dean Reynolds did not detail Obama's relationship with the Illinois Governor or report on Axelrod's claims that Obama had talked with Blagojevich about who his replacement should be:
REYNOLDS: Prosecutors said the complaint against Blagojevich did not include Obama and while the extent of contact with Obama's transition team and the governor are far from clear, the President-elect today was.
OBAMA: I had no contact with the governor or his office and so we were not--I was not aware of what was happening. And as I said, it's a sad day for Illinois. Beyond that, I don't think it's appropriate to comment.
 ABC on Caroline Kennedy in the Senate:
'Exciting,' 'Tantalizing'
On Saturday's Good Morning America, various hosts and reporters gushed over the "exciting," "tantalizing" prospect that Caroline Kennedy could replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, should the former First Lady be confirmed as Barack Obama's Secretary of State. ABC News political director David Chalian enthused that "on top of the new Obama administration that she was a huge proponent and supporter of, it [the appointment] would just rise to this moment of, sort of, a return to that age of Camelot."
Weekend GMA co-host Bill Weir began the segment by wondering: "And who could upstage a Clinton but a Kennedy?" Later, fellow co-host Kate Snow cooed: "So, tantalizing. Kennedys and Obamas and Clintons, all the talk." Clearly agreeing, Weir enthused: "Exciting to talk about."
[This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Tuesday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
Reporter Rachel Martin instructed viewers, "Public service is part of the expectation of being a Kennedy."
A transcript of the December 6 segment:
BILL WEIR: Well, there is big buzz this morning about a possible replacement for New York Senator Hillary Clinton when she moves to Foggy Bottom. One big political name could replace by an even bigger one. And who could upstage a Clinton but a Kennedy? ABC's Rachel Martin has the story from Washington, live. Good morning, Rachel.
ABC GRAPHIC: Return of Camelot: Caroline Kennedy to Senate?
 RACHEL MARTIN: Good morning, Bill. For most of her life, Caroline Kennedy stayed far away from the family business. But her work with the Obama presidential campaign put this quiet Kennedy front and center on the political stage. Public service is part of the expectation of being a Kennedy.
CAROLINE KENNEDY (at Democratic National Convention): We are all in this together, and that we each have something to contribute to this country.
MARTIN: Now, JFK's daughter is considering a new kind of contribution. Democratic sources tell ABC News that New York Governor David Paterson has approached Kennedy about taking over Hillary Clinton's Senate seat if she's confirmed as secretary of state. It's the same seat once held by Caroline's uncle, Robert F. Kennedy. The road was cleared for such a conversation after Caroline's cousin, RFK, Jr., reportedly turned the job down. Yesterday, the governor tried to keep a lid on details.
DAVID PATERSON (New York Governor): We talked about a number of things. The seat did come up in the conversation.
MARTIN: Kennedy is said to be considering the job. But there are some major disincentives. Whomever the governor chooses will serve two years, run in a special election in 2010, and run again in 2012. And people close to Caroline Kennedy say that may be too expensive and hard on her family. But Democratic sources say she's got the cache to fill the campaign coffers and discourage any real Republican competition.
DAVID CHALIAN (ABC News political director): For Caroline Kennedy to enter the body that her father, her uncle, her other uncle have all served, on top of the new Obama administration that she was a huge proponent and supporter of, it would just rise to this moment of, sort of, a return to that age of Camelot.
MARTIN: It's a heavy legacy. But it's one that many Democrats would like to see Kennedy carry on. Caroline's is not the only Kennedy name swirling in the political ether. Her cousin, RFK, Jr., is now thought to be a lead contender to head up the Environmental Protection Agency under an Obama administration. So, potentially, a new generation of very high-profile Kennedy leadership on the horizon. Bill and Kate.
WEIR: Okay, Rachel. Thanks very much.
KATE SNOW: So, tantalizing. Kennedys and Obamas and Clintons, all the talk.
BILL WEIR: Exciting to talk about.
 Matthews Worries About Obama Cabinet:
'Why No Lefties?'
Looks like Chris Matthews is actually disappointed in Barack Obama, but only in the sense that he's worried Obama isn't moving to the left fast enough. Throughout Monday night's Hardball, after reciting recent appointments like Robert Gates, Jim Jones and yes even Hillary Clinton, Matthews repeatedly asked his guests questions like: "What happened to the victory of change, and I hate to use the phrase, the Left? Who won this election?" and "Why do we have no lefties in this cabinet?"
Matthews even invited on two "lefties," Tim Carpenter of Progressive Democrats of America and David Corn of The Nation, to blast Obama for not going left enough and offered them regular spots on his show to "Keep the guy [Obama] where he ought to be."
A little later in the program, Matthews had on Margaret Carlson of Bloomberg news and Roger Simon of the Politico and fretted about his perception that there weren't enough leftists in the cabinet: "Why no lefties? Why nobody that talks like Barack Obama talked when he got elected?"
[This item, by the MRC's Geoffrey Dickens, was posted Monday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
The following exchanges occurred on the December 8 edition of Hardball:
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Well one thing you, you guys [can] do, for a living, the next year is come on this show and keep the guy where he [Barack Obama] ought to be. He ought to be where he said he was gonna be. Fair enough?
TIM CARPENTER PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS OF AMERICA: That's our job, Chris.
DAVID CORN, THE NATION: Well I hope-
MATTHEWS: Huh?
CARPENTER: That's our job, Chris. That's what we're doing tonight.
MATTHEWS: Thank you Tim. Well that's what seems to me a reasonable request that a President be asked to be what he promised to be. And if he is gonna change his politics he ought to-
CARPENTER: Well it's our role to keep him honest, Chris, just like we have to keep you honest.
MATTHEWS: Well you won't be on the show again. I'm just kidding. Thank you very much. That's very true. I'm vulnerable to review as anyone. Thank you David Corn and thank you Tim Carpenter.
...
MATTHEWS: We're back with Roger Simon and Margaret Carlson, two pals of mine and the topic is politics, and the question is ideology. A lot of people who voted for Barack Obama voted for a shift from what we have. The theme was not just hope, change. Change. And now we've got Senator Clinton who represents the votes supporting the authorization of war in Iraq. Robert Gates, the current Secretary of Defense. And who else? General James Jones as National Security Adviser. What happened to the victory of change, and I hate to use the phrase, the Left? Who won this election?
ROGER SIMON, POLITICO: The guy who won the election is Barack Obama who has promised change by appointing people who know how to get things done. He didn't promise ideology. He didn't promise-
MATTHEWS: Are you saying this because you didn't agree with him?
SIMON: No, no, no. I mean he really, he really, he really-
MATTHEWS: I never thought of you as a, as a lefty. Roger Simon, you're no lefty.
SIMON: I'm a journalist.
MATTHEWS: Okay.
SIMON: He really put together, or is putting together a cabinet of people who are gonna accomplish things.
MATTHEWS: Yeah.
SIMON: He doesn't have an ideological checklist. So the left is mad at him this week, okay...
...
MATTHEWS: Why do we have no lefties in this cabinet?
MARGARET CARLSON, BLOOMBERG: Because you have pragmatists in the, in the people who will be there.
MATTHEWS: Why no lefties? Why nobody that talks like Barack Obama talked when he got elected?
CARLSON: I don't think Obama talked like a lefty. He talked like a person who wanted to change the things were done.
MATTHEWS: Total difference on fiscal policy. Total difference on tax policy. Total difference on energy policy. And total difference on foreign policy. That's how he beat the Bush party.
CARLSON: The tax and fiscal policies are determined by events. On the war I think he, he still wants to get out of Iraq and he still wants to concentrate on Afghanistan.
MATTHEWS: Has put together a team for change?
CARLSON: Yeah.
SIMON: Are you arguing that Hillary Clinton is some raving moderate now? That, that she is not in the progressive wing of her party?
MATTHEWS: No I'm just going by her foreign policy, which is the same as Bush's.
SIMON: I think her-
CARLSON: Her, her foreign policy will be Obama's foreign policy.
SIMON: Yeah.
MATTHEWS: I'm waiting for change. Anyway thank you Roger Simon, thank you Margaret Carlson.
 Williams and Gregory Fret Over Obama's
'Expectations Management'
In the midst of more self-congratulatory excess over David Gregory becoming moderator of Meet the Press, he and anchor Brian Williams cued up Gregory to discuss Obama's "expectations management." Gregory echoed that Obama must "lower expectations," though, Gregory soon trumpeted: "He doesn't want to hit the ground running. He wants to hit the ground signing, signing a stimulus bill in the very early days of his administration because the economy cannot wait." Williams first told Gregory, who appeared from the Meet the Press set: "Congratulations on your great new job so well deserved and what you know is a great honor." Gregory agreed: "I do know it's a great honor" to host "a treasured platform in the country."
Williams posed this tortuous question: "David, you also come to this job from your last position as chief White House correspondent. As such, it changes the way you, I'm sure, have looked a this race and the President-elect including as recently as yesterday's interview with Tom Brokaw. Talk about that, especially in the area so important these days of expectations management."
After talking about how Obama "wants to hit the ground signing," Gregory touted how Obama "is the one who pitched the idea of a bailout for the big three in Detroit, that we reported on tonight, to the President during their first meeting." Gregory concluded: "He's very much trying to drive the agenda even before he gets into office."
[This item, by the MRC's Brent Baker, was posted Monday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
From the Monday, December 8 NBC Nightly News:
BRIAN WILLIAMS: As we turn to politics tonight, it's also time to meet the new moderator of Meet the Press and the truth is we all know him very well already. This network announced yesterday morning that our friend David Gregory will be taking over as moderator of the broadcast in its familiar studio in its 62nd year. That's where he joins us from tonight. And David, while you and I spoke several times today, congratulations on your great new job so well deserved and what you know is a great honor.
DAVID GREGORY: Thank you, Brian. I really do appreciate it. I do know it's a great honor and it feels like a great honor and to sit at this desk is also very humbling because of the great man that I succeed, our friend Tim Russert. And I've a lot of work to do and a lot of preparation to do. This is a treasured platform in the country, and I'm going to be working very hard.
WILLIAMS: And David, you also come to this job from your last position as chief White House correspondent. As such, it changes the way you, I'm sure, have looked a the this race and the President-elect including as recently as yesterday's interview with Tom Brokaw. Talk about that, especially in the area so important these days of expectations management.
GREGORY: Well, it's very important because people close to the President-elect say that's his biggest goal right now in the course of this interim period, this transition period, to lower expectations. He said it with Tom Brokaw yesterday. The economy will get worse before it gets better but he also wants to project that he is in charge in some way. He's always said there can't be two Presidents but he's got to be seen as working and working hard. He talked about his economic team working on the stimulus package already. He doesn't want to hit the ground running. He wants to hit the ground signing, signing a stimulus bill in the very early days of his administration because the economy cannot wait.
He is the one who pitched the idea of a bailout for the big three in Detroit, that we reported on tonight, to the President during their first meeting. Now the big three won't get as much as they perhaps asked for and this is going to be an issue that he'll continue to have to work on and you notice in the interview with Tom yesterday, he disagreed with the administration, said the administration should do more to help those homeowners around the country who are facing foreclosure. He's very much trying to drive the agenda even before he gets into office, Brian.
 Meryl Streep: Stern Nun Role Similar
to War on Terror Absolutists
Actress Meryl Streep, who plays an authoritarian nun battling a "passionate liberal priest" (according to Newsweek) in the new film Doubt, told the Boston Herald on Sunday that the film is actually a metaphor for those who think the war on terror can be won with force. She argued: "It's about someone who thinks you can control evildoers with force and a firm hand and an unrelenting, 'We will not negotiate (with terrorists).'" Newsweek's review: www.newsweek.com
UPI story posted by the Boston Herald: www.upi.com
The liberal actress also added, "Or there's another approach, one with all these layers of humanity who think you have to have innocence so it doesn't go bad and get corrupted." Philip Seymour Hoffman, who co-stars in the film as a priest suspected of sex abuse, appeared on Monday's Good Morning America as part of a three day promotion that the ABC network is providing for the film. In the interview with news anchor Chris Cuomo, Hoffman somewhat cryptically said of the film: "...Certainty is usually connected to something positive. And doubt is usually connected to something negative. And what if you switch that and what would happen? And the film kind of is looking at those issues." (Reviews of the film suggest it comes down on the side of doubting.)
[This item, by the MRC's Scott Whitlock, was posted Monday afternoon on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
Cuomo responded, "And for people who believe, that is huge." In addition to Hoffman, Streep will appear on Tuesday's program to talk about the movie. Another co-star, Amy Adams, will stop by on Wednesday. This promotional push could be reminiscent of the three days and 19 minutes that GMA gave to the left-wing anti-war film Lions For Lambs, which also featured Ms. Streep. See a November 9, 2007 CyberAlert for more: www.mrc.org
A transcript of the December 8 segment, which aired at 8:35am, follows:
CHRIS CUOMO: From his Oscar-winning turn in the movie "Capote," to his high flying villain in "Mission Impossible III," it seems Mr. Philip Seymour Hoffman can do just about anything he likes and he'll have the critics raving all along the way. His latest film is called "Doubt." And there's here's no doubt you'll be hearing a lot about this film come Oscar time. Very good to have you on the show.
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN: Thanks. Thanks for having me. .
CUOMO: This is a big, complicated film. There's a lot going on in this. From an actor's perspective, what drew you to this, "Doubt?"
HOFFMAN: Um, the debate, the underlying debate in the film. I mean, when people see it they'll know what I mean. The debate between certainty and doubt. And I think someone talked about it a couple days ago- I was overhearing it- that certainty is usually connected to something positive. And doubt is usually connected to something negative. And what if you switch that and what would happen? And the film kind of is looking at those issues.
CUOMO: There's a brilliant line early in the film, that doubt can be as strong a bond as anything else.
HOFFMAN: As certainty.
CUOMO: And for people who believe, that is huge. Now, obviously, there's a second layer to this, which is that your character plays a priest. There are allegations of wrongdoing vis-a-vis a child. No surprise that we've heard that line before. And there's the interplay between you, the character of Meryl Streep, who plays the principal, and Amy Adams, a younger nun. Let's play a clip. Take a look and listen.
["Doubt" clip]
MERYL STREEP: So what do you think, Father, is there something new we can do?
HOFFMAN: We all love the Christmas hymns but it might be jolly to include a secular song.
STREEP: Secular?
HOFFMAN: Yes, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas." Something like that.
STREEP: What would be the point of a secular song?
HOFFMAN: It's fun.
AMY ADAMS: "Frosty the Snowman."
HOFFMAN: That's a good one. We could have one of boys dance up as a snowman, dance around.
STREEP: Which boy?
["Doubt" clip ends]
CUOMO: Little hint to the early tension. Now, it should be noted this is a Pulitzer Prize winning play.
HOFFMAN: Yeah. Terrific.
CUOMO: The writing is extraordinary. Pick up the theatricality when you see the movie. You had to make a choice about how you wanted to play this priest. Some have played him as someone who is maybe getting a bad rap. Others as maybe someone who is not getting a bad rap. How did you deal with that choice?
HOFFMAN: Well, when it's- I mean- you're playing the guy, you have to fill in the back-story, you know, as specifically, with as much stakes as possible. But it's that decision, or that thought process, is such a private thing. Especially when attending to this story because you want people to go into this film without any knowledge of what my opinion is because that's what the film is about. It's how it affects you in that way- that you should leave. And usually, almost since the play started until now, during the whole two-year run, it's like 60/40, one way or the other, in the audience, almost always. And I like to keep it that way.
CUOMO: Now, you've worked with Meryl Streep before, you know her power as an actor. When I heard her voice in this, I was transported immediately back to grammar school.
HOFFMAN: Yeah. Yeah.
CUOMO: Were you aware? You know, when you heard it, you were like, wow. That's it. That's the voice? That's the character.
HOFFMAN: Yeah, because my character's not from the Bronx.
CUOMO: Right.
HOFFMAN: My character's a drifter. He's somebody who's been to a few different parish along the northeast border. But she's one of the authentic person who's probably born and raised in the Bronx. And maybe Amy's character too, I'm not sure. And, you know, she has to come through that. It's beautifully. It's really authentic.
CUOMO: Now, you did research in churches, right? What was the take-away from that?
HOFFMAN: I have a friend, Father Jim, he, you know, showed me around, pretty much. And I went and saw some of his sermons. I just need to get filled in on what the priest is actually doing. You know, what I mean? So, I could look believable in what he's wearing. The history of the church in the '60s. 'Cause the movie takes place in the '60s. And that's very important.
CUOMO: Sure. Big Vatican II came for the Catholic Church.
HOFFMAN: We left Latin and went to English, all of that stuff happened. And, so, he filled me in on that. So, he filled me in on all that. It was good.
CUOMO: It's a debate that keeps going. The film is timely and as well as historical. It's really interesting. And you do a great job. I'm sure you're going to hear plenty of that.
HOFFMAN: Thank you.
CUOMO: It's great to have you here. Merry Christmas to you, you got two young kids about the same as mine.
HOFFMAN: I actually have three now. I just had a third six weeks ago. I wouldn't expect you guys over here to know that.
CUOMO: Congratulations. Merry Christmas. I was behind in my reporting. Shame me later. Continued good luck to you. And Great, great news about the expanding family. "Doubt" opens in theaters this Friday, December 12th. And tomorrow, we're going to have one of the co-stars here with us. You may have heard of her. Meryl Streep. We were just talking about her just now. Amazing. And then Amy Adams will be here on Wednesday. So, I'm sure you're going to want to see all of them.
-- Brent Baker
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The three broadcast networks started their evening newscasts on Tuesday with stories on Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's arrest and corruption charges. All of the newscasts mentioned Blagojevich's Democratic affiliation, but only in passing. And, only ABC's World News questioned the details about the Illinois Governor's relationship with President-elect Barack Obama, while NBC and CBS brushed over the President-elect's connections with Blagojevich and seemed content to end their investigation of this relationship by reporting on Obama's statement that he was not aware of what was going on. 
TAPPER: Well, that of course is the big question, Charlie, because Governor Blagojevich in this criminal complaint speaks quite assuredly as if he knows that President-elect Obama's not willing to give him other than, quote, appreciation, for naming his preferred candidate to the Senate seat, so with whom did he speak? We're not getting a lot of answers from the Obama team right now. 
COWAN: Barack Obama has advised Blagojevich in the past, even endorsed him, and according to one senior adviser did talk to Blagojevich about his replacement in the Senate. But today aides said that adviser misspoke, and the president-elect himself said he knew nothing about the behind-the-scenes efforts to fill his former seat. 
REYNOLDS: Prosecutors said the complaint against Blagojevich did not include Obama and while the extent of contact with Obama's transition team and the governor are far from clear, the President-elect today was. 
On Saturday's Good Morning America, various hosts and reporters gushed over the "exciting," "tantalizing" prospect that Caroline Kennedy could replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, should the former First Lady be confirmed as Barack Obama's Secretary of State. ABC News political director David Chalian enthused that "on top of the new Obama administration that she was a huge proponent and supporter of, it [the appointment] would just rise to this moment of, sort of, a return to that age of Camelot." 
RACHEL MARTIN: Good morning, Bill. For most of her life, Caroline Kennedy stayed far away from the family business. But her work with the Obama presidential campaign put this quiet Kennedy front and center on the political stage. Public service is part of the expectation of being a Kennedy. 
Looks like Chris Matthews is actually disappointed in Barack Obama, but only in the sense that he's worried Obama isn't moving to the left fast enough. Throughout Monday night's Hardball, after reciting recent appointments like Robert Gates, Jim Jones and yes even Hillary Clinton, Matthews repeatedly asked his guests questions like: "What happened to the victory of change, and I hate to use the phrase, the Left? Who won this election?" and "Why do we have no lefties in this cabinet?" 
In the midst of more self-congratulatory excess over David Gregory becoming moderator of Meet the Press, he and anchor Brian Williams cued up Gregory to discuss Obama's "expectations management." Gregory echoed that Obama must "lower expectations," though, Gregory soon trumpeted: "He doesn't want to hit the ground running. He wants to hit the ground signing, signing a stimulus bill in the very early days of his administration because the economy cannot wait." Williams first told Gregory, who appeared from the Meet the Press set: "Congratulations on your great new job so well deserved and what you know is a great honor." Gregory agreed: "I do know it's a great honor" to host "a treasured platform in the country." 
Actress Meryl Streep, who plays an authoritarian nun battling a "passionate liberal priest" (according to Newsweek) in the new film Doubt, told the Boston Herald on Sunday that the film is actually a metaphor for those who think the war on terror can be won with force. She argued: "It's about someone who thinks you can control evildoers with force and a firm hand and an unrelenting, 'We will not negotiate (with terrorists).'" Newsweek's review: