Michigan

NYT Provides More Pro-Union Coverage from Michigan; Union Protest Violence Ignored

clay.waters — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 18:38:25 +0000

Clay Waters

Wednesday's New York Times' front page featured Monica Davey's latest dispatch from Lansing, after the Michigan legislature passed and the governor signed right-to-work legislation that would forbid unions to coerce membership dues from workers in the traditionally union-dominated state.

Networks Skip Union Violence in Michigan, Insist Protesters Are Simply 'Voicing Their Anger'

scott.whitlock — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:56:52 +0000

Scott Whitlock

All three networks on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning ignored the violent assaults by union protesters in Michigan, instead vaguely insisting that activists were simply "voicing their anger" at the "showdown raging in the heartland." The morning shows on Wednesday allowed little coverage of Michigan at all, a mere 72 seconds out of eight hours of programming. (On Tuesday, the nightly newscasts offered eight minutes out of a possible 90 total.)

Only CBS AM Coverage of Michigan Is Stewart Mocking Term 'Right to Work'

matthew.balan — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:48:24 +0000

Matthew Balan

On Wednesday, CBS This Morning shipwrecked its aim to be the hard-news alternative to ABC's Good Morning America and NBC's Today. Its only coverage of the passage of the right-to-work law in Michigan was a clip of Comedy Central's Jon Stewart ripping the legislation.

MSNBC 'Journalists' Laugh and Sigh During Derisive Interview With Michigan Governor

kyle.drennen — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:38:17 +0000

Kyle Drennen

Appearing on Wednesday's MSNBC Morning Joe, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder was greeted with childish behavior by the show's panel of left-wing pundits, who were unable to conceal their disgust with the state's right-to-work legislation just signed into law by the Republican. [Listen to the audio]

Washington Post's Marcus: 'Unions Aren't Going to Survive When People Have a Choice'

kyle.drennen — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 14:49:15 +0000

Kyle Drennen

Appearing on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports on Tuesday, liberal Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus lashed out against passage of Michigan's right-to-work law: "Unions are reeling, and the more states that enact measures like this, the more unions will be reeling....unions aren't going to survive when people have a choice of whether to ante up the dues or to get the benefit of being free-riders." [Listen to the audio]

Unhinged Chris Matthews Berates Conservative Guest 13 Times: 'Who's Paying Your Salary?'

scott.whitlock — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 23:38:54 +0000

Scott Whitlock

An unhinged Chris Matthews on Tuesday berated a representative of Americans for Prosperity with the same question 13 times. Talking to Scott Hagerstrom, the Hardball anchor didn't seem to hear the answer, despite Hagerstrom repeating it over and over. Matthews fumed, "Well, who's paying your salary?" [MP3 audio here.]

Martin Bashir Ignores Violence By Union Protesters, Assails MI Governor's 'Crap Burger'

scott.whitlock — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:25:54 +0000

Scott Whitlock

On a day when violent union protesters in Mighigan attacked those who would dare disagree with them, MSNBC stuck to liberal talking points. Anchor Martin Bashir on Tuesday ignored the assaults and instead assailed the state's Republican governor for his "crap burger" comments. [MP3 audio here.]

CBS Hypes 'Thousands of Angry Protesters' Against Right-to-Work Bill; Slants 3 to 1 in Favor of Unions

matthew.balan — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:54:44 +0000

Matthew Balan

Tuesday's CBS This Morning played up the union-led protests against a proposed right-to-work law in Michigan.

Another Sour NYTimes Story on Michigan's Right-to-Work Legislation Tilts Toward Losing Labor Side

clay.waters — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 19:29:16 +0000

Clay Waters

On Tuesday, as the traditionally labor-friendly state of Michigan was on the verge of passing landmark right-to-work legislation that would forbid unions to coerce membership dues from workers, New York Times reporter Monica Davey again focused instead on the losing pro-union side in her reporting from Lansing: "Michigan Fight Cleaves

New Michigan Law Is a 'Major Blow to Union Rights'; NBC, CBS Totally Ignore

scott.whitlock — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 17:02:36 +0000

Scott Whitlock

In what ABC News deemed a "major blow to union rights," Michigan became the 24th right-to-work state on Thursday. Yet, NBC and CBS totally ignored this development. ABC allowed a scant 14 second news brief on Friday's Good Morning America.

NYT's Conservative vs. Liberal Contrast: 'Clashes Over Curbs on Labor' vs. 'New Freedoms in Washington'

clay.waters — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 16:37:31 +0000

Clay Waters

On Friday, New York Times reporters Steven Yaccino and Monica Davey sourly greeted landmark conservative right-to-work legislation from Michigan in "Bills Placing Limits on Unions Advance in Michigan Legislature," The paper ran four paragraphs of quotes from the losing side, compared to three from the winners.

Michigan's Moderate GOP Gov. Gets NYT Kudos for Rejecting Conservative Policy

clay.waters — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 17:38:41 +0000

Clay Waters

New York Times reporter Monica Davey wrote an approving profile Sunday of Michigan's moderate Republican governor, who "avoids the sort of language that riles up some Republican crowds." "Michigan’s G.O.P. Governor Defies Easy Labels."

Soledad O'Brien Implies That Santorum Lost Catholic Voters by Attacking JFK

matt.hadro — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 23:22:29 +0000

Matt Hadro

After Tuesday night's Michigan GOP primary, O'Brien tried to get Rick Santorum's press secretary to admit that the candidate lost Catholic voters in the state because he attacked former President John F. Kennedy for saying the church had no role in the policy of the state.

The New York Times vs. Fiscal Discipline, Again

admin — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 18:07:00 +0000

Monica Davey in Michigan: "Six states have approved reductions in the length of state unemployment benefits. The notion appalls people like Jeananne Bishop, who has been desperately searching for a job since July 2010 and found herself washing her hair with laundry detergent at one point because she could not afford shampoo."

Clay Waters

The New York Times vs. fiscal discipline, once again. Monica Davey reported emotional anecdotes from Michigan Wednesday against attempts by the state to rein in costs: 'Families Feel Sharp Edge of State Budget Cuts.'

NYT Against State Spending Cuts: Michigan's 6-Week Cut in Jobless Benefits 'Miserly,' 'Stringent'

admin — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 19:37:00 +0000

Michael Cooper doesn't approve of Michigan's small cut in unemployment benefits: "Democrats and advocates for the unemployed expressed outrage that such a hard-hit state will become the most miserly when it comes to how long it pays benefits to those who have lost their jobs....Doing so would undo a consensus that emerged in the years after World War II that states should pay up to 26 weeks of unemployment benefits. And it would come as the average length of unemployment has risen."

Clay Waters

More Times' crusading against state spending cuts in Tuesday's edition. Reporter Michael Cooper's "Michigan, With Persistent Unemployment, Cuts Jobless Benefit by Six Weeks" raised quite a grand commotion out of a small cut in Michigan's unemployment benefit plan: The state will now pay only 20 weeks of benefits to the jobless, instead of the standard 26 weeks (and even those come before federal unemployment benefits kick in, which now run for up to 99 weeks).