Another odd omission on Jim Romenesko’s allegedly objective media news site. Yesterday there was no reference that I could find or see to Byron York’s story detailing CBS’ and the New York Times’ indirect sponsorship of People for the American Way. Here are some of the stories Romenesko linked to instead: Wall Street Journal thumb-nail sketches being sold on eBay, a defense of George Stephanopoulos, and the Wichita Eagle’s gaffe about Barbara Bush’s several alleged “breast sizes.” Romenesko is a must-read because he performs a very useful service in running a blog of stories about the press. But his ideological biases – perfectly defensible in a blogger – are less well-known. Just pointing them out.
CNN’S MISTAKE – AND A CORRECTION: Yesterday, I cited CNN’s official transcript for the Thursday Crossfire exchange in which David Brock allegedly said on air, “I have not been on Fox at all.” If you listen very closely to the tape rather than the transcript, across chatter and under cross-talk, you can just about hear Brock say in a near-whisper “on prime-time.” No-one on the show seemed to notice. Tucker Carlson said he couldn’t hear it. The transcriber didn’t hear it. But it’s there. Two things are worth saying: firstly, relying on several people who had heard the show and then double-checking the official CNN transcript is good faith journalism, not sloppiness. This correction is consonant with my policy of swift amendment of unintentional errors. Secondly, Brock is still spinning. As Tim Noah has pointed out, Brock chose to make this distinction in an aside, fomenting the impression that indeed he had been blacklisted by Fox. That was certainly the impression almost everyone had when hearing the show and it was the impression Brock let stand. Carville responded with the unequivocal question: “But no one invited you on?” Sotto voce asides are not the mark of candor but of a continuing attempt to spin and duck. The distinction between “Fox” and “Fox Prime Time” also strikes me as somewhat strained. For the record, I share many of Brock’s concerns about some on the far right who targeted president Clinton for all the wrong reasons. My record testifies to that. What worries me is Brock’s long record of deception and personal abuse in matters large and small. In this particular game of “gotcha,” Brock played the game like a pro, even gulling CNN’s transcriber. He’s getting as good as Clinton. But my apologies for an innocent error nonetheless.
The Dish 