Transcript: Donahue discusses the "Conservative Media"

MSNBC ^ | January 6, 2002 | Donahue and friends

[Norman Arbuthnot]

Talk of a liberal media bias has been around for years. Now some are asking, is there a conservative bias in the media? From Rush Limbaugh to Bill O’Reilly, is America being bombarded with right-wing rhetoric? DONAHUE goes inside the question with comedian Al Franken, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, radio talk show host Jeffrey Whitaker, and “Bias” author Bernard Goldberg.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

This show was so bad (even by Donahue standards) that it was funny. The transcript is long, but wade through it if you can, there are many unintentionally funny examples of warped liberal thought.

[Humidston]

I watched that piece of trash last night and even emailed Rush to alert him, after the show was over.

For those of you who wade through the transcript, please take note of the number of times the libs cut off the (only 2) conservatives whenever they tried to speak.

The interruptions were disgusting!!

(I thought Donahue was being cancelled in December...)

[Humidston]

(CUOMO) We don’t have counterparts on the liberal side.
DONAHUE: Why is that, Governor?
CUOMO: Well, because we believe in subtlety. We believe in telling the whole truth. We don’t want to exaggerate.
You see, look, they write their message with crayons. We use fine-point quills. We get a little bit more, I think-intellectual is not the right word.

(**No, intellectual would be the LAST word I'd choose to describe liberals, LOL!)

[Steve_Seattle]

Cuomo is an arrogant_________ (fill in the blank). His "You belong to us" speech at the 1996 (?) Democratic Convention was the most frightening speech I have ever heard by a modern American politician.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

Cuomo has to be the most condescending Rat politician around, he's really unbelieveable.

[dix]

What a crock. Keep in mind that this is coming from a spokesman whose voters can’t even figure out how to use a punch card ballot. As usual Mario is accusing us of doing the same thing that they do. He sure as hell is right intellectual is not the right word.

[Humidston]

I'd personally love to take that so-called **fine point quill** and stick it where Cuomo's supposed brains are located.

And Al Franken? Oh yeah... The boy with that lil cocaine problem.... He's a fine example of liberal humanity, isn't he?

[N. Theknow]

DONAHUE goes inside the question with comedian Al Franken, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, radio talk show host Jeffrey Whitaker

Compared to these, the New York Times is conservative.

[FastNBulbous]

I excerpted my favorite exchange of the show below. Note that Phil, even though he knows the footage of Palestinians celebrating the 9/11 attacks is absolutely genuine, wasn't prepared to contradict the clueless woman, without a lot of prodding from Bernie Goldberg.

That, plus Donahue's laughable protestations that he can't find a liberal on cable tv or an op-ed page, show that the liberal apologists not only won't admit to the presence of the elephant in the room, they insist that it's another animal entirely.

---

DONAHUE: We’re back talking about conservative bias in the media.

     And you wanted to say? Yes, ma’am? Thank you for your patience.

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How can you support a-there’s a conservative bias in the media that not only leans toward the bias but lies to get that. For example, after 9/11, there were shots in Jordan of protesters supporting the American-the fall of the twin towers. That media was two years old.

     GOLDBERG: No, it wasn’t.

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it was.

     GOLDBERG: No, it wasn’t.

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A quarter of my school population...

     GOLDBERG: You mean the people-the people on...

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... is Arab...

     GOLDBERG: The people on the West Bank who were celebrating?

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were not. That was a lie, OK? I’m 100 percent sure of that.

     GOLDBERG: Phil...

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I go to school in Switzerland. A quarter of my school’s population is Arab, and they were there.

     OLDBERG: OK.

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK?

     GOLDBERG: Phil...

     DONAHUE: And they said that that was not...

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They said that was a lie. Every single person I talked to...

     DONAHUE: All right.

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... said people were mourning...

     DONAHUE: Yes. You know, I regret...

     UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... the twin towers.

     DONAHUE: ... that we’re not going to be able to resolve...

     (CROSSTALK)

     GOLDBERG: Why not, Phil? You have an opinion on everything. Have an opinion on this.

     DONAHUE: Bernie...

     GOLDBERG: Have an opinion on this.

     DONAHUE: Do you know how much I love you, Bernie?

     GOLDBERG: Well, it’s mutual.

     DONAHUE: You know, I think you’ve been wounded tonight, kid, and you’re getting a little personal, and it’s not necessary and it’s taking up time. Now, you wanted to speak to the woman’s-go ahead.

     GOLDBERG: No, I want to know what you think. There are two sides here. Either the footage was two years old and they didn’t celebrate the way NBC, ABC...

     DONAHUE: Right.

     GOLDBERG: ... CBS...

     DONAHUE: Right.

     GOLDBERG: ... CNN and MSNBC said...

     DONAHUE: Right.

     GOLDBERG: ... it did...

     DONAHUE: Yes.

     GOLDBERG: ... or it was-what do you think?

     DONAHUE: Yes. I respect this young woman’s view, and you sound very sincere to me. But those were celebrating people in that country, and it was contemporary. It wasn’t old. I do think the point should be made, though-and I thank you for raising this issue-that not every member of every Arab nation felt that way. So let’s understand. We saw a very small part of humanity responding in a very, very inhumane way to this horrendous event.

---

[mr.pink]

I watched the show and was disappointed in Goldberg...he was slow on his feet (argumentively). The other guy who was there to represent conservatives was an absolutely inept.

Cuomo is an insufferable bore who seems desperate for attention....his "crayon vs. quill pen" comparison was the height of self absorbed arrogance.

[KarlInOhio]

You see, look, they write their message with crayons. We use fine-point quills. We get a little bit more, I think-intellectual is not the right word.

There are highbrow and lowbrow pundits on both sides. Our lowbrow whoops ass on their lowbrow. On the other hand William F. Buckley and George Will unleash "destruction-of-posterior" on their intellectuals.

Sorry Mario, we're winning 2-0 in that little competition.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Al Franken ? How's the TV show doing, Al, baby ?

[proust]

CUOMO: Well, because we believe in subtlety... We use fine-point quills.

WELLSTONE! WELLSTONE! WELLSTONE! WE WILL WIN! WE WILL WIN! WE WILL WIN! WE WILL WIN!

[Kewlhand`tek]

i thought his show was cancelled (donahue)

[Gelato]

Cuomo is an arrogant_________ (fill in the blank). His "You belong to us" speech at the 1996 (?) Democratic Convention was the most frightening speech I have ever heard by a modern American politician.

You mean this Cuomo speech at the 1996 Democrat Convention?

We need to work as we have never done before, between now and November 5, to take the Congress back from Newt Gingrich and the Republicans, because, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, the Republicans are the real threat.

They are the real threat to our women. They are the real threat to our children. They are the real threat to clean water, clean air, and the rich landscape of America. They are the real threat to fairness. They are the real threat to equality. The Republicans are the real threat to an enlightened Supreme Court, and don't you remember that - don't you forget that - the Republicans. (Cuomo, 1996)

CUOMO: . . . we believe in subtlety. We believe in telling the whole truth. We don’t want to exaggerate. You see, look, they write their message with crayons. We use fine-point quills. (Coumo, 2003)

[Humidston]

Donahue constantly interrupted Bernie and the radio guy. He let sir cuomo rant, he let Freaken rant, and he kept stopping the conservatives.

Look at the transcript. It's described as "Crosstalk" every time they're interrupted. I was outraged! I think the radio guy got all of three complete sentences out during the entire show while the libs gave prolonged speeches.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

The other guy who was there to represent conservatives was an absolutely inept.

That would be "radio talk show host" Jeffrey Whitaker.

I agree with you, he was really weak. I've never heard of the guy.

He was like the no-name 180 pound wrestler that they throw in the ring with Hulk Hogan. You know who is going win at the outset.

[mr.pink]

Donahue constantly interrupted Bernie and the radio guy....

I know, I watched it.

Goldberg was of course set up, but you'd think he'd be prepared for that and have a plan. He let Franken frame a long argument based on one unimportant quote from "Biased".

Again, the radio guy was over matched, argumentively clumsy, and unfocused....maybe that's why he was invited.

[YaYa123]

Bless your little heart for posting this. I watched and couldn't quite believe my ears. I hope everyone will wade through.

This morning, IMUS made fun of Donahue...evidently Donahue tried to get IMUS to be on the show instead of the conservative talk show host I had never heard of before.

That alone displayed Donahue's bias...he had on Al Franken, Cuomo, and himself to spend the hour bashing Rush Limbaugh. That's basically all they did. If Donahue had any kind of courage, he wouldn't have had such a show without Rush being there to debate.

[mr.pink]

I agree with you, he was really weak.

The Cuomo "crayons vs. quill pen" was a waist high fast ball over the middle of the plate. Anyone with half a brain would have knocked it out of the park. Whitaker stood there looking and stupidly changed topics instead of beating Mario mercilessly with his own arrogance.

Whitaker's a minor leaguer all the way.