Free Republic

ABC Intern: Um, Mr. Champion, it's the head of the Florida Chamber of Commerce on the line for you, and he, uh, doesn't sound too happy. Sam Champion: Tell him to go soak his head. That apocryphal bit of dialogue might not be too far off the mark. On today's GMA Champion warned Americans that "if you're thinking about retiring to Florida, think twice." The ABC meteorologist made his dire suggestion in the course of announcing the Obama administration's issuance of a report on the impact of climate change on the United States, which seems to cast matters in worst-case...

ABC’s “Good Morning America” program on Wednesday led their 7 am Eastern hour with three positive reports about Judge Sonia Sotomayor, highlighting her judicial background and personal story. Anchor Diane Sawyer began the program with a promo of this coverage: “The battle begins: How will President Obama’s Latina powerhouse handle the opposition?...And we also go home to bring you personal details about the girl from the housing projects, nominated for the Supreme Court.” Correspondent Claire Shipman went so far as to play up trivial details from the nominee’s personal life: “She’s also an avid Yankees fan, a mean guacamole maker,...

There's more than one way to skin a foot. In his beauty salon wedged between a pizza parlor and a taco shop in a strip mall here, John Ho is letting small fish eat dead skin off his customers' feet. "Feels like a bunch of ants running across your feet," said Bill Piatt, a Marine gunnery sergeant from nearby Fort Belvoir, after dipping his feet in a Plexiglas tank for 15 minutes of a fish-assisted pedicure. His wife, Leah, reclining on an adjacent chair, said the nibbling tickled -- "a very odd feeling."

"It hurts. It hurts," the first lady said in regard to military families having to live off food stamps. "These are people who are willing to send their loved ones off to, perhaps, give their lives -- the ultimate sacrifice. But yet, they're living back at home on food stamps. It's not right, and it's not where we should be as a nation."

Isn’t this how we got into the mess in the first place, making mortgage loans to people who couldn’t afford them? But in its segment this morning on the stimulus, Good Morning America hailed the work of the Neighborhood Assistance Corp. of America. GMA portrayed the group simply as mortgage counselors, helping distressed homeowners work out tenable terms. But a trip to NACA’s website reveals that they are also multi-billion dollar lenders themselves, who brag of this very curious lending policy: "Everyone gets the same incredible terms, including the below-market interest rate, regardless of their credit score or other factors."...

Has a free-market mole infiltrated the weekend edition of Good Morning America? While the liberal cats of the weekday version are away, are market-oriented mice being allowed to play? I ask because for two weeks running, the weekend edition of the ABC show has given a fair shake to those opposing the porkulus. Last Saturday, as I reported here, Dan Mitchell of the libertarian Cato institute was given surprisingly respectful treatment as he made the case that big government spending doesn’t work. Today, it was George Will’s turn. In the course of a segment on the stimulus bill, the conservative...

In its opening half-hour, Good Morning America told us--twice--that Pres.-elect Obama choked up with emotion as he was packing up his old house. But somehow ABC couldn't find time to mention that a possible pay-to-play scheme was behind Bill Richardson's bye-bye as Commerce Secretary nominee. After the show-opening roll in which the president elect was shown heading to DC, Robin Roberts literally bounced in her co-anchor's chair: "so excited, so excited, so excited . . . It's a new day, new year, new everything going on." Added Diane Sawyer helpfully: "And a president-elect." "Yes," concurred Robin, as if it wasn't...

Imagine a liberal who had never voted for a Republican. He spends a year trying to live like Jesus Christ, after which he decides to vote for McCain, feeling that McCain best represents the teachings of Christ. What are the odds Good Morning America would have him on to discuss his experiences and political change of heart? But when an evangelical Christian who had never voted for a Democrat spends a year trying to live like Jesus, then decides to vote for Obama, well, GMA devotes a segment to his story. Rev. Ed Dobson is the evangelical in question, and...

Fidel will someday disappear, but MSM nostalgia for the Cuban revolution is forever. Good Morning America devoted a segment today to celebrations in Havana marking the 50th anniversary of Castro's dictatorship. The thrust of Jim Avila's report was that, yeah, there are those who "complain" about that oppression stuff, but the key is that Cuba is free from los Yanquis! JIM AVILA: It is Raul Castro who now runs the country, with Fidel incapacitated. He brought the celebration back to where in 1959, he, Fidel and Che Guevara came out of the Sierra Maestra mountains to overthrow the American-backed dictator,...

An environmentalist's dream might be a businessman's nightmare. But when it came to describing the the environmental team Pres.-elect Obama has assembled, it was sugar plum fairies for GMA this morning. Rachel Martin, who came to ABC from NPR, narrated the segment. RACHEL MARTIN: They are calling it the "Green Dream Team." Which invites the obvious question: who's "they," kimosabe? Running down the team line-up, Martin viewed things from an environmentalist perspective. View video here.

Now that Barack Obama is safely elected, people like Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayers no longer have to remain silent, and the media are suddenly interested in them. Former Weather Underground terrorist Ayers will appear tomorrow [FRIDAY, 11/14/08] on Good Morning America.

Furious over the portrayal of Rome in Tuesday’s national broadcast of "Good Morning America," Mayor James F. Brown said he’ll never watch ABC — the television show’s network — again. Cast and crew of the news program were at the Rome railroad station on Monday afternoon as part of a 50-state Whistle Stop ‘08 tour. More than 500 people turned out to meet the train and greet television personalities Robin Roberts, Diane Sawyer and Cris Cuomo. Though the show’s under 2-minute segment on Rome began with praise of the city’s enthusiastic welcome, it went on to call Rome the "snow...

While watching ABC This Week, ABC ran a Good Morning America television commercial with the tagline of Michelle Obamab will only talk to Robin Roberts, who happens to be a fellow African-American woman.

It’s not likely dieticians will be endorsing his regimen, but a Virginia man demonstrated it is possible to regularly dine at a fast-food restaurant without being criticized for signing your own death certificate. Despite media attacks on fast-food for being unhealthy, ABC’s “Good Morning America” showed that healthier options are available without heavy-handed involvement from government in its June 19 broadcast. “Meet Chris Coleson – for years the Virginia man said he was eating too much and, of course, no diet seemed to work,” co-host Diane Sawyer said. “Then last December, he tipped the scales at 278 pounds and made...

If gas prices are getting you down, just hop on your bike or grab a guitar like the May 16 “Good Morning America.” ABC News financial correspondent Bianna Golodryga, described as the “new TV money honey” by U.S. News and World Report’s Paul Bedard, reported yet another angle on high gas prices. “Cities across the country, like Portland, Louisville and Washington, D.C., are trading in gas-guzzlers for bike paths,” Golodrya reported. “All three cities are reporting spikes in bike use. We tracked one Washington state resident who says by riding his bike to work just once a week, he’s saving...

Dispatch from the Department of Glass Houses . . . The Good Morning America crew had a bunch of yucks today at the expense of the Sparks, NV streets department employee who spelled "scool" on the asphalt. But within minutes, two ABCers made math mistakes of their own, one of a political sort, the other climate-related. RON CLAIBORNE: In Sparks, Nevada, someone in the streets department could use a spelling lesson. A sign painted on the street announces a nearby facility is a "s-c-o-o-l" [sound of Claiborne chuckle]. The city plans to fix the sign as soon as possible. That's...

"What is mysterious, what is mysterious about the phrase 'variable rate'?" --George Will, This Week, March 30, 2008 Mystery is in the eyes of the borrower--and the MSM. The term "variable rate" in a mortgage might seem straightforward enough to George Will and our erudite NB readers, but to a college-educated homeowner--and ABC's Kate Snow--it's apparently a real brain twister. Snow hosted a segment on this morning's GMA dedicated to determining how the various presidential candidates' proposals would address the problems of sub-prime borrowers. As is the MSM's wont, ABC focused on a single sympathetic case, that of the Cruz-Rivera...

A couple at the "cross roads" of a "complicated" love story.  That's how Diane Sawyer set up the feature on a transgendered Microsoft executive, his/her wife, and their son in the 8:00 half-hour on "Good Morning America." The socially progressive bent of GMA was evident in the lack of context or perspective given to the family's story.  No consideration was given to the glaring social issues raised. It was reported as just another human-interest story.Video (2:00): Windows (7.31 MB), plus MP3 audio (917 kB)The five-minute feature, reported by Neal Karlinsky, explained the conflict Michael Wallent had with his identification as a male, his...

Mike Huckabee won five races last night. Mitt Romney won seven. Mike Huckabee has 190 delegates. Mitt Romney has 269 [see results here]. The only Deep South state left on the primary calendar is Mississippi. Romney has the message and money to compete across the USA. So when Huckabee claims it's now a two-man race between McCain and himself, a journalist would surely challenge him on it, no? No. Not Robin Roberts, at least. To the contrary, she bought into his logic to the extent of asking only about his strategy going forward. There were also some intriguing comments from...

Does "Good Morning America" mean "good morning all you racists"? Co-host Chris Cuomo seemed to suggest that on December 20. (Hat tip: Howard Mortman) Upon interviewing presidential candidate Barack Obama Cuomo inquired about Obama’s biggest obstacles. "What do you think the bigger obstacle is for you in becoming president, the Clinton campaign machine or America's inherent racists, racism?" Obama, though conceding he does not think "race has played a significant role in this campaign," went on to add that many people may vote for or against him because of his race.Video (:56): Windows Media (1.76 MB) and MP3 audio (.4...

ABC Honors Bill Clinton with Interview on 'His Work to Save a Continent' By Tim Graham | July 20, 2007 - 12:19 ETABC’s Good Morning America interviewed Bill Clinton on Thursday morning, and while he made the news for saying Iraq is hopeless ("There is no military victory here"), the interview was also notable as another opportunity for ABC to honor Clinton as a global statesman and ask him softball questions for almost nine minutes. Co-host Diane Sawyer reported he was in Africa to see Nelson Mandela and do his AIDS work: "And President Bill Clinton weighs in, speaking...

Is ABC's Bill Weir a TV journalist or a recruiter for Team Defeat? You had to wonder, watching his interview on today's "Good Morning America" of Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tn.). Alexander has co-sponsored legislation that would make the Iraq Study Group recommendations the basis for future U.S. strategy in Iraq. GMA CO-HOST BILL WEIR: You have introduced an idea now that really centers around redeploying our troops over there. What would it take for you to get behind a timetable for withdrawal? This could be an MSM first: breaking out a variation on the old used-car salesman line: "what would...

VANITY- ABC News "Good Morning America" is Deliberately Misleading America This Morning on Stem Cell Research

Who says the long sound bite is dead? According to an MRC analysis, "Good Morning America" devoted over 26 minutes of its two hour time slot on Monday to a fawning town hall meeting with Senator Hillary Clinton. Even more incredible is the fact that GMA host and event moderator Robin Roberts allowed Clinton to talk uninterrupted or unchallenged for almost 18 of those 26 minutes. During some of these long soliquies, the former First Lady repeatedly plugged her campaign website. ABC promises that future town hall meetings will include other presidential candidates, including, one assumes, Republicans. Will Mitt Romney...

On Thursday’s "Good Morning America," anchor Chris Cuomo and reporter Brian Ross discussed the recent report that terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammad admitted to planning 9/11 and other major attacks. However, Cuomo and Ross spent much of the segment fretting over the interrogation techniques used by the U.S. And Mr. Ross chose to recount an oddly sympathetic quote by the terrorist, noting that Mr. Mohammad said, "he was sorry that 3000 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks, but, quote, ‘I don’t like to kill children and the kids.’" One would think that such an absurd comment would at least...

Some High School Sporting Officials in Washington State Want to Throw Unsportsmanlike Behavior Off the Field March 4, 2007 — From brawls on professional basketball courts to out-of-control parents at Little League games, unsportsmanlike behavior can be a problem. Now, some high school sporting officials in Washington state are considering tough new rules — including a ban on booing. Those who support the ban say that too often, spectators are cruel. "It's the organized effort to try to intimidate or try to make fun of someone that becomes personal in nature that can escalate then into other concerns that we...

*** Just outstanding guest appearance by Sean Hannity on Good Morning America with Diane Sawyer, our 'Great American'!!! *** Hannity: Michael J. Fox Can Be Criticized for Stem Cell Ad Radio Show Host Says Ad Won't Affect Midterm Elections' Outcome Video link -http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=2604613 (opens ABC News video player) ABC Talk Radio host Sean Hannity spoke to Diane Sawyer about the recent controversey caused by Rush Limbaugh's comments about Michael J. Fox. Oct. 25, 2006 — Conservatives came to the defense of talk radio host Rush Limbaugh over his accusation that actor Michael J. Fox's appearance in a political ad about...

A nationally known speaker from Pittsburgh faces child pornography charges in Arkansas after technicians there working on his malfunctioning laptop computer discovered sexually explicit images of children.... Mr. Fortino is considered an expert in the management and balance of time, stress and lifestyles. Mr. Fortino has appeared on various national news programs and "Good Morning America." His most recent assignment has been as host of the PBS special "The Leadership Series."

Morgan Spurlock shows how difficult it is to pretend to be poor.by Dan Gainor June 16, 2005 The new Morgan Spurlock documentary ’30 Days’ highlighted the fantasy of “reality” TV as Spurlock and his fiancé pretended to live life on minimum wage surrounded by cameras. Instead of teaching important lessons about saving, personal responsibility and the value of education, Spurlock relied on emotion to try to convince viewers the minimum was too low. The June 15, 2005, program tried to duplicate the success of Spurlock’s Oscar-nominated attack on McDonald’s “Super Size Me,” where he stopped exercising and ate 5,000 calories...

NEW YORK (AP) - For 487 weeks, viewers have made NBC's "Today" show team of Katie Couric and Matt Lauer their favorites in the morning. The steady rise of ABC's "Good Morning America" is threatening that dominance. So far this season, the "Today" ratings lead has averaged 662,000 viewers, down from almost 1.3 million last year at the same time, according to Nielsen Media Research. Five years ago, "Today" regularly won by nearly 2 million. There have even been a few days - the Monday after Pope John Paul II died and last Tuesday's Mariah Carey concert - when the...

Atlanta police handcuffed Good Morning America booker Mike Nagel this morning after complaints about his disorderly conduct, TVNewser has learned. Nagel was trying to interrupt NBC's interview with Atlanta hostage Ashley Smith this morning. (And some of it happened on-air: does anyone have screen grabs from 'Today?') Here's how the incident unfolded, according to sources at both networks: ABC, really, really wanted an exclusive interview with Smith. And they thought they had it: They were under the impression that they were the only network morning show with the Smith interview. But Smith's attorney had arranged for NBC's 'Today' show to...

<p>The best evidence that the Wead tapes put W in a good light? The fact that Today downplayed them in favor of . . . running another segment on Jason Tharp, the Marine recruit who drowned during basic training.</p> <p>GMA picked up the Bush-Wead tape ball with an interview with Wead himself. It was one of those ironic/hypocritical moments in journalism. On the one hand, Diane Sawyer rapped Wead on the knuckles for promulgating the tapes, but on the other, there he was as the show's featured guest, presumably pumping up both GMA's and Wead's ratings.</p>

"I mean, it is simply a fact that he has married two heiresses, his specialty in life. I mean, if he has an economic plan, I think the one I'd like to hear about is how to snooker millionairesses into marrying me and living off them." -- Ann Coulter, yesterday on "Good Morning America," referring to John Kerry.

Diane Sawyer Nails Kerry PerilPREEMPTION + KERRY'S EX POST FACTO REASONINGWHY JOHN KERRY IS DANGEROUS FOR AMERICA by Mia T, 9.30.04 Kerry is UNFIT #24THUMBSUCKER SERIESDiane Sawyer Nails Kerry PerilPREEMPTION + KERRY'S EX POST FACTO REASONING (viewing movie requires Flash Player 7, available HERE) JOHN KERRY: "We should not have gone to war, knowing the information we know today.... DIANE SAWYER: "So, it was not worth it." JOHN KERRY: "You should not--eh--it depends on the outcome, ultimately, and that depends on the leadership. And we need better leadership to get the job done successfully. I would not have gone to...

John Kerry, apparent Democrat nominee for President, is the more important person with the less important problem. Jamie Gorelick, member of the 9/11 Commission, is the reverse. So in explaining why each is unfit for the position he seeks and the one she holds, we begin with Kerry. We’ll use a version of a game we all played at an early age, “Pin the Tail on the Donkey,” to deal with Kerry and Gorelick. This week ABC came up with a videotape of Senator Kerry saying the opposite then of what he’s saying now about his “medals thrown over the...

Kerry Demands Bush Prove Guard ServiceBy NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press WriterJohn%20Kerry">web sites), a decorated Navy veteran criticized by Republicans for his anti-war activities during the Vietnam era, lashed out at President Bush (news - web sites) on Monday for failing to prove whether he fulfilled his commitment to the National Guard during the same period. Conservative critics have questioned whether Kerry deserved his three Purple Hearts for battle wounds, an issue the Democratic presidential candidate sought to put to rest last week by releasing his military records. On Sunday, a top Bush adviser criticized Kerry for leading anti-war protests after...

<p>Sen. John Kerry yesterday denied charges that he lied about throwing his war medals away on the steps of the U.S. Capitol during a 1971 antiwar rally.</p> <p>For years, he's maintained that he threw away his ribbons and the medals of another soldier — while his medals were in safekeeping at home that day — to protest the Vietnam War. But in a newly unearthed 1971 television interview, Mr. Kerry said he threw his medals away.</p>

<p>April 27, 2004 -- WASHINGTON - An agitated and defensive John Kerry hit the roof yesterday trying to explain that he never lied about tossing away his Vietnam medals at a 1971 anti-war protest. "I'm not going to stand for this," Kerry huffed in a combative interview with ABC's "Good Morning America."</p>

<p>April 27, 2004 -- THE conventional wisdom is that the presidential election will be close. It's a 50-50 country, so the CW goes, just as it was in the year 2000.</p> <p>Kerry is a terrible, terrible, terrible candidate.</p> <p>It's not so much the policies he proposes, although they don't add up to all that much. The problem is Kerry himself. He no sooner opens his mouth than he sticks first one foot and then the other right in there.</p>

<p>Look, Charlie, who are you gonna believe, John Kerry or your own eyes?</p> <p>The great white Democratic hope set out early yesterday to clear up the 33-year-old question of what did he do with his medals from Vietnam and when did he do it?</p>

Peter Jennings just ran a piece on Kerry's Vietnam history. Included in the piece was a bit of video after this morning's interview with Charlie Gibson. Kerry (thinking he was off-camera) ripped out his earpiece, and said "I feel like they're doing the work of the Republican National Committee."

Let's see if I can kick this off. During the promo at the beginning of the show, where he was standing by live in West Virginia, and throughout the interview itself, Kerry tried hard to keep this huge "what me worry?" smile plastered on his face. He coupled it with numerous condescending head shakes that seemed to imply "these poor benighted fools who so miserably misunderstand the greatness that is John Kerry."

The Swedish Queen will be making her american TV debut. The segment will be on at 08.30 am. Would love to hear some comments on her performance.

<p>Tim Bueler, like many cocksure 17-year-olds, is strident in expressing his political beliefs.</p> <p>And to him, the Republican Party leans too far to the left.</p> <p>That was the spark that launched his Conservative Club at Rancho Cotate High School in the Sonoma County town of Rohnert Park and ignited two months of rhetorical ugliness on campus. It also put him on the conservative talk show circuit, including an appearance Thursday on Fox television's "The O'Reilly Factor."</p>

DC Chapter stalwart 'kristinn' braved the Good Morning America broadcast and gives us the blow by blow account..Diane: You are going to be on the New York Times bestseller list slugging it out with Hillary Clinton.Ann:I hope so. Diane: Who is going to win? Ann: Umm, Well I think she has a three to one pound advantage over me, but we will see. Diane: (stunned silence for a moment as her jaw drops and eyes bug out) Three to one pound advantage? Did you just say what I think you said?Ann: You said 'slugging it out with Hillary'Diane: So you...

MILWAUKEE (AP) _ Roman Catholic Archbishop Rembert Weakland agreed in 1998 to pay $450,000 to a man who accused him of sexual assault, according to documents cited Thursday by ABC News. ABC said the agreement had required Paul J. Marcoux, 53, to keep silent. ``I was involved in a cover-up. I accepted money to be silent about it, not to speak out against what was going on,'' Marcoux said in an interview broadcast on ``Good Morning America.'' Marcoux (pronounced mar COO) said he was sexually assaulted 20 years ago, when he was a student at Marquette University and had gone...

Today I was watching Good Morning America with Charlie Gibson in Jerusalem. The showed a particular interview between Charlie and a Palastinian representative. During the interview, Charlie basically opened up the interview with a question like this... Does the fact that the American President waited a week to send SOS Powell to the region alarm you?... Do you feel that the Whitehouse is uninformed and confused on the plight of the palastinians?...THESE ARE JUST PARAPHRASES but the basic line of questioning was anti-Bush and anti-American. Charlie did throw a softball question about the bombers and gave the interview-ee ample time...