Posted on 09/23/2004 10:50:02 AM PDT by FlyLow
Newsweek's Howard Fineman argued that CBS News producer Mary Mapes became "obsessed," with trying to prove that George W. Bush got special treatment in the National Guard, because she wanted to "save the world from a George Bush presidency, and in the last five years, she's tried to find that smoking gun that would allow her to do that." Appearing on MSNBC's Imus in the Morning on Wednesday, Fineman fretted that due to the CBS scandal, it is getting "increasingly difficult to prove" that the rest of the media strive for "objectivity" and want to be "fair" and "even- handed." Fineman also predicted that "if Roger Ailes and Fox had done something like this, you know, the world would be on fire."
The MRC's Jessica Anderson caught the exchange between Don Imus and Newsweek's chief political correspondent, who appeared by phone, on the September 22 MSNBC simulcast of the Imus in the Morning radio show:
Imus: "What do you all make of what's going on at CBS?"
Fineman: "...My take on what happened here is that the producer, who I've never met, and who has a great reputation, but the producer, Mary Mapes, became obsessed with this story. In 1999, she began looking for evidence that then Governor Bush, you know, had not shown up for and been derelict in his duty in the National Guard. She probably didn't like him politically, judging from everything I've read about her, and was gonna save the world from a George Bush presidency, and in the last five years, she's tried to find that smoking gun that would allow her to do that. And they went to this guy, Burkett -- I mean, to me, one of the most amazing things about this story is that they searched him out, even knowing what an unreliable source he was. And that, to me, means obsession, and as you pointed out the other day, you know, that's what editors are for. Editors are there to harness the energy, sometimes obsessive energy of reporters and they clearly didn't do it in this case."
Imus suggested: "...Rather doesn't have any friends who do not hate George Bush. His friends are all -- we know who they are. I mean, the Molly Ivans of the world, and they all hate Bush. Maybe Rather doesn't, but he's the only one of anybody who he ever talks to or hangs out with...He may not, but that makes him unique in his circle of friends."
Fineman: "...In a way, this is a Texas war. It's between what I'm assuming is Rather's sort of populous Texas notions, which I'm sure he holds deeply, and the Bush view. The problem with all of this is, for what's left of what we used to call the mainstream media or the national media, is that those of us who've spent a long time, indeed, a whole career, trying to argue that we are objective, that we strive for objectivity, that we're interested in the facts, that we want to be fair, that we want to be even- handed, it gets increasingly difficult to prove that when something like this comes along, and for other people in the national press corps, whether it's at other networks or at news organizations like mine, to take sort of any secret guilty pleasure in CBS's trouble is a huge mistake, because what's happening is that the national press core is crumbling. I've got to say, if Roger Ailes and Fox had done something like this, you know, the world would be on fire, but they didn't. It's CBS that did it."
haha! Even her Dad came out against her, for being a feminist activist liberal, I believe.
Thanks for the verification on that story!
Fineman's a smart guy. He realizes, rightfully so, that Rathergate taints all the media, not just Gunga Dan. I applaud him for speaking out on this issue right from the beginning.
Simple.
Like the majority of Liberals, what they do is sneak and practice subterfuge. Their's is a calling, of sorts. A religious dogma of Man. There being no higher authority than what the human mind, absent moral codes, can accomplish in its own self interest. They, alone, know what is best for all. And, they'll do whatever is needed to install a regime that reflects their own narrow views.
"By any means necessary."
Not bad.
In the tank for Kerry.
Howard Fineman says Mary Mapes is the one per cent partisan liar giving the other ninety-nine per cent partisan liars a bad rep.
Dat soundz logical.
Oh yeah, anyone who watches the Whitehouse Press Corps knows just how "impartial" the press is. Did you listen to those ravening wolves today? You wanted to smack them for being so rude.
Thanks for the ping Phil!
BTTT
They can't .. they don't know how. They live in a bubble where everyone they know (like Fineman said) hates Bush .. because he's a repub.
Bernard Goldberg ask one of the CBS reporters why she didn't include any conservative women's opinions in her report. Her answer: "I didn't even think of that". So .. conservative opinion has no value to liberals.
Or the other liberal who said she didn't know anybody who would have voted for him, after finding out Nixon had won the election.
The other thing I just noticed the other night on H&C - I can't remember her name but she was the female VP candidate for the dems - she kept making this statement .. "if Joe Lockhart said the Kerry campaign is not involved" .. according to her it was gospel. However, if George Bush or any of his surrogates said anything - they were lying. Though she's not a part of the media, her thought patterns are just the same .. whatever dems say is gospel and whatever repubs say is a lie.
ALLLLLLLL THAT IS CHANGING .. and I believe this election will prove the liberals do not CONTROL what America thinks.
That Howard Fineman, not a conservative bone in his body, is admitting that this is the case is astouning. If Fineman is willing to admit this much, one can only imagine how much this lady really hates the President.
Pathetic.
Yep. Even her ~76 year old Dad described Mapes as a
"Liberal Feminist Activist" [quoting from memory] .....
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