Wanted: A List of Major News Organizations Questioning Governor Palin's Ability.
By anniepa
@anniepa (27955)
United States
September 4, 2008 8:00pm CST
...to be VP because she's the mother of five children. This request was just put out by Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews of MSNBC and it's a question I've had for a few days now. I know a very good friend of mine here at myLot has mentioned CNN as being one of the culprits and I don't deny her word for one second.
My question is, is CNN as a network doing it with many or most of their commentators saying it or is it just one or two people? Are other networks doing it as well? Please, let us know so we can know who to boycott, if we so choose, or who to complain to because while I'm not a Republican or a Palin fan I don't go for this kind of rhetoric.
So, help me put together a list of who, when and where. Any details would be appreciated such as on what show or in what context, etc. As I said, David Gregory, while talking with other commentators related what a female GOP delegate had said to him last night but that does NOT qualify as someone from a major news organization say it. Thanks in advance!
Annie
1 person likes this
4 responses
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
5 Sep 08
I was on Rasmussen Reports when I read this so I'm giving you something from there first. I'll get to CNN tomorrow since I'm going out soon.
Here are a few pleasant excerpts:
"Then who does McCain pick for VP? A 44-year-old who parades her dysfunctional family as a poster-child for conservative values."
"Palin returned to the job three days after giving birth to a special needs child, all the while her 17-year-old is entertaining a lover. And what about plans to have the girl wed the stud, author of some very unromantic remarks on Facebook? Note that she's been pregnant for five months and still no matrimony. These nuptials couldn't be a last-minute political move, could they?"
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_froma_harrop/don_t_they_have_birth_control_up_in_alaska
The sad thing is I started going to that site because I thought they might actually be unbiased.
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@chameleonsdream (1230)
• United States
5 Sep 08
Note, though, that Rasmussen Reports has a standard disclaimer at the bottom of every column that they publish. It reads:
Views expressed in this column are those of the author, not those of Rasmussen Reports.
You can read plenty of opposing viewpoints to the one expressed by that particular columnist, including one from Richard (you'll have to look for the man under his nickname that violates myLot's tos) Morris that says:
None of the "scandal" reflects ill on Sarah herself. They're the kind of family issues that bedevil many American women. That the media accords such prominence to them shows how fundamentally differently we treat women and men in politics.
Hear, hear.
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@anniepa (27955)
• United States
5 Sep 08
Thanks to both of you for your info. I guess I assumed, possibly incorrectly, that they were referring to TV stations or networks.
Since the D1ck Morris was brought up I thought I'd mention I heard his reaction after Jamie Lynn Spears's pregnancy was announced several months ago and while I don't recall his exact words it was to the effect that the blame lies entirely with her parents. Don't you just love consistency? (Frankly, what makes either case any of the D1ck Morris's business?)
Annie
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
5 Sep 08
"I guess I assumed, possibly incorrectly, that they were referring to TV stations or networks."
It's quite possible. Unfortunately I lack the free time necessary to watch political news on television. I get most of my news from reading the paper at work, or looking at the websites of various news organizations.
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@chameleonsdream (1230)
• United States
5 Sep 08
My own experience has been similar. What I'm seeing is not so much the media talking heads saying it as they are "reporting" what is being said. Unless they are giving equal time to those who reject that sort of rhetoric, then they are as guilty as if their commentators, anchors and reporters are spouting it themselves.
Like you, I'm not a Republican or a fan of Sarah Palin, but it has nothing whatsoever to do with her being a mother of young children. In fact, I wrote about it at my blog a couple of hours ago and had a heated discussion with my adult daughter about it. We need to be just as vigilant about sexist rhetoric when it's applied to a woman who is not supported by the traditional feminist media as we are when it's applied to our own Old Guard. If we're not, then we're hypocrites, and setting up a hostile environment for all women.
@chameleonsdream (1230)
• United States
5 Sep 08
Oh, it's certainly incumbent on a reporter to repeat what they've learned, and often, what is said and who said it is a story in itself. What I'm talking about is balanced coverage. Responsible media coverage presents both sides of the issue - so when they say 'there's a lot of question about her ability to be the vice president because she's the mother of young children' are they also saying, 'no one questions Barack Obama's ability to be president when he has young children'? This really isn't a matter of how the media treats Democrats and Republicans differently - it's about whether they are treating a woman politician differently than they would a man.
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@CherylsPearls (1269)
• United States
5 Sep 08
I'm usually a news-hound, Annie, and I haven't heard anything like that from any major news organization. The only place I have seen anything like that is in the reader comment sections, and I hope everyone knows that those are not from any news agency!
If I do hear anything like that, I'll let you know, though.
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@anniepa (27955)
• United States
5 Sep 08
"...and I hope everyone knows that those are not from any news agency!"
I hope so, too, but you never know...lol! I haven't seen anything like that either and I'm also a news-hound. I think the guys at MSNBC were getting frustrated with being accused of something they didn't do and that's why Keith asked for the list and Chris seconded the request.
Annie
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
5 Sep 08
Sorry, I don't do that type of television. I watch a little Good Morning America about 10 minutes or so a day, I watch my local news for about the same length of time, and I watched the conventions on PBS, except for when they go past 11 then I have to change over to ABC. Can't help you on this one.
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