Wed, Jul 14, 2004 6:16pm ET

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Newsweek's Fineman repeated myth that Casey was forbidden to speak at '92 Dem convention

Newsweek chief political correspondent and NBC News analyst Howard Fineman, writing in a July 14 MSNBC.com news article, repeated the erroneous myth that the late Pennsylvania governor Bob Casey was forbidden to speak at the 1992 Democratic National Convention because he opposed abortion rights. After quoting Casey's son, Fineman added, "His late father and namesake was so anti-abortion that he was denied the opportunity to speak at a Democratic convention."

Fineman is not the first in recent weeks to propagate the myth: As Media Matters for America documented, FOX News Channel host Bill O'Reilly did so on June 22, followed by syndicated columnist (and co-host of CNN's Crossfire) Robert Novak on June 28. MMFA noted on both occasions that Casey was denied the bully pulpit because he refused to endorse the Clinton-Gore presidential ticket.

Several reader tips contributed to this report. Thanks, and keep them coming.

—S.M.

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