Special Report: Sunday Talk Shows Continue Rightward Tilt Despite Power Shift in Congress

Fox News Sunday Remains Most Unbalanced Broadcast; ABC's This Week Reaches Overall Balance of Guests From Right and Left

Report is attached as PDF or available online at www.SundayShowReport.com.

Washington, DC - Media Matters for America today released "If It's Sunday, It's Still Conservative," a report documenting the continued dominance of Republican and conservative voices on the network Sunday morning talk shows -- ABC's This Week, CBS' Face the Nation, NBC's Meet the Press, and Fox Broadcasting Co.'s Fox News Sunday. Among the report's key findings:

• Despite previous network claims that a conservative advantage existed on the Sunday shows simply because Republicans controlled Congress and the White House, only one show, ABC's This Week, has been roughly balanced between both sides overall since the congressional majority switched hands in the 2006 midterm elections.

• Since the 2006 midterm elections, NBC's Meet the Press and CBS' Face the Nation have provided less balance between Republican and Democratic officials than Fox Broadcasting Co.'s Fox News Sunday despite the fact that Fox News Sunday remains the most unbalanced broadcast overall.

• During the 109^th Congress (2005 and 2006), Republicans and conservatives held the advantage on every show, in every category measured. All four shows interviewed more Republicans and conservatives than Democrats and progressives overall, interviewed more Republican elected and administration officials than Democratic officials, hosted more conservative journalists than progressive journalists, held more panels that tilted right than tilted left, and gave more solo interviews to Republicans and conservatives.

"On the whole, our report shows the all-important Sunday shows are largely out of step with what's happening in Washington and across America. The deck is still stacked in favor of conservatives," said David Brock, President and CEO of Media Matters for America. "This is a serious problem for the networks, one that compromises their integrity and threatens to taint political discourse across the country," Brock said.

Post Election: This Week Reaches Balance; Fox News Sunday Remains Least Balanced of the All-Important Sunday Morning Political Talk Shows

"It should not go unnoticed that This Week has improved dramatically since the election, maintaining a rough balance with their guests from the left and right. It's unfortunate that the other shows have largely failed to follow This Week's example," Brock said.

While Fox News Sunday continues to favor Republican and conservative guests overall, it has hosted a balance of Republican and Democratic elected officials since the election -- a feat Meet the Press and Face the Nation are far from achieving.

"When an overtly unbalanced program like Fox News Sunday manages to have more balance between Republican and Democratic officials than Meet the Press and Face the Nation, there is obviously a serious problem with these highly respected broadcasts," Brock said.

It's Time for Change

Media Matters followed the report's release with calls for the networks to change their practices and provide a more balanced lineup of guests on the Sunday shows.

"The American people deserve an equitable and balanced debate on Sunday morning. For the networks to provide anything less is a violation of the public's trust. The Sunday shows need to address this problem, or risk diminishing their respected position in the American political landscape," Brock said.

About the Report & Media Matters for America

The report analyzed ABC's This Week, CBS' Face the Nation, NBC's Meet the Press, and Fox Broadcasting Co.'s Fox News Sunday, classifying each of the more than 2,000 guests in 2005 and 2006 as well as guests since the 2006 midterm elections by party and/or ideology. It follows on last year's report, "If It's Sunday, It's Conservative," which analyzed more than 7,000 guests on the Sunday shows during the Clinton and Bush presidencies and found a Republican-conservative tilt during both administrations. As the new findings demonstrate, despite some improvement, considered as a while the Sunday shows still don't offer a full range of diverse view to the public.

Media Matters for America is a not-for-profit, progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.

Report is attached as PDF or available online at www.SundayShowReport.com.

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