ABC's Sawyer whitewashes 9-12 protesters' extremism
During an interview with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Good Morning America, Diane Sawyer whitewashed the extremism on display during the 9-12 protests by asserting that people at the protests were "saying things like, look at the reality. We're facing a $1.6 trillion deficit. If you're facing IOUs to other countries, where suddenly they own America, our children are imperiled." In fact, far from simply complaining about the deficit, numerous protesters at the 9-12 rallies held signs featuring inflammatory attacks on Obama and other Democrats, and Good Morning America itself previously interviewed 9-12 protesters who said that "every Democratic politician is working for the mafia" and that Obama is a "communist."
Sawyer claims 9-12 protesters were "saying things like" the ballooning deficit "imperil[s]" our children
From the September 15 edition of ABC's Good Morning America:
SAWYER: There were tens of thousands of people in the street in Washington over the weekend, saying things like, "Just look at the reality. If you're facing a $1.6 trillion deficit, if you're facing IOUs to other countries, where suddenly they own America, our children are imperiled."
FEMALE 9/12 PROTESTER [video clip]: Stop spending our money. I have a grandbaby, we have a grandbaby, a year old, who isn't going to have a dime.
SAWYER: One woman said, "they won't have a discretionary dime."
But many of the protesters' signs and statements were extreme
Shuster: The 9-12 protesters gathered to "unite in apparent hatred" of Obama. On the September 14 edition of MSNBC's Countdown, guest host David Shuster noted signs at the 9-12 protest comparing Obama to "Hitler, Lenin, Stalin, and Fidel Castro"; "threaten[ing] the president's life"; "denigrat[ing] the ancestry and skin color" of Obama "while calling him a liar"; and portraying Obama as a "bloodsucking alien," an "illegal alien," and "the devil." Shuster also noted a sign that "use[d] the death" of Sen. Edward Kennedy to "bury" health care reform legislation.
Reported protest sign: "Bury Obamacare with Kennedy" From Talking Points Memo's 9-12 protest photo gallery:
Reported protest sign: Obama telling terrorists, "Whoa boys! I'll take it from here." From Talking Points Memo's protest photo gallery:
Reported protest sign: "Obamacare is elderly genocide." From Talking Points Memo's 9-12 protest photo gallery:
Reported protest sign: "We came unarmed [this time]." From Talking Points Memo's protest photo gallery:
Reported protest sign: "Stop" Obama "now" before "we smell the burning flesh from the ovens." From Talking Points Memo's protest photo gallery:
Reported protest sign: "The zoo has an African [lion] and the White House has a lyin' African!" From Wonkette:
ABC's own reporting undermines Sawyer's assertion
GMA previously aired protesters pushing "mafia" and "communist" smears. During the September 13 edition of Good Morning America, ABC's Yunji de Nies interviewed protesters who said that "every Democratic politician is working for the mafia" and that Obama is a "communist." Like Shuster, de Nies also noted that "Some [protesters] even called to bury Obamacare with Kennedy." During the show, ABC also aired footage of protesters holding signs depicting Obama as the Joker, comparing Obama to Karl Marx and Josef Stalin, and urging people to "Fight Liberal Fascism." One sign ABC aired read, in part: "We have waken up to your evil plans to destroy our country. Take your racist, un-American 'ACORN' groups and arrogant wife back to your own country."
During Sawyer's remarks, ABC aired protester's sign echoing Rep. Wilson's "You lie!" outburst. As Sawyer spoke about how the protesters expressed concern about the deficit, ABC aired footage of a protester holding a sign which read: "YOU LIE! NO BIG GVT. TERM LIMITS." The sign echoed Rep. Joe Wilson's (R-SC) outburst during Obama's September 9 joint address to Congress on health reform, in which Wilson shouted, "You lie!" when Obama said "our reform efforts" would not "insure illegal immigrants." But as ABC's Jake Tapper stated on the September 10 edition of World News: "Would the president's reforms apply to illegal immigrants? The answer is no."
Transcripts
From the September 15 edition of ABC's Good Morning America:
SAWYER: There were tens of thousands of people in the street in Washington over the weekend, saying things like, "Just look at the reality. If you're facing a $1.6 trillion deficit, if you're facing IOUs to other countries, where suddenly they own America, our children are imperiled."
FEMALE 9/12 PROTESTER [video clip]: Stop spending our money. I have a grandbaby, we have a grandbaby, a year old, who isn't going to have a dime.
SAWYER: One woman said, "they won't have a discretionary dime."
GEITHNER: We got into this because we borrowed too much. We lived beyond our means, both as a country -- many businesses did it, many families did it, and obviously, the financial sector did that. But, in a crisis, in a fire that was that powerful, the government had to do some deeply offensive things to help contain the damage. And we will get out of that as quickly as we can. We're not going to keep a penny in the financial system or in the U.S. economy longer than we think is absolutely necessary.
From the September 13 edition of Good Morning America:
BILL WEIR: Protesters descend on the nation's capital to rail against big government, while the president takes his health care pitch on the road. What the battle means for true reform.
[...]
KATE SNOW (ABC correspondent): A galvanizing moment in Washington on Saturday for those opposed to President Obama's health care plan. Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets to rally against Democrats in Congress and a whole lot more. And ABC's Yunji de Nies was on the National Mall for the rally. She joins us now from the White House this morning. Good morning, Yunji.
DE NIES: Good morning, Kate. The numbers are hotly debated. Washington officials estimate that as many as 75,000 people marched down Pennsylvania Avenue. Regardless of how many, their message was loud and clear.
[begin video clip]
DE NIES: They came with signs, costumes, and lots of energy. A government they see as too big, wasteful, and out of control.
PROTESTER: We don't want your new health care. We don't want any more taxes. We don't want any more stimulus. We don't want any more lies.
DE NIES: They carry a great mistrust of almost anyone in office.
PROTESTER: Every poli -- Democratic politician is working for the mafia.
MICHAEL GIBBS (protester from Ohio): He's a communist.
DE NIES: Do you really believe the president is a communist?
GIBBS: I believe he's not only a communist, but all you have to do is look at the people he's brought in as czars, you know, and look at the things he's doing.
DE NIES: Some even called to bury Obamacare with Kennedy. But the marchers insist they're not extremists.
DARIN INGE (protester from Texas): We have been mischaracterized as a mob, as terrorists, as racists, as gangsters, when really we're just Americans who are fed up.
DE NIES: The marchers' message was aimed squarely at the president.
JIM FLAUTHER (protester from Ohio): Start listening to the people, sir. We've had just about enough.
DE NIES: Mr. Obama held a health care rally of his own thousands of miles away in Minneapolis.
[end video clip]
Now they're trying to size up this group of protestors and give them some legitimate reason to be out there. We would be much better served if they simply had waded into the crowd and solicited random remarks directly from the people there.
Tommy, you forgot say, "THIS IS SILLY!!!!"
I loved that part as well. "numerous protesters".....wow..that is profound.
I don't argue with or against extremists, it's a waste of time.
If you're saying MMfA could have framed this better, I agree. But Sawyer's portrayal seems incredibly charitable, which seems noteworthy one way or another.
The extreme ones, the ones most in the media love to highlight and show because of it's titillating nature, are always there, and they bring signs and act like idiots to get attention - I have no time for them or care what they do. Actually, I think Sawyer was actually doing a service to the whole debate by not showing these idiots. They don't deserve the attention.
I am disappointed in MMfA for wanting to inflame the debate by encouraging it to deteriorate to the level where these extremists are given national TV exposure. It only makes things worse.
Both groups are there in force. The extremists, unfortunately, are a large part of the crowd. If I were a libertarian, I'd want no part of them and wouldn't hang out in a mad tea party with 'em.
But this time Sawyer didn't follow the playbook and tried, just a little, to highlight a normal protester who was not carrying around an insane sign of hatred. Oops. MMfA kicks into gear and attemtps to shift back into inflammatory mode and says Sawyer is whitewashing what went on simply because she may be trying to elevate the debate and make it about issues instead of idiots.
So when MMfA complains about the tone from the right and grandstand by acting like it turns their stomach and they want it to stop, they turn right around and complain when it isn't slobbered on all over the media. How sad.
As I said, it is counterproductive and useless to argue from extremes. If you and others want to take the media's bait by all means, I choose not to.
Such as? The protests against the war were not dominated by the fringe. The protests in DC against Obama *were* the fringe.
How about Kanye West as an example? What if they cut out his idiotic jump on the stage, and nobody brought it up? As it is now, he had to apologize, and even then he might face some backlash from consumers. But otherwise, how would he be accountable for his actions?
As if those two topics are mutually exclusive. The protesters were both hypocritical and extreme.
On what basis do you claim I want to "blanket them all"? I'm not sure where you're getting that from.
Slick, just not enough. :)
Enjoy your evening.
That's not a very coherent post, Tommy.
You might be, but we'll continue to post. Of course, my point still stands: the movement that represents the counter to Obama is represented by extremists. That is obviously news.
The protesters were extreme. The *majority* of them. And they are supposed to represent the counter to Obama's policy. That certainly is news.
DE NIES: They carry a great mistrust of almost anyone in office.
PROTESTER: Every poli -- Democratic politician is working for the mafia.
The protester almost had the right group to be mad at, but his Beck-induced mind-control kicked in at the last second. Then it went down hill from there.
I'll repeat my chant again.
Why is this supposed to be a protest against "government" when the some of the same folks who belong to "government" are right there with you - and they just happen to be Republican politicians?
Why, because you (protesters) are too ignorant or stupid to see that you are being conned by Republicans into venting your anger at just Obama and the Dems.
You can't see that the other source of your frustration is standing next to you, within choking distance!
Here's what's nuts about these folks:
1) Young earth creationism.
The world is only seven months old. The deficit and the downward slide in the economy began in January. They don't say everything was fine before--none of that existed.
2) The Apocalypse
Barack is going to destroy America. Did Bill Clinton try, and fail? Or does Obama have the One Ring?
3) "She turned me into a newt!"
Protesting things that haven't happened, and pretending they've been damaged when they aren't. Taxed enough Already--they just got a tax cut.
4) They're the only people in the room.
They don't see the plight of their neighbors--their middle-class white neighbors. The recession doesn't exist. The enormous unemployment, people losing their homes, the plight of the victims of 'health care"--it's not that they think things are fine, they don't see any of it. Really don't see any of it.
This adds up to real schizophrenia.
"Bush is the International Terrorist" was just one of the signs in Charlotte.
"Liar and Thief was another" in NYC 2003. NEVER heard him refered to at Hitler..How quickly we forget the past..
Tell me,if these people who marched on Washington are so "extreme", where at the riots, fires, cars overturned, etc. Face it-these are people who are fed up with the way this government is behaving.
Did I read that about right?
Liberals holding up signs painting Bush as Hitler = extreme.
Conservatives holding up signs painting Obama as Hitler = mainstream, because there wasn't a riot.
They disregard that BOTH are extreme and unwarranted, but refuse to see it that way.
Randy