http://mediamatters.org/tools/syndication/tag_rss/msnbc This link is for use by RSS-enabled software to retrieve Media Matters items matching the term: MSNBC en-US Copyright 2008, Media Matters for America http://mediamatters.org/items/200805080004 NBC's Ann Curry did not challenge Cindy McCain, Sen. John McCain's wife, when she claimed, "You won't see [negative stuff] come out of our side at all," and asserted, "My husband is absolutely opposed to any negative campaigning at all." In fact, John McCain has a history of negative campaigning and has promulgated numerous falsehoods about his opponents during the 2008 presidential campaign. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805080004 Thu, 8 May 2008 14:29:49 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200805060005 On <em>MSNBC Live</em>, magician Penn Jillette told a version of a joke about Sen. Hillary Clinton: " '[Sen. Barack] Obama did great in February, and that's because that was Black History Month. And now Hillary's doing much better 'cause it's White Bitch Month,' right?" After Jillette told the joke, co-host Joe Scarborough said, "I knew I -- you know, I knew I should have warned you before you started it." Co-host Mika Brzezinski added: "I don't like that." But MSNBC had plenty of notice that Jillette likes to tell the joke, which he is seen telling in a Web video, clips of which aired while Scarborough and Brzezinski introduced him. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805060005 Tue, 6 May 2008 15:41:32 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200805020003 On<em> Hardball</em>, Chris Matthews asserted: "Look, the war's not going to be any more popular in November. It may be somewhat OK with 30, 40 percent of the people, but it's never going to be a winner. The economy's not going to be a winner. So what do you have with [Sen. John] McCain? Integrity." But Matthews did not note his own role in promoting that image of McCain, despite numerous false assertions and inconsistencies. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805020003 Fri, 2 May 2008 16:31:05 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010007 MSNBC's Joe Scarborough stated that Sen. Barack Obama has "the most liberal record in the Senate, according to the <em>National Journal</em>," but he did not mention a respected, comprehensive vote study that found Obama was the 10th most liberal senator in 2007. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010007 Thu, 1 May 2008 17:32:27 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010005 On <em>Hardball</em>, John Harwood stated: "John McCain's brand ... has been pretty well-established since 2000. He's likable. He's a maverick. He's a war hero. All of that redounds to his benefit." But while citing McCain's purported "brand" as a "maverick," Harwood did not acknowledge his own role in promoting that "brand." Nor did he point out any of McCain's actions that challenge that "brand," such as McCain's rightward shift on high-profile issues such as immigration and taxes, and his growing list of falsehoods. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010005 Thu, 1 May 2008 15:34:09 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010003 On MSNBC, during a discussion of the focus on Sen. Barack Obama's relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright compared with that on Sen. John McCain's relationship with Pastor John Hagee, <em>Newsweek</em>'s Richard Wolffe stated, "In some ways, John McCain is getting a free ride." Hagee has made controversial statements about Hurricane Katrina, women, homosexuality, the Catholic Church, and Islam. http://mediamatters.org/items/200805010003 Thu, 1 May 2008 13:37:12 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804300004 On <em>Countdown</em>, Keith Olbermann awarded Sean Hannity the "runner-up" in his nightly "Worst Person in the World" segment for failing to challenge a guest's suggestion that Sen. Barack Obama has "not condemn[ed] the actions" of William Ayers. As Olbermann noted, "Hannity, of course, never pointed out to the victim that Obama did condemn them -- the words he used were 'deplore' and 'detestable.'" http://mediamatters.org/items/200804300004 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 14:28:01 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804290007 On <em>Hardball</em>, Chris Matthews likened the relationship between Sen. Barack Obama and his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, to "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and asserted: [E]very time you have a problem with Barack, because you don't really know him and he seems a little foreign to you, you think of -- you think of him as both these guys. They're different faces of the same guy. Jeremiah Wright, to a lot of people, is Barack Obama." http://mediamatters.org/items/200804290007 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:04:23 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804290003 On <em>Countdown</em>, Keith Olbermann named Ken Rudin the "winner" of his nightly "Worst Person in the World" segment for asserting: "[F]<strong><strong>irst of all, </strong></strong>let's be honest here, [Sen.] Hillary Clinton is Glenn Close in <em><em>Fatal Attraction</em></em>. She's going to keep coming back, and they're not going to stop her." Olbermann commented: "[A]fter comparing Senator Clinton to the insane, murderous, kidnapping, stalking, knife-wielding, suicidal, bunny-boiling character of Alex Forrest, who has to be drowned and shot to be finally stopped in <em>Fatal Attraction</em>, even the harshest critic of Senator Clinton is probably beginning to think, you know, that might be a little harsh. Maybe an apology is in order." http://mediamatters.org/items/200804290003 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:46:38 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804280008 MSNBC's Tamron Hall held a discussion with North Carolina radio host Jeff Katz about the effect Sen. Barack Obama former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is having on North Carolina voters without disclosing that Katz's website prominently encourages visitors to "Help the N.C. GOP keep their ad on the air," referring to an ad that attacks Obama for his connections to Wright, and contains the false claim that Obama "won't pledge to the flag." <br /> http://mediamatters.org/items/200804280008 Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:21:37 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804280006 Despite the availability of expenditure reports showing that Sen. John McCain's campaign used a corporate jet owned by his wife's company over a seven-month period beginning in the summer of 2007, several members of the media asserted earlier this year that McCain flew coach when the campaign was low on funds. http://mediamatters.org/items/200804280006 Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:59:32 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804250002 A week after claiming that Sen. Barack Obama "can't walk into a dinette [sic] with five or six guys there, white guys, in some cases. He can't just shake hands and hang out," Chris Matthews asserted, "[Obama] doesn't seem to have the knack for walking into a dinette [sic] with regular people in it and just having fun, just connecting." http://mediamatters.org/items/200804250002 Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:08:41 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240010 Beginning on the afternoon of April 23, MSNBC, Fox News, and CNN aired a controversial ad by the North Carolina Republican Party attacking Sen. Barack Obama and two Democratic gubernatorial candidates at least 22 times combined, in most cases also noting that Sen. John McCain denounced the ad. As media figures on MSNBC and CNN pointed out, the repeated broadcasts benefit the North Carolina Republican Party, which does not have to pay for them, and they presumably benefit McCain, even as he is credited with taking the high road for criticizing the ad. http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240010 Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:13:42 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240004 On <em>MSNBC Live</em>, while airing video of a new ad that attacks Sen. Barack Obama, Contessa Brewer said, "Well, here's the catch: [Floyd] Brown [the ad's creator] does not have a single ad buy in any TV market. Instead of paying for airtime, he just announces this in a press release for outlets like YouTube to pick up." Brewer then asked, "[I]s this a new way to get your ad covered without buying any time?" -- apparently missing the irony of MSNBC's giving the ad free airtime while reporting that the producer was hoping for free publicity. http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240004 Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:29:29 EST http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240002 Reporting on an ad from the North Carolina Republican Party that attacks Sen. Barack Obama for his relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, NBC News' Andrea Mitchell asserted that Sen. John McCain "is taking a very strong stand," telling the party "that he does not want them to run this ad." She later said that "John McCain immediately demanded that the North Carolina Republicans kill the ad." By simply reporting McCain's condemnation of the North Carolina ad, Mitchell was repeating a pattern in the media of allowing McCain, as Slate.com's Melinda Henneberger noted, to "take the high road," while his supporters engage in smears for his benefit. http://mediamatters.org/items/200804240002 Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:21:26 EST