Media Matters for America's coverage of the 2004 Democratic National Convention

MMFA Convention Coverage Convention Aftermath
• FAIR: Media Pack Stick to the Script at DNC
• WSJ's Fund fabricated stats to bash Dem delegates, repeated old RNC smear of Kerry
• NY Times distorted public opinion; overstated Bush's supposed advantage on terrorism
• Distortions of post-DNC polls: Hannity on Bush's “significant lead”; NRO's Moran on Kerry “thud”; FOX's Hill wrong on Newsweek poll
• Limbaugh distorted Scarborough's analysis of Kerry convention speech
• MSNBC reported TNR's “July Surprise”; CNN's amnesia persisted
• FOX's Big Story host misquoted Dem Party Platform
• NYT's David Brooks, in NewsHour panel, falsely claimed Kerry said “Republicans don't value their families”
• The Note distorted Washington Post's review of undecided voters' reactions to Kerry speech
• FOX aired significantly less of Dem convention speeches than other cables
• O'Reilly downplayed Wallace's ridicule of Teresa Heinz Kerry as Eva Perón: Nobody offended except for “Ms. magazine babes”
• Tucker Carlson: Kerry's “plan for Iraq, such as it is, is to have dark skinned foreigners from the Middle East fight our war for us”
• Washington Post ombudsman: readers angry over Lewinsky story morning after Clinton DNC speech
• “Media Matters,” week of July 30
• FOX's Barone said Kerry audience was “silent” on military-strength line -- but they cheered
• FOX “hard news” host: Kerry's Senate record “really is an area of great vulnerability”


MMFA Items
• Washington Post ombudsman: readers angry over Lewinsky story morning after Clinton DNC speech
• “Media Matters,” week of July 30
• FOX's Barone said Kerry audience was “silent” on military-strength line -- but they cheered
• FOX “hard news” host: Kerry's Senate record “really is an area of great vulnerability”
• NYT article on discredited Drudge story failed to report paper's own executive editor had debunked it
• Carlson attempted to downplay Republican attacks on Cleland
• Deficit deceit: Matthews falsely claimed “deficit is not being caused by tax cuts”
• FOX talking heads obsessed with Democratic “hate”
• CNN amnesia: Forgot TNR report on Bush plans when Al Qaeda suspect arrested during Dem Convention
• Cables, right-wing radio ran with debunked Drudge charges on Kerry combat films
• Savage commentary on Dem Convention: “Obergrupenführer Clinton,” “Grupenführer Carter,” “Brigadeführer Daschle,” “dirtbag” Maya Angelou
• Limbaugh's snow job on the Dem Convention
• Mitchell and Fineman mimicked GOP talking points on Edwards's foreign policy experience
• In “World Exclusive,” Drudge dredged up discredited charge that Kerry filmed reenacted combat scenes for future political career
• O'Reilly on Michael Moore's “power”: "[T]his happened in Nazi Germany"
• Tucker Carlson's amnesia: “Nobody prevented anyone from voting” in Florida
• Savage rant: Compared Feldt to Goebbels; falsely claimed “illegal aliens” have voting rights
• O'Reilly questioned if Kennedy would show up to convention ... as Kennedy spoke behind him
• On CNN, Boortz falsely claimed Dems barred Carter from prior conventions
• FOX hosts ridiculed Heinz Kerry speech; referenced Eva Perón; said Heinz Kerry “got off on a weird foot”
• O'Reilly misled convention week audience about education spending
• CNN anchor Kagan to retired Marine Dem Convention speaker: “Why are you not a Republican?”
• Goldberg distorted poll of DNC delegates
• Hannity echoed GOP claim that Kerry is “out of the mainstream”; facts show otherwise
• Evita's Andersen and FOX's Hill: Hillary Clinton's 2008 aspirations shown through convention speech
• Bozell repeated lie that Lay slept in Lincoln Bedroom during Clinton years
• CNN's Miles O'Brien wants to see if Howard Dean “melts down or something”
• FOX & Friends played up “shove it” flap; Heinz Kerry corrected the record on editor's remarks
• O'Reilly lied about Howard Dean's Iraq position
• Coulter spiked from USA Today: Why was she hired in the first place?
• Carlson falsely claimed Clinton called half the country “wackos” in convention speech
• Matthews won't take no for an answer: Continued “Hillary '08” obsession with seven consecutive questions
• Cable news networks obsess over Teresa Heinz Kerry comment; downplay Tribune-Review's right-wing history
• Frustrated by GOP guest's response, FOX's Jarrett answered his own leading questions
• CNN's Bill Schneider painted misleading picture of Democratic delegates
• Novak on Gore's “rants,” “mean” Hillary Clinton, and “flesh-eating” DNC delegates
• Carr lied about Dem Convention's impact on Boston's pregnant women, cancer patients
• Pre-convention Clinton smears
• On eve of Dem Convention, FOX News Sunday gave final say to Kerry-basher Howie Carr
• O'Reilly's Dem Convention preview: Daschle's “no good”; Pelosi's a “nut”; Cleland's “strange”

• CJR: CNN slavishly imitates FOX's “most dubious ploys and policies” at convention
• Lewis in Salon.com: Hume “moved” by Edwards speech
• Max Blumenthal: “Shove it” reporter is part of Scaife's longtime “Smother Teresa” campaign
• Salon: USA Today kills ludicrous Ann Coulter story!
• Confessore on the “FOXification-of-CNN”
• CJR: “like a game of telephone,” AP morphs Teresa Heinz Kerry incident into “factually incorrect” account
• Washington Post's Kurtz: FOX News “blew off” Gore and Carter speeches -- “the kind of thing that makes critics question whether Fox has a Republican agenda”
• Salon: TV coverage of Boston, day one, slanted skeptically against the Democrats
• CJR: NYT doesn't back up assertion of Democratic “anger”
• CAP: FNC at the DNC
• LA Times: Dems wonder if FNC will give them a “fair shake”
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FOX News Convention Lineup
Click for examples of their conservative misinformation.
Brit Hume
Carl Cameron
Major Garrett
Molly Henneberg
Mort Kondracke
Fred Barnes
Bill Kristol
Susan Estrich
Brian Wilson
Michael Barone