The Glass House of Conservative Journalism: Media Matters.........

[Joanne98]

The glass house of conservative journalism: CBS's attackers shouldn't be throwing stones



While the controversy over the authenticity of memos exposed by CBS regarding President George W. Bush's National Guard service continues to grow and new evidence continues to surface, to several conservative pundits, the debate has already been settled. Apparently basing their conclusion in part on reporting by National Review's Byron York and The Weekly Standard's Stephen F. Hayes, both of whom make assertions that have been refuted, these pundits have concluded that the documents are forgeries. Yet, as Media Matters for America has extensively documented, some of the pundits who seem the most confident that the documents are fake have previously compromised their standing and credibility as journalists by peddling falsehoods and misinformation in the media.

Brent Bozell

L. Brent Bozell III is the founder and president of the conservative Media Research Center, whose Cybercast News Service division quickly followed right-wing bloggers in detailing on September 9 evidence to support the claim that the memos were forged. On September 10, Bozell issued a press release calling on CBS to "Come Clean on Fraudulent Memos" -- an ironic demand given his own history of lies and misinformation.

Apparently oblivious to the media coverage given to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, Bozell claimed that the anti-Kerry group was "completely ignored by the media" at its original press conference in May despite the fact that it received substantial coverage on cable news that day, as MMFA noted at the time. Bozell has also touted lies, claiming that " Ken Lay spent 13 nights ... in Bill Clinton's Lincoln Bedroom," though he did not actually spend a single night there.

Sean Hannity

FOX News Channel's Hannity & Colmes co-host Sean Hannity stated on the September 10 edition of the program that it is "very clear ... the overwhelming evidence in this case is that it's a hoax," adding later in the show that they are "most likely forged documents."

http://mediamatters.org/items/200409130004

[LisaLynne]

1. Excellent ...