‘What a farce’: ABC attempts to defend its ‘stunning bias’

‘What a farce’: ABC attempts to defend its ‘stunning bias’ | The Courier Mail  "Sky News host Andrew Bolt says unbelievable scenes were seen today when ABC Managing Director David Anderson fronted politicians to defend the national broadcaster’s “stunning bias”.

“ What a farce. Including an amazing admission about that ABC report that claimed a meeting of Alice Springs residents was full of white supremacists - turned out the reporter wasn't even there,” he said. "Mr Bolt focused on three examples from Mr Anderson’s appearance at Senate Estimates on Tuesday that should make every Liberal and Nationals MPs realise the ABC is “out of control”. “ 'The rest of us should be alarmed and disgusted that our taxes are funding such a left-wing propaganda outfit,” Mr Bolt said. “ 'Mr Anderson, do you even listen to what your paid propagandists put to air?' ”. . .

ABC breached impartiality, accuracy in Alice Springs town meeting report | news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

The ABC was found to have failed in accuracy and impartiality after suggesting hundreds of Alice Springs residents were “white supremacists”.

"The ABC’s reporting on the Alice Springs crime wave was biased and inaccurate according to the outlet’s own media watchdog, after the public broadcaster suggested hundreds of residents who attended a town meeting last month were “white supremacists”.

"More than 3000 residents attended the Save Alice Springs meeting late last month to discuss the crime wave affecting their town, with the gathering reportedly lasting around 20 minutes.

"Now, the newly created ABC Ombudsman’s Office has found a controversial ABC Radio segment covering the meeting – which was slammed by residents and politicians alike – breached standards of impartiality and accuracy by presenting the event as “white supremacy” in action.

"In the segment in question, the ABC’s Indigenous Affairs correspondent Carly Williams interviewed attendees standing outside, with one woman describing the event as a “total white supremacist fest” with a “scary” vibe.". . .

Shame on those hordes who learn from Joy Reid, Antifa and Democrats. TD

Is ABC News Reliable? - The Factual | Blog...  What Is the Political Bias of ABC News?

"The Factual classifies news sites by political bias as either Left, Moderate Left, Center, Moderate Right, or Right. This classification is derived from third-party assessments from media bias organizations such as AllSides and Media Bias/Fact Check (MBFC). Based on this data, The Factual assigns ABC News a “Moderate Left” bias.

" AllSides assigns ABC News a “Lean Left” classification based on blind surveys, third-party analysis, independent research, and 56,248 community ratings. The most recent analysis, a 2021 blind survey, found that 1,147 people across the political spectrum rated ABC News as “Lean

" Left” on average. Other research, such as a cited 2014 Pew Research study, reinforces this assessment. The Pew study found that 37% of the site’s audience identifies as left-of-center or left and 41% identifies as mixed or center. MBFC classifies ABC News as having “Left-Center” bias due to “story selection and word choices that moderately favor the left.” The site also receives a “High” score for factual reporting based on proper sourcing and very few fact-checking issues. MBFC supports this classification by providing evidence of biased headlines, such as “Trump: No regrets for praising Greg Gianforte for body-slamming reporter.”. . .

SOTU: Feisty Joe Didn’t Run Offstage, And It Ultimately Paid Off

Issues & Insights  

Mr. White: “We bow, right?… and we’re off the stage before the applause dies out.”

Jimmy: “Well, what if they want an encore?”

Mr. White: “You unplug and you run, run offstage! Smiling, smiling, of course.”

That Thing You Do (1996 Film)

"How is Joe Biden like the infamous spy balloon?
1. Full of hot air.
2. Hovering over America in unwelcome fashion.
3. Maneuvered by China.
4. Ideally subject to immediate removal – except for too-high collateral damage.

This extended simile aligns with key “issues to manage,” as communications professionals would put it, that hung over Mr. Biden like that enemy airship pre-State of the Union:

1. Impugned Integrity: Hunter and filched documents anyone?

2. Deep Disapproval: 18% strong approval versus 46% strong disapproval, per the latest Washington Post/ABC poll. And yikes! 62% believe he has accomplished “not much” or “little to nothing” while in office.

3. Flabby Foreign Policy: That sense of global drift the meandering balloon truly symbolizes: The Afghanistan abomination. The Ukraine “minor-incursion” invasion-invitation. Heaping helpings of humble pie courtesy of China.

4. Imperative Impeachment Insurance: Removal, by resignation or impeachment, is virtually demanded by serial swindling, subterfuge, and deliberate dereliction of duty on the  economy, energy independence, immigration, and America’s national security. Joe’s burden cum saving grace: an insurance policy in the form of his callow, cackling veep, the subject of a nicely-timed New York Times hit piece.

And yet: Sleepy Joe woke up last week to a jobs report one stunned economist called “incredibly, surprisingly strong”: a five-decade unemployment low, 517,000 new jobs, longer hours, and wage growth.

So how to handle said situation? The crisis specialist in this commentator might suggest knocking down those “issues to manage” one by one, highlighting – briefly – unfolding solutions.

But one’s Mr. White/impresario side fairly screams: like the film’s one-hit Wonders, play the Top-Ten number – Those Jobs Americans Do! – do the heroes-in-the-gallery tour … then run, run offstage.

And Joe did squarely land an opening salvo featuring the job news: near record-low unemployment, 800,000 new manufacturing positions, and job-creating investment and projects resulting from bipartisan infrastructure and semiconductor-subsidy bills.". . .

To Counterpunch Smokin’ Joe, ‘G.O.P.’ Must Rebrand As ‘Government Of The People’ "Stipulated: Feisty Joe Biden deceived, demonized and divided his way through his State of the Union thumper. But he also adeptly defied his Republican foils – cleverly cornering catcallers in an impromptu imbroglio.

"And more important, deftly demagogued with a people-oriented pitch that may well set the stage for a surprise surge. The money line in suddenly-Smokin’ Joe’s populist appeal?

“Americans are tired of being played for suckers.”

"Dang straight. The Scrantonite and his scribes are on to something in combating “junk fees” and other indignities heaped upon the non-upper crust.

"Biden took on a Corn Poppish cornucopia of love-to-hate lowlifes: Health care hustlers. Old folk defrauders. Cable conmen. Cellphone scamps. Financial institution fleecers. Ticket tricksters. And most deliciously, airline over-chargers, whom he justifiably asserted “treat your child like a piece of baggage” in dinging families to travel in the same zip code as their toddlers.

"This swift switch to common-guy champion packs all the more punch when contrasted with Wrong-Way Republicans’ stubborn staying of the course.". . .

CNN's Lemon Problem

. . .There is a constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech even to say stupid things for all American citizens (except for most Republicans and conservatives), but there is no constitutional guarantee of the right to do so as an overpaid television presenter on some alleged “news” channel. . . 

Richard McDonough   "Don Lemon, whose brain may have disappeared into a near earth-orbiting black hole around the time of the November 2016 election, is in trouble again and may lose his job, with his absurd insensitive remark, referring to “person of color” Nikki Haley, upon her announcement that she is running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, that a woman is only “in her prime” in her 20s and 30s and maybe 40s.  (Note, by the way, that a confused Don Lemon claimed that that was the facts but that he was not saying he agreed with it.)  Equally absurdly, Lemon stated that one can verify this on Google.  Apparently, if Google says its true then it must be true.  In fact, one gets a far more nuanced view even on Google but nuance is not Lemon’s strong point.

"Bill O’Reilly makes a partially correct but partially incorrect defense of Lemon’s right to keep his job. 

"O’Reilly correctly stated that Lemon has a long history of absurd claims and that his recent statement is “preposterous” but adds that “The United States no longer has free speech. You will be punished if you say something ‘offensive.’ Lemon may lose his job.”  In fact, firing Lemon over this scandal has nothing to do with free speech.  But before considering O’Reilly’s claim, consider first Lemon’s statement.

"Lemon, like many talking-heads on television, should have known that he was on thin ice when he made any statement about a woman’s prime without stating upon what axis he is measuring them.  Poppy Harlow asked the correct question, which never occurred to Lemon:  Prime for what?  When Lemon limits a woman’s prime to her 20s-40s he is assuming the sexist view that a woman is good only for sexual attractiveness (not his expertise) and baby-making.   Unfortunately, Lemon appears to have forgotten that women have these things called brains that continue to function well into their old age. ". . .

Watch Alejandro Mayorkas struggle to answer basic questions about the ongoing border crisis and open border policies by Chris Wallace.

Train wreck; the cast of characters

 Morning Greatness: Buttigieg Ripped for Being ‘No-Show’ in Toxic Ohio Train Derailment  

"Sen. Eric Schmitt called out the Biden admin for a 'complete disconnect' with the American people

'More than two weeks after the toxic Ohio train derailment, the Biden administration is taking flak for how it has handled the toxic spill after refusing to approve a FEMA disaster declaration. 

'Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., is one of the White House's critics, and he joined "Sunday Morning Futures" to discuss how the administration's handling has indicated a "complete disconnect" from the American people. 

'"I think there's a complete disconnect here when you hear the president talking about sending American tax dollars to Ukraine to help pay for their pensions, and he does nothing about the millions of people who stream across our southern border distributing fentanyl, human trafficking and crime across the country," Schmitt told Maria Bartiromo. "It is completely out of touch to not address this."

"And Pete Buttigieg was a no-show this week in our committee to talk about FAA problems they had in January with the travel system across the country," he continued. "He's been a no show in Ohio, and so the American people are right to be upset about this. They demand answers. They demand a presence by this administration to know that they're going to take care of these issues."

"The Biden administration has said the crisis in East Palestine does not meet legal requirements for a FEMA declaration, even though the agency has deployed resources to the city. ". . .

WHITE HOUSE EXPLAINS WHY IT TURNED DOWN DISASTER RELIEF FOR OHIO

FEMA to Deploy Federal Services to East Palestine Two Weeks After Train Disaster

“ 'We are ineligible for a FEMA disaster declaration, we’ve been told by FEMA that we will not meet the qualifications at this time,” Tierney said at the time. “And the reason for that is that FEMA disaster declarations are related to property damage, and solely property damage.”

"In addition to Friday’s announcement that FEMA will now be deployed to East Palestine, DeWine’s office also revealed that Ohio is setting up a medical clinic in the town this upcoming week “to engage with residents, answer questions, evaluate any symptoms, and provide medical expertise.”

"The governor’s office added that in response to a request from DeWine, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will be sending federal officials to East Palestine to support the clinic.". . .

TIME TO GO, PETE! Calls Grow Louder for Buttigieg's Resignation, Impeachment Talk Begins  From Just The News:

“Amidst an impending possible rail strike last year, Secretary Buttigieg left the country to vacation in Portuguese wine country,” [Senator Marco] Rubio wrote to President Biden. “Near misses in commercial aviation, as well as recent system failures, including the one that shutdown air travel in Florida in January, indicate that serious and persistent problems across the DOT are not being sufficiently remedied. I do not have confidence that Secretary Buttigieg is capable of keeping the American people safe.”