Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Another false claim by Gov. Bob McDonnell goes unchecked by David Gregory on Meet the Press


David Gregory’s inability or unwillingness to confront Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s distortion of the Obama administration’s tax plan on Sunday represents the most recent example of a mainstream media more eager to “win over” or play nice with elected officials rather than dig for the facts.[1]

On NBC’s Meet the Press, Gov. McDonnell made the claim that Vice President Joe Biden said the Obama administration intends to “raise your taxes about $2 trillion.”[2] However, the Obama administration has proposed only to increase taxes on the wealthiest Americans.

McDonnell was referring to statements Vice President Biden made during the vice-presidential debate last week. When asked by moderator Martha Raddatz who will pay more in taxes if the Obama administration is elected, Biden responded, “The middle class will pay less, and people making a million dollars or more will begin to contribute slightly more…We’re arguing that the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy should be allowed to expire.”[3]

Responses in everyday life, let alone politics, don’t get any clearer than that.

All but the most partisan Republicans are at least somewhat aware that the GOP is not above distorting the truth or downright lying for political gain. That’s not what’s surprising here.

What is surprising, however, is how much ground political journalists in the mainstream media have given up to the deceit that the GOP has been pelting voters with in this election cycle alone.

By giving way to such falsehoods, the mainstream media is essentially delegitimizing the foundation upon which it rests: the search for truth and facts.

In the same vein, what was once a go-to source for political facts by the American public has become little more than an entertainment supplement to Jersey Shore and The Voice. Anchormen like David Gregory are merely the unassuming lead roles in news reporting gone wrong.

The news media still does matter, just not in the same way that it used to.


[1] http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/10/14/nbcs-gregory-lets-bob-mcdonnell-misstate-obamas/190618
[2] http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/10/14/nbcs-gregory-lets-bob-mcdonnell-misstate-obamas/190618
[3] http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/10/14/nbcs-gregory-lets-bob-mcdonnell-misstate-obamas/190618

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