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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: michael97123 who wrote (30554)	2/20/2004 9:30:37 AM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793885

Kerry rumor tests media's standards Conservatives say the lack of attention reveals bias By Mark Memmott USA TODAY Some conservatives are angry, but many media watchdogs are praising the way most American news outlets handled 2004's first titillating allegation about a presidential candidate's personal life. The rumor was that Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., might have had an extramarital relationship with a woman. The allegation surfaced Feb. 12 on the Internet and quickly got picked up by some talk radio hosts and foreign news media. Both Kerry and the woman, journalist Alexandra Polier, deny any relationship. By Thursday evening, there was no evidence that they had had one. Those who praise the major media for how they handled the story say they hope that the relatively little coverage given to the allegation will serve as a model for the rest of the campaign. But conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh and Internet muckraker Matt Drudge say the media have just shown a liberal bias. The two sides agree on one thing: When alleged scandals surface -- and they expect several -- it's likely that Internet sites, radio talk shows and foreign media will report them before most major American media outlets. A half-dozen experts on the media who were interviewed for this story -- journalism watchdogs and editors -- say consumers of news should understand that the major media sometimes must pause before reporting ''the news,'' and might even ignore it. That's a lesson some journalists forgot during the frenzy for dirt during the Clinton administration, the watchdogs and editors say. ''The idea that because something is 'out there' it needs to be reported is not a compelling reason to go with a story,'' says Aly Colón, a director at the Poynter Institute, a school for journalists in Florida. ''Then we could just be putting out garbage.'' Internet report The media's test began Feb. 12. Drudge wrote on his Web site, drudgereport.com, that five media organizations were investigating ''the nature of a relationship'' between Kerry and a ''woman who recently fled the country.'' He did not produce any evidence of his own to show such a relationship existed. Drudge is known for his role in breaking the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal news. Within minutes, Limbaugh was talking about Drudge's report on his nationally syndicated program. That evening and the next day, the story was virtually ignored in American newspapers and on TV news shows, though major organizations assigned reporters to check out the allegation. Conservative British tabloids, mostly rewriting Drudge's work, reported about it extensively on Feb. 13. The most attention the story got in the USA came on Don Imus' national radio show. On Feb. 13, Kerry spoke to Imus by telephone -- knowing the host would probably ask about the rumor. Imus did. ''There is nothing to report,'' Kerry, 60, said. ''So there is nothing to talk about. I'm not worried about it. No. The answer is no.'' On Feb. 14, The New York Times reported the Imus-Kerry exchange inside a story about the campaign. Most media also downplayed the news, though the New York Post and New York Daily News tabloids put it on their front pages. The story didn't get much attention from American media until Monday. Polier, 27, issued a statement to the Associated Press saying she never had a relationship with Kerry. Cable networks reported her statement immediately. Other media followed with short stories that evening or Tuesday. Kerry told USA TODAY this week that ''the media's by and large been very thoughtful and very responsible'' during the campaign. The major media handled the story in much the same way they approached a 1992 rumor about the first President Bush. Then, most had ignored an unproven allegation that the senior Bush, while vice president, had an affair. But on Aug. 11, 1992, the New York Post wrote about that allegation. A CNN reporter then asked the president about it. His angry response -- ''a lie'' -- was broadcast around the world. There were TV reports and newspaper stories about the angry exchange, but the media soon dropped the story. Editors at major American newspapers explain their handling of the Kerry allegation and how they will approach future rumors in these ways: * ''We do not traffic in unsubstantiated gossip, and I've never been fond of the excuse that something is a story because it's 'out there,' '' Bill Keller, executive editor of The New York Times, says in an e-mail to USA TODAY. ''This became worthy of a small, passing mention when Kerry himself decided he had to deal with it.'' * ''We decided not to publish (until a reference Monday in a roundup of campaign news) because there were no facts -- just an assertion that several media organizations were looking into unsubstantiated rumors,'' says Brian Gallagher, executive editor of USA TODAY. ''That's not news.'' * ''We have standards, and our standards are very clear,'' says Leonard Downie, executive editor of The Washington Post. ''One: Is it true? Two: Is it relevant to that person's performance or public life?'' Downie says that after Drudge's report, the Post found no evidence to meet its standards. 'Red-hot' to others Drudge says ''major media ought to be ashamed of themselves'' for not pursuing a ''red-hot story.'' Limbaugh says the media are guilty of a double standard. ''Just as the White House's denials that Bush was AWOL from the National Guard seemed to raise more questions than they answered in the mainstream press,'' the denials by Kerry and Polier ''raise more questions than they answer'' and should be pursued, he says in an e-mail to USA TODAY. Among those questions, Limbaugh says: Has Polier's father changed his mind about Kerry? Polier's father was quoted in Britain's Sun on Feb. 13 using a derogatory term about Kerry. But Monday, Polier's parents said that the rumors are untrue and that they plan to vote for Kerry. The Sun stands by its earlier story. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Wednesday that the father says he was misquoted in the Sun.

To: michael97123 who wrote (30554)	2/20/2004 9:34:22 AM
From: John Carragher	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793885

I cannot even think of kerry making a judgement on a defense situation. I was going to post but held off. g My first thought was Kerry would do as Clinton did send a few rockets over. blow up a pharmacy and tell us they were making wmd or it was a terrorist strong hold. then get great coverage from the news group. Iran sad situation , like china, north Korea, the other countries seem not to want to bother about growth of wmd and it implications. If Iran becomes a serious threat congress will have to really come to grips with what action is to be taken.