MSNBC's debate coverage skewed far right [View All]

[Jon8503]

From Media Matters:

MSNBC's coverage of the presidential debates showed a pronounced rightward tilt, as MMFA has noted throughout the last two weeks.

Following the final presidential debate on October 13, MSNBC's guest list was overwhelmingly Republican:

In the hour following the October 13 presidential debate between President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry, MSNBC's coverage oversampled Republican "analysis" of the debate: Four of the first five guests on the program were supporters of President Bush, and the second Kerry supporter was not interviewed until exactly an hour after the debate had concluded (11:31 p.m. ET). After interviewing Kerry political adviser Robert M. Shrum, the next four guests were Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), Bush campaign senior adviser Karen Hughes, former New York City mayor and Republican National Convention primetime speaker Rudolph Giuliani, and White House communications director Dan Bartlett.

On October 8, Hardball's pre-debate panel consisted of three journalists and Republican lawyer Ben Ginsberg, until recently employed as national counsel to the Bush-Cheney '04 campaign. After the debate, the panelists were Ginsberg and longtime Republican operative -- and presidential candidate -- Pat Buchanan.

Finally, The American Prospect's Ayelish McGarvey noted that MSNBC allowed Andrea Mitchell to criticize Kerry for a debate statement in which he criticized Alan Greenspan. MSNBC viewers were not told that Mitchell is married to Greenspan:

MSNBC: WORSE THAN FOX? Chris Matthews just asked Andrea Mitchell, NBC's news correspondent, for her reaction to tonight's debate. Mitchell made a few cursory remarks and then, struggling not to roll her eyes, said that John Kerry, "frankly, pandered on the issue of Social Security." Now of all issues, why on earth would Mitchell be so irked about Social Security, of all things? ... Aha! Turns out, Kerry's criticism of the Fed chairman hit a little too close to home for Mitchell. Alan Greenspan, of course, is Andrea Mitchell's husband. And in the interest of full disclosure, Mitchell and the other members of the panel said ... absolutely nothing at all. No conflict of interest there, folks. Nope, none at all.

"Context"? Or "coverup"?