Topic: Media Research Center
A Dec. 27 NewsBusters post by Tom Blumer touts a new study by "a leading nonpartisan media watchdog, the Center for Media and Public Affairs" claiming that "Fox News Channel's evening news show provided more balanced coverage than its counterparts on the broadcast networks" of the 2008 presidential campaign. But while Blumer lists the study's breakdown of positive vs. negative coverage for Republican candidates, he doesn't do the same for Democratic candidates -- and, thus, ignores the study's headline claim: "Election Study Finds Media Hit Hillary Hardest."
According to the study, "On-air evaluations of Hillary Clinton were nearly 3 to 2 negative (42% positive vs. 58% negative comments. ... Sen. Clinton was evaluated more often than alll her Democratic opponents combined."
This pretty much contradicts the message promoted by the MRC for years, most recently in MRC president Brent Bozell's new (factually challenged) Hillary-bashing book -- that the media has been giving Hillary a free ride. Indeed, in his Dec. 25 column, Bozell mocked Hillary's campaign for complaining about negative coverage and Time's Mark Halperin for pointing it out, even though one of the MRC's favorite sources of research -- the CMPA's director, Robert Lichter, co-authored a 1981 study finding that the "media elite" hold liberal views, which the MRC prominently touts -- confirms those suspicions.
