Why is Waxman Not On Sunday Morning Talk Shows?

[Blackhatjack]

He is driving the biggest investigatory bus on Capitol Hill, and it would give people a chance to know him as a true patriot and statesman.

Another question: In a country with so many political and governmental issues, not to mention controversy over the war on Iraq, why do all the MSM compete in the same time slots with their own Sunday Morning Talk Shows?

Why not rebroadcast these shows at different times to allow people without DVRs to see more than one?

[AtLiberty]

1. The poor man is probably exhausted...

Digging up Republican corruption is a 24/7 job. Give the guy a break!

[JNelson6563]

2. You answered your own question

It is precisely because Waxman is driving the investigations that he isn't welcome on TeeVee. He knows so much, best to just not give him a mic.

Julie

[Raven]

3. Good Question! Richard Perle and Tom Delay

play better with the masses, I guess.

[NewJeffCT]

12. It's because of the credibility & gravitas they positvely ooze

:sarcasm:

[annabanana]

20. no

They play better with the masters...

[ananda]

27. not with this mass

Boycott msm.

[lisa58]

4. He's probably working on the next set of hearings

[Benhurst]

5. He's been so overwhelmed by invitations from the corporate media,

he can't decide which ones to accept.

:rofl: Yeah. Sure.

[Graybeard]

6. Plame affair is "old as the Dead Sea Scrolls"...

...that was the jaw-dropping dismissal made by NYT columnist David Brooks on the Lehrer Report on Friday. "Why are we talking about this? It's old news." This is the RW talking point du jour. Sweep it under the rug. Apparently the MSM is buying it.

[Blackhatjack]

9. Yeah, they wish. More hearings like the Plame Hearing Friday and people will take notice....

it just takes time.

[Blackhatjack]

7. Waxman has been working on these matters for years, he is not exhausted...

He is articulate, hardnosed in pressing for answers, and yet the viewing public for the most part knows him only as an anti-Republican member of Congress.

Democrats need to highlight these patriots for our country, not to turn them into larger than life heroes, but people would begin to understand that Democrats are adhering to the principles that undergird a democratic form of government.

Nothing would be more effective in improving the vote for Democrats in the next election cycle.

It is time Democrats showcase the members of Congress doing the heavy lifting, and not just those running for President.

IMHO Dems should be showcasing the efforts of Waxman, Leahy, Feingold, Kennedy, and many others.

[maine_raptor]

8. You answered both questions yourself.

Having Waxman on would "give people a chance to know" and having non-competing times wouldn't be good for ratings and the "mine is bigger than yours" game corporations like to play.

But, MTP is re-broadcast on MSNBC later in the day.

Edit: Spelling

[Robbien]

10. Media Matters is trying to get the muscle to find out exactly that

they would like people to sign their letter urging networks to make their Sunday shows more balanced.

http://mediamatters.org/sundayshowreport/online_version/#since_the_midterm_election

[Blackhatjack]

13. McClatchy has article "Talk Shows' Guest Skew Conservative; Study Claims Bias"

published page two in our newspaper.

Interesting fact: on the four major talk shows, Biden has appeared 38 times, more than any other Democrat.

Now why would Biden be the Democrat of choice to appear on these shows?

[robinlynne]

34. Therre is no way to sign at that link. greatr esesarch, but no link for us to take any action.

[Clark2008]

11. Becasue he's not blonde, dead, shaved, missing or

Republican.

[cali]

17. Well, Pat Leahy's on with Georgie

and he's not blond, dead etc. In fact, he's arguably driving the most important committee and the most vital hearings on the Hill right now. It's in the Senate Judiciary that we're most likely to see a full blown Constitutional crisis.

[Clark2008]

33. Maybe Pat had blonde hair when he had hair?

:shrug:

[leftchick]

14. because he isn't with the DLC?

:shrug:

[Vinnie From Indy]

15. The answer is simple

The Sunday news shows, especially Lil Timmy on Meet The Press, are corrupt to the bone. Tim Russert's job is to misdirect Americans and attack Democrats.

[toddaa]

16. Perhaps not everyone wants to be on these shows

Every Sunday we keep seeing the same old same old. Joe Biden seems to have his own dressing room at NBC, he's on so much. While there is a definite conservative bent to the guests, I suspect the reason that you don't see guys like Waxman on these shows is because they just don't want to waste their time listening to Timmy read old editorials and asking for comments. Waxman has better things to do like putting together more subpoenas for the next round of hearings.

[Blackhatjack]

19. That is certainly a logical conclusion that COULD be true, but I think not...

These folks are public servants, close to the action, and I would suspect they would welcome the opportunity to inform people of how they are going about their work.

Republicans depend upon redefining the public's perception of Democratic leaders. When faced with the facts, that 'sliming' of these patriots becomes very difficult.

I would guess Waxman has never been offered the opportunity to appear on MTP.

AT least not yet, just wait till Henry begins the next round of corruption exposure. THe MSM will be clamouring for Waxman to comment...

[A wise Man]

18. Because truth is not allowed

on the corporate media stations, only lies and obfuscation.

[Blackhatjack]

21. This is not meant to be a slam on Biden, but why him 38 times? There are others...

who could better address issues of importance that Biden knows little about.

[Hepburn]

22. Ummmmmmm....

...the liberal press is to blame, right? :eyes:

They just don't want to over-expose him and all the truth he is bringing out. :sarcasm:

[Blackhatjack]

23. IMHO Biden is not our most effective advocate, but he is a Democrat...

I just wonder how other Democrats on Capitol Hill feel about Biden appearing so many times, and other Democrats with something to offer never get the chance to appear.

[Hepburn]

24. I think you hit on why Biden is being asked to appear....

...because he is NOT the most effective advocate as to what the Dems are uncovering. So, of course, the "liberal" media would want him to get air time and thereby look a bit less partisan than they are. You know the song and dance, IMO: "Hey, everything is on the up-and-up....we had a major Dem on ~~ so what are the Dems whining about?"

And, I am also thinking that there is still that problem lingering about Biden as to the remarks he made about Obama. Lots of RW and Pubbie people are threatened by Obama in that he is a definite up-and-comer. So it might be some of that, too. Kind of a guess on this, tho.

[Dinger]

25. Excellent Questions Blackhatjack

This Week (ABC) doesn't repeat either, and that seems to be the only one that Media Matters says is even close to balanced on Sunday.

[Blackhatjack]

28. It really comes down to public interest and service, demanded of a licensee of a public airway...

... they have a duty that comes with their public broadcast license, which must be reviewed and renewed on a regular basis.

[Dinger]

26. Happy To Give This The 5th Rec : )

[spanone]

29. Because these shows Pander to the RIGHT WING. Period.

[Bjorn Against]

30. And it is not just Waxman that is absent, there are virtually no progressives...

Republicans get more people on the Sunday talk shows than Democrats do, and the Democrats that do get on tend to be the "moderate" Democrats rather than progressives. The Democrats who get the most time on Sunday talk shows are Biden, and Schumer neither of whom are in the progressive wing of the party. Here is the link to the Media Matters report which breaks down the numbers:

http://mediamatters.org/sundayshowreport/online_version/

[Bombero1956]

31. because

everybody knows that Sunday morning talkshows are primarily for Admin insiders to spin the war in Iraq and their corruption scandals.

[robinlynne]

32. did you notice tim's special special thanks to delay at the end? deja vu.

a few months ago, tim was caught off camera salivating over delay.

[blm]

35. This is eactly how they act with EVERY criminal issue against GOP administrations.

They downplay the crime and roundly ignore the Democrat leading the investigations.

They've been doing this for decades now.

[Cleita]

36. Calling on Jon and Steve!

I think you need to get Henry Waxman on your shows next week. I believe you guys have a bigger news audience anyway than FOX, CNN or any of the broadcast network's new's shows. Even my politically apathetic relatives watch you guys. I've noticed how much better informed that they have been since they started watching you, not that you have a lot of news, but you make them think and go looking for the real news.