GOP outnumbers Dems 2 to 1 on cable news shows

[BurtWorm]

Democrats remain underground, even when they own the WH and Congress.


http://thinkprogress.org/2009/02/06/senate-cable-stimulus-debate/

Last week, ThinkProgress released a report showing that, in the debate over the House economic recovery bill on the five cable news networks, Republican members of Congress outnumbered their Democratic counterparts by a ratio of 2 to 1. The analysis tallied interview segments about the stimulus on CNBC, Fox Business, Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC during a three-day period, finding that the networks had hosted Republican lawmakers 51 times and Democratic lawmakers only 26 times.

The economic recovery package passed the House last week with zero Republican votes, shifting the focus to the Senate. Though the venue has changed, the debate on cable has not improved much.

In a new analysis, ThinkProgress has found that Republican lawmakers outnumbered Democratic lawmakers 75 to 41 on cable news interviews by members of Congress (from 6am on Monday 2/2 through 11pm on Thursday 2/5):

[Robbins]

1. Cable

Of course they do.Fox Is the Republicans propaganda.CNN wants to go In Fox's direction.MSNBC has learned the ratings Keith and rachel
gets to move more In the Democrats direction.It Isn't a surprise more Democrats are on MSNBC.Republicans are scared to be on
Rachel's show.

[DU9598]

2. I noticed it this morning

I turned from CNN with Mitt Romney only to turn on the Today Show to find Newt Gingrich. Umm, the D's have the power ... and there are over 125 more D's in DC than R's, so it cannot be too tough to book them.

[KansDem]

6. It seems for the last month or so whenever NPR comes on, there's a Repub...

NPR comes on at 5:00 a.m. right after the BBC, and inevitably the opening story can be about the economy, bailouts, or jobs package, yet there is a Repub being interviewed.

I wonder, "Why are we listening to the losers? Why are we listening to the party that got us into this mess?"
:grr:

[tosh]

3. The Dems are busy working while the repugs rant and rave.

[SammyWinstonJack]

15. As usual.

[GreenTea]

4. Absolutely disgusting! And it'll keep happening this weekend to destroy Obama's "Jobs Bill"

(Stimulus Bill).

We have to make our voices heard to these cable assholes....forget about Fox, but CNN, MSNBC, CMBC, etc.

[tom_paine]

11. Of course it will. It has been going on without relent for the past 8 years

with the briefest of exceptions in the three months before the election when they briefly stopped broadcasting Bushiganda and told the truth.

Now, of course for the next 8 years it will be all Repugs/all-the-time.

[lob1]

5. I believe 2 to 1 is about the same as it has been for years.

It's WAY past time to break up the media monopolies.

[JDPriestly]

12. We need to write and write and write to the cable broadcasters.

We need to voice our need to hear from our Democratic leadership. Otherwise, they will go the way of the conservative press. And we know what has happened to them. They are struggling.

[tom_paine]

14. Yeah. And the Jews needed to write to Nazi and German Newspapers in the 30s

to get them to stop writing lies about them.

This has all been done, JD, and the Corporate M$M simply does not listen to anything but Bushiganda Astroturf. Real people need not apply.

I hate to be a doom and gloomer, and I certainly am not advocating giving up. But let us not be naive here.

The corporate Bushiganda on Cable TV will proceed apace. Be happy, after the Bushies have looted this natiopn like a punched safe, and broke every law and more of what it means to be an American, that TWO Cable TV shows are permitted to go against the grain at MSNBC.

No copycatting of Olbermann and Maddow permitted, though considering their meteoric rises the market forces would seem to call such "follow the trends" copycats in force.

But market forces count for NOTHING when insuring the continuity of the Bush False Reality Bubble.

And all the letters from peasants like ourselves won't change that. From the 80s on, the Bushies set up our system more and more to run illusorily, more and more disconnected from the citizens, now neutered consumers.

The media the same as everything else.

Once again, I am NOT advocating giving up. But petitioning the Nazi and German papers to be fair to the Jews is a waste of time better spent on other activism. That's my opinion. Sorry.

[tom_paine]

7. When the Democrats are in power, for balance there are more Republicans on TV

When the Republicans are in power, there are more Republicans on TV because they're the party in power and who wants to hear from a bunch of whiny weakling people who's ideas were DEFEATED in an open election?

Welcome to America's State-Controlled Media, and by hook or by crook, that's EXACTLY what it amounts to.

[Enthusiast]

10. That IS exactly what it amounts to.

Once again, just like when Clinton was in office. It's the 24/7 attack on Obama and anything he says or tries to accomplish. This is why media fairness is THE most pressing issue.

After the past few days I think we can all agree it has been nothing but unfair and one sided. Plain as the nose on your face!

[bdamomma]

8. maybe the Democrats are doing their work instead of promoting

propaganda like the Republicans.

[backscatter712]

13. Good point, but part of the work of getting good legislation made into law is selling it.

There's a reason why Obama's going out delivering speeches every day, making press releases, doing press conferences, writing editorials and spending so much time with the media.

I'm sure the Democrats are doing this too, though they're not as good at it as Obama is or the Republicans are.

You have to have Senators, Congresscritters, spokespersons, etc. going on all the bobblehead shows and explaining to the American people why this legislation is necessary.

Of course, it doesn't help that the right-wing media is sabotaging these efforts - the chart in the OP doesn't lie. Obama has quite a few tricks up his sleeve that he uses to push his message through the media despite their efforts to twist it. Other Democrats have not mastered those tricks. Still, we shouldn't need such tricks. The fact is the media is treating Democrats incredibly unfairly, and will continue to do so as long as the Rupert Murdochs are abusing the media for their own gain.

[Joanne98]

9. Nationalize the media!

[NNN0LHI]

16. Recommended