Saturday, April 3, 2010

The Antithesis of Fox

I watched this segment of Rachel Maddow's show last night, and I found it quite interesting.

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So, I am just now finishing the report issued by California's Attorney General's Office regarding ACORN's activities in California. ACORN in CA definitely had its problems, and the AG's office cites those problems and legal violations. However, what is also striking, and supports Maddow's reporting, is the section on the work of the now famous "pimp and ho." The AG's office granted James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles immunity from prosecution (which they needed, since the report shows that they indeed appear to have violated California privacy laws), in order to review the unedited footage from their ACORN office visits.

According to the report, the actions of some of the California ACORN employees could be seen as inappropriate, but not illegal. O'Keefe didn't actually walk into ACORN offices in CA dressed as a pimp; that was edited in separately. One worker tried to get Giles to see a counselor who dealt with torture victims, but that help was refused, and didn't make it into the footage presented to the world. One worker did call the police about the two characters, but the cops backed off when it was clear that the story was a hoax.

Maddow also mentioned the whole "climategate" phenomenon that Fox News touted religiously. Here is the report from the Science and Technology Committee of the British House of Commons. The report concludes that the scientific conclusions about climate change still hold. So, to use "climategate" as a way to disprove the actual science of climate change simply doesn't work.

This segment is, once again, representative of why I make it a point to tune into "The Rachel Maddow Show." I trust her. I know that I can believe in her reporting. I know that I can do what I did here, and check on a report from the AG's office of California about ACORN or read a House of Commons report re-affirming the validity of the science behind climate change, and come away with an understanding that Maddow and her staff did their homework. I also know that for many, Maddow's status as a known liberal, is enough to render anything she says as suspect. However, I've heard little about Maddow actually distorting the news. I've heard of few attacks from the right on the merits of her reporting. When Maddow is challenged, she addresses the issue on the air, in public.

Keep fighting the fight Maddow, and keep us all informed, even those reluctant to hear honest reporting.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Thanks for the reminder of how awesome Rachel Maddow is! I really need to make time to watch her show more often!

Rhen said...

Since I rely mostly on the BBC and NPR for my news, I'd never even heard of Rachel Maddow before I started reading this blog. I'd become completely disenchanted with the media in this country for their reliance on flash over substance.

I like the fact that Rachel is willing to call things out when other sources use deliberate misinformation in their reporting. I may have to actually start watching MSNBC now.

Anonymous said...

Rachel Maddow is one of the few journalists with brains and teeth.

Fox is not a credible outlet, yet no one is making them apologize for glaring falsehoods they regurgitate and repeat.

What happened to television news???
There used to be a standard of integrity based on reporting facts.

I'm just sayin'...