Even Slate Reports: The Daily Caller’s Perfectly Legitimate Crusade Against Holder
How bad are things for Eric Holder? Even Slate, in a piece titled “The Daily Caller’s Perfectly Legitimate Crusade Against Holder” asks why the mainstream media isn’t reporting on Fast and Furious. This is a (to be blunt) shocking turn of events, and one that will hopefully shock the MSM. The article noted:
“The Daily Caller has been on a crusade. For some reason — I’m not invited to the liberal media planning sessions at Bohemian Grove anymore — the unfolding scandal over the ATF’s botched “Fast and Furious” program has not caught fire in the mainstream press. It gets covered, but it doesn’t get A1. Editorialists are not fulminating about it. When it is covered, it gets the treatment Dana Milbank gave it here: An explanation of why a bungled plan to let 1,400 guns fall into the heads of drug cartels in order for agents to track them isn’t, you know, a scandal. “Investigators found evidence that an official at the National Security Council, Kevin O’Reilly, communicated with Phoenix ATF official William Newell, but that’s a barrel and trigger shy of a smoking gun,” wrote Milbank. “There’s also evidence that Attorney General Eric Holder and others knew about the bungled program earlier than they originally let on, but there’s not yet evidence of any high-level White House involvement.”
Yawns from the MSM. Shouts from the Daily Caller.
Again, we just hope those yawns stop and real coverage picks up. But the truth is… Holder has gotta go!
More Media Reporting on Fast and Furious
So maybe the media can’t sit on Fast and Furious. In fact it seems that this is developing into quite a scandal – one we feel needs to be reported on. Here are some recent headlines:
The Baltimore Sun: ‘Fast and Furious’ shows Team Obama’s contempt for real reporters and press: White House favors bended-knee journalism at places like NBC News
Houston Chronicle: John Cornyn says Obama is “only person left with any confidence” in Eric Holder
Newsroom America: Scores of ‘Fast and Furious’ Guns Found in Mexican Cartel Enforcer’s Home
And yet some of the headlines still appear to protect Eric Holder and/or President Obama. Consider these:
ABC News: Holder defends testimony in ‘Fast and Furious’ gun probe
The New York Times: Holder Reacts to Criticism of Gun Inquiry
USA Today: GOP Looking at Holder over ‘Fast and Furious’
The Washington Post: Eric Holder, Obama’s albatross
This story has legs and it certainly is one that the media is beginning to cover. But we already see that many in the media don’t want the fallout to hurt the POTUS in the process – at least not this POTUS.
Election 2012: Will Gun Control Be an Issue?
The general election is still well more than a year away, but there are already cries from the liberal media that the topic of gun control should be an issue. The truth is that the mainstream media might want to make it an issue, because the mainstream media wants to push this as an agenda.
However, it remains doubtful it would be an issue. President Obama may have said to Sarah Brady earlier this year that he was working on gun control, but “under the radar.” He would not want to make it a political issue for he would face the wrath of the NRA.
So why does the mainstream media want gun control to be an issue at the debates? Part of this could be that the MSM wants gun control to be an issue in the primary season when it is just Republican vs. Republican. No Democrat will likely step up to face Obama for the nomination, so the issue of gun control won’t be brought up.
It is a sly tactic by the MSM to weaken a GOP chance to unseat their man, Barrack Obama. While his approval rating remains under 50 percent the MSM still loves the man, who can seemingly do no wrong. So making gun control an issue earlier can help split the GOP, and draw a line in the party.
But this will likely backfire should the MSM push this issue in the fall of 2012. The truth is that the MSM also honestly believes it knows what Americans want, and this doesn’t include Second Amendment rights. The MSM covers guns when there is a tragedy and this is when a few affected people say, “we need to do something.”
That something might mean stricter law enforcement, stiffer penalties and efforts to stop these events before they happen. But the media for reasons that escape us, tend to believe that “we need to do something” line implies we need gun control.
Simply put most Americans aren’t for gun control, despite the perception in the media. So we say let’s make gun control an issue. Put it on the table, because the American people will speak with their votes and those looking to bring forward gun control – in the open or “under the radar” – will see themselves soon out of power!
Even More From the MSM Following Mayors’ Report
Is it guilt or shame that is making the mainstream media jump on the bandwagon to report the findings from Mayors Against Illegal Guns without questioning the facts? We’ve been finding a shockingly high number of stories that report what the anti-gun group provided without any counterpoint or commentary. Consider if this were a report about other hot button issues. There would be two sides to the story. But with guns, it seems that if the Mayors have spoken that is more than enough for the media. Read more
Tennessee Parks Safe One Year after Carry Law: Media’s Scare Tactics Proven Wrong
In June of 2009, Tennessee passed a law that allows permit holders the ability to legally go armed in all 53 state parks and 81 state natural areas. Only two gun related incidents have been reported since the law passed, and neither of them resulted in violence. Jim Fyke, the state’s Environment and Conservation Commissioner lobbied against the law but said he is “pleasantly surprised” by the small number of gun incidents. Read more
More on Declining Magazine Sales
Let’s take another look at the state of the declining magazine business in this country, or at least the declining business of some magazines. As we noted earlier this week, gun magazines have actually seen a rise in readership, while numerous mainstream media magazines have shed a ton of readers – almost to the point that you have to wonder how those publications are still publishing at all.
According to Business Insider, Newsweek (which was sold this past week for the princely sum of $1) was down nearly 40 percent year-over-year, while Playboy dropped 34 percent. And yet magazines such as American Hunter have seen an increase of nearly 8 percent in readership, while the NRA’s American Rifleman climbed by nearly 15 percent!
Maybe there will finally be something worth reading!
Firing Back: Maybe the Media is Changing After All
Chances are you won’t actually see more “pro gun” articles from the mainstream media, but the fact is that you might just see less from the MSM and more from gun magazines. According to Daily Finance, gun magazines are on the rise, while the rest of the mainstream media continues to falter. Read more
Firing Back: Media Reaction to the SCOTUS Ruling
This week has seen a lot of editorials responding to the Supreme Court Ruling, and it sort of proves our point. That being that the mainstream media has an anti-gun bias. Even if it isn’t always shown in the reporting, the editorials in the wake of the SCOTUS ruling show the media’s true colors.
The simple fact is that the MSM misunderstands guns. I say this as a reporter who has contributed to more than three-dozen magazines, websites, newspapers and news channels. I’ve written for many of the news services I now watch. Yet, I don’t maintain a bias against the media, but feel it is my duty to set the record straight. So over the next week, check back as we’ll be watching the fall-out of the SCOTUS ruling very closely.
Gun-Rights Rallies Held This Past Weekend
We’re happy to report that the mainstream media can’t ignore the growing gun-rights movement in this country. Here is a recap of some articles (among many others) that appeared this weekend:
- The Maine Sunday Herald noted “Pro-gun rally shines light on liberal laws“
- The Washington Post reported, “Gun-rights advocates gather in Va. and D.C. to celebrate ‘historic moment’“
- The Los Angeles Times reported, “Gun rights supporters rally near Capitol“
- NPR offered “Gun Rights Fans Rally In DC, VA, Some Bearing Arms“
Of course not all of this reporting was free of anti-gun bias, but it is about time that these events are being reported.
Guns Not Selling For Some Gun Stores
If you believe the mainstream media every store in the country is out of ammo, the shelves are bare and there isn’t a gun in sight. But yet, some gun stores are seeing slow business because of new legislation. The Capital in Annapolis, Maryland notes just how tough it can be for some state residents:
“Maryland residents need to apply to state police to get a handgun permit.”
Likewise, while the MSM has continued to post about strong sales, these have mostly dried up, in part due to the sluggish economy. However, while the media was quick to note a surge in gun sales we somehow doubt we’ll see any reports on sales slipping. The media might note sluggish sales of cars, consumer goods and other products, but there will be no news about sagging gun sales we expect.
