ABC's Peace Offering: A Complete INSULT
From ABC in response to my email regarding their choice to place a radio correspondent with only the "Top 6" candidates, among which Rudy Giuliani was one but neither Dr. Paul nor John Edwards were :
---------------------------------------------------
Ron Paul is a fascinating political figure who clearly has galvanized many voters. We have covered him and will continue to cover him as long as he is a candidate.
Click on this link to see a recent report from ABC News – the only organization that has a reporter dedicated to covering Ron Paul:
http://abcnews.go.com/Video/player?ip=&affil=wftv&debug=&cat...
Thanks for your interest.
--------------------------------------------------
I was extremely annoyed when I discovered their decision to include Mayor 911 among their top 6 (you know, the one with a 1-4 record against Ron Paul in the primaries/caucuses, and the one that has received 30,000 fewer votes, and the one that doesn't have any money left so his top staff are going unpaid, and the one that sunk his last couple of dimes into Florida hoping for a win only to now be polling in 4th). After receiving this email, which did not address either of my two concerns, I am now LIVID.
Including the above link in the email was obviously in the spirit of a peace offering, but in addition to not actually addressing the issues at hand, the video clip representing ABCs coverage of Ron Paul in fact only supported my original points. The entire theme of the video was to marginalized him in the style of "oh, isn't that cute, he wants to be president". It was quaint and inaccurate. Here are just a few "highlights" I transcribed:
-- It is subtitled "The Lone Reporter with Ron Paul" with coverage by Zach Wolf. Mr. Wolf is obviously a very young journalist, so he seems to me to be the equivalent of the kid to whom you give a quarter to retrieve the foul balls at a baseball game.
-- "While the reporters covering the other campaigns, the bigger campaigns, THE TOP TIER CAMPAIGNS, have busses and planes, they do not get anywhere near the actual candidate. But covering Ron Paul, the LIBERTARIAN RUNNING AS A REPUBLICAN, is something else entirely."
(though it's obviously true that Dr. Paul is a libertarian, it was stated in a manner that insinuated he hadn't been a republican all his life and was just trying to get in the game with another party)
-- "He's not near the top of any polls, but he has beat the likes of Fred Thomspon and Rudy Giuliani in some of those earlier primaries. SO WHILE HE WON'T BE PRESIDENT, Ron Paul is already declaring victory."
(one of my two major points to ABC in my original call and email was that they don't get to decide who will be president, which is why I made the point regarding John Edwards too)
The phone # of the ABC desk is: 212-456-5100
The email addresses of those involved in covering only the "Top 6" candidates are: andrew.l.kalb@abc.com, cristi.d.landes@abc.com, heidi.b.oringer@abc.com, james.f.kane@abc.com, jeffrey.t.fitzgerald@abc.com, joyce.a.alcantara@abc.com, robert.garcia@abc.com, wayne.fisk@abc.com, peter.salinger@abc.com
The link to ABC's coverage plan for embedding 6 ABC News Radio correspondents is (with Steven Portnoy covering the former Mayor):
http://abcnewsradio.com/08election/advisories/supertuesday.html
Incidentally, my second point of the original phone call and email was that if they were going to choose only six candidates, under no circumstances can they reconcile counting Giuliani among them. Ron Paul's comparative statistics with Rudy Giuliani are:
- In primaries/caucuses: Dr. Paul has beaten Giuliani 4 out of 5 times. He beat him in Iowa, Michigan, Nevada and South Carolina.
- Delegates: Ron Paul has won 6 delegates, while Rudy has won only 2.
- Total Votes: Dr. Paul has received a total of 88,791 votes while Mr. Giuliani has received only 54,595 votes in primaries to date.
- Money: Dr. Paul raised more money than ANY CANDIDATE in the last quarter. Mr. Giuliani is out of money. He relegated his campaign only to Florida, and his staff was going UNPAID.
I will be writing another email explaining that they did not address either of my concerns in their response, and I will be demanding an answer of the logic to cover Giuliani over Paul. I will also be contacting my local ABC affiliate. I have noticed that the local TV stations actually do a pretty good job, comparatively, about reporting the results instead of the horse-race.
Write the FCC and file a complaint
if you did not already. Save the case # they give you.
Then E-mail ABC and let them know you filed a complaint.
We need to CALL them!
Does anyone out there have a list of actual telephone numbers for ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, etc? I think we really need to call them, as opposed to email, which can so easily be ignored. Calling ties up a real person, and can only be ignored by them hanging up on us.
ABC's Explaination--Grrrrrrrr!
Just got on the computer this afternoon, and read that insulting and condescending email.Thanks for the summary of the video, it would not play for me.Good thing too. Might have tossed the monitor to the floor.
ABC has picked the wrong people to mess with. We are not an bunch of semi- literate sheeple happy just to read the TV guide to can find out when the next reality show will be on. They have given official notice of leaving their role as the public watchdog to the government's lapdog.
They have made their statement, and it will be a sore embarrassment in perpetuity for them. Let us never let them forget it. Ever. Let us use it as an sharpen prod, goading them to shame and accountability.
I look forward to tomorrow when the FCC director and commissionerscheck their morning email and see on our complaints.But I tell you, If I get a canned response--assuming I get one--in the same vein as ABC's, then I will know that the word conspiracy, often derided as a word abused by so-called fringe groups, is the only term that adequately describes this concerted effort.
Come visit my Ron Paul blog at A Northern New Yorker for Ron Paul
__________________________________________________
"No matter how cynical you get, it's impossible to keep up!"
Conscience does not exist if not exercised
"No matter how cynical you get, it's impossible to keep up!
---Lily Tomlin
ABC covers Ron Paul again... just like the Stossel interview
Is this the same ABC that had Stossel interview Ron Paul for 20/20, only to relegate it to the web a month ago?
Why am I not surprised?
remember who they are - frogs
we wrestle not with flesh and blood
Deb
Quick help, is this too harsh? Haven't sent yet
Wow ABC "News",
How incredibly insulting. This form email not only didn't address the issue of your non-coverage on Super Tuesday, but the amateur reporter insisted Ron Paul "won't be President" and insinuated that he's not a REAL Republican. In fact, maybe you need to go check out the GOP platform. You might become aware that yes, Ron Paul is in fact the only one that follows it.
I guess you "know" he won't be President, because you don't have the integrity to report on REAL issues and the candidate that has REAL solutions, not platitudes and rhetoric to fill the minds of dis-informed Americans. Thanks for contributing to the dumbing down of America. Great job!
Apparently asking this company to do what is right for the sake of what's right, fair, and honorable was too much to ask. Unless this reporting "situation" is rectified immediately, my family and friends are done with all things ABC/Disney. This comes from a 35 year old married mother of 2 small children with a huge extended family that are all voting for Ron Paul. You can take that to the bank (oh actually I guess I mean you can take that from the bank).
An age is called "dark," not because the light fails to shine but because people refuse to see it. ~James Michener
Disappointingly,
Perfect letter!
I called them this morning and was hung up on by that Bryan guy answering the phone. He said that I was too angry to have a civilized conversation with and so he hung up on me. No more mr. nice guy, this is why this has allowed to happen to Dr. Paul...we have allowed it too. I am done with the MSM and I will not be silent and polite any longer. These people need to have the TRUTH SPOKEN FORTH PLAINLY to them. They need to hear RIGHTEOUS ANGER and have their deeds of darkness exposed. The MSM has become a state run media and we don't have much longer to express our OUTRAGE, so might as well do it now....hopefully it will put some fear into them and wake them up, if nothing else they won't want to lose any advertising dollars.
Jesus is the saviour of the WHOLE WORLD, "As in Adam all die, so too in Christ ALL shall be made alive." (ICor.15:22) All means all. The pagan 'hell' of literal fire & eternal torment is a lie and is SPIRITUAL TERRORISM. http://www.hopebeyondhell.net/blog
Me too
I have travelled with my wife and kids (twice) to Disneyland Florida and will not visit again. In fact,- I have refused to travel to the USA (Sorry guys) since 2003. We visited The Falls in September and chose not to cross the bridge because of BUSHCO.
'I always thank of all you canvassors and precinct leaders and delegates who were at the front line and caucuses.
Good luck out there &Thank you. You're a gift.
Love it
Good job on going after the sponsors. That is the kind of talk they understand. I'm going to miss Disneyland too!
Micky Mouse
sucks.
Bulldoze ABC!
A group of angry citizens should bull doze ABC headquarters. No fire or arson, that is a felony; bulldozers would only be malicious mischief, a misdemeanore. :)
no they should not
ABC News is private property. Period. They have the right to say, or not say, anything they like. As do you. Washington already has a record for bombing TV stations in Afghanistan and shutting down newspapers in Iraq. If you really believe in censoring the press - even a dishonest press - I hope a city bus mows you down this afternoon.
Our problem is not the media. Our problem is the public that WILLINGLY follows the media, thinking as the media tells them to think, voting as the media tells them to vote.
ABC News is slimy, no doubt. Dishonest. Manipulative. Undeserving of the privilege of calling themselves journalism.
But the public is the #1 problem, and everyone is afraid to say that.
Even without Diebold around, a democracy is only as good as its voters.
-Van
-Van
It's ABC Radio, Not ABC TV
There is truth to what you say, but remember, this issue specially covers the topic of ABC Radio, not ABC TV. The airwaves belong to the public, who are represented by the FCC. ABC, as a commercial entity, can do as they please--but when they use the public domain, they are on our turf,, and must prove that by using our medium, they are serving the publics best interest. In this case, they are not. And they need to be served noticed by us and the FCC to get their sorry-biased slanted broadcasts off our airwaves if they are not going to tell the whole story.
Come visit my Ron Paul blog at A Northern New Yorker for Ron Paul
__________________________________________________
"No matter how cynical you get, it's impossible to keep up!"
Conscience does not exist if not exercised
"No matter how cynical you get, it's impossible to keep up!
---Lily Tomlin
learn -- now
The Constitution provides us with a republic, not a democracy. That was 100% intentional and we must be vigilant to preserve our republic so that it never devolves into a democracy.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Get active NOW to put Ron in the general election. ronpaul.meetup.com
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
What is begun in anger, ends in shame.
retaliation UPDATED
hi Guys. I was just reading an AP (Associated Press) item released at 12:13pm est 01/27/08- author David Bauder- ref;- Kunnich.
The assertion is that because Kunnich complained to the FCC about distorted coverage for his campaign,- that he was even further blackballed by the MSM. (Went to Court, etc, etc.) Is this some kind of message and if it is then the only thing to do is consider their products. My post below allows you to see all the other Walt products and services. Now I'm sure that this must be some kind of oversight on Walts' part and if they realise how upset potential; customers, etc, are they might be able to over come this and I'm sure they might be able to correct this oversight at ABC etc as they own them? What do you guys think?
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/01/27/...
'I always thank of all you canvassors and precinct leaders and delegates who were at the front line and caucuses.
Good luck out there &Thank you. You're a gift.
ABC Disney
I'm deeply disappointed. How could the Disney people upset so many potential customers? http://www.cjr.org/resources/index.php
'I always thank of all you canvassors and precinct leaders and delegates who were at the front line and caucuses.
Good luck out there &Thank you. You're a gift.
I got the peace offering email also - IT SUCKED...
The nerve of them to send us this lousy email with this VERY LAME video saying *see* we covered Ron Paul...
While you guys may want to email them back - I doubt it will do anygood - obviously they will just ignore any repeat emails.... your points are all valid to respond to them, but when THEY obviously want to smear Ron Paul, your points are going to be ignored as usual...
Do something more productive for Ron Paul - when you get angry, take it out in a useful productive way -dont take the time to spin your wheels... make your time productive - email other people about Ron Paul
What happens if the Ghoul drops
"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent" Thomas Jefferson
"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent" Thomas Jefferson
they won't have as many candidates to report on
they'll have to lay someone off, I guess. they would talk about Paul.
You too, huh?
You guys missed "Libertarian running as a Republican", and "even though he won't win".
Nice kid, but the whole idea of the story seemed to be:
1. Rookie assignment, not "big time".
2. Only reporter (fringe)
3. RP can't win - charming loser
Thanx a lot ABC.
And it NEVER addresses the RADIO coverage Tuesday. So during an ENTIRE day while people are driving around and eventually to the polling place, they hear ALL ABOUT
1. Mitt
2. McCain
3. Giuliani
4. Huckabee
5. Back to #1
I DO NOT believe in vast conspiracies. This conviction is startin to shake a little.
I'm slippin'
Sorry, I was in such a hurry to post, I skimmed the main post and missed the two comments I cited.
I'll try to read more carefully :(
wise words
Thanks to rpjazzer for doing substantially more homework, research, and thoughful writing and reporting than any of the major news networks. Someone needs to hire this person as a real political correspondent who is actually committed to learning about all of the candidates and to thinking about the direction of our country--someone who speaks not for the sake of puppeteering and telling people who to vote for but rather in the spirit of reflecting upon the issues that are near and dear to folks in the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness.
Please maKe sure you tell
Please maKe sure you tell them you want a transcript of your call and all of your letters to be placed in their FCC public file. All should be requesting copies of those files soon (which must be sent at the station's expense). Lets make it a huge file.
D'OH!! I forgot to do that !
Great point. Will do.
WOW
Top quotes that irked me:
"Not Top-Tier"
"Won't become President"
The same jabber I hear from people who use the TV as their only source of information. The "reporter" didn't even note Ron Paul has beaten EVERY other candidate in one state or another.
So tell us again, why is ABC covering Giuliani? Do polls really matter this much? When did polling count as votes? (I'm guessing around the same time we got electronic voting machines)
http://killfiat.blogspot.com/
I got that too, and my reply....
Yes, we in the grassroots have all seen this short, feeble, and basically defamatory report by the early-20's intern reporter.
No offense to the kid, as he seems very sharp and may have a great future. I'd be very proud if he were my son as a matter of fact. However....this campaign is on the verge of being one of the final three (or maybe two) remaining in the Republican presidential nomination race, so if ABC News really wishes to be the "cutting edge" network I believe it would be wise for you to assign a very prominent TOP-tier reporter to Dr. Paul immediately.
Thank you for your "form letter" response....
Lyle P Logan
Prescott, Arizona
(also CC'd to "the nine"....andrew.l.kalb@abc.com, cristi.d.landes@abc.com, heidi.b.oringer@abc.com, james.f.kane@abc.com, jeffrey.t.fitzgerald@abc.com, joyce.a.alcantara@abc.com, robert.garcia@abc.com, wayne.fisk@abc.com, peter.salinger@abc.com)
keep at it...
... we must all e-mail them... keep them under pressure...
Plano TX