The Media Is the Mess

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The belated discovery that George W. Bush's campaign applied two disparate standards for counting overseas ballots in Florida -- liberal for Bush strongholds and stringent for counties carried by Al Gore -- underscores again the huge advantage that the well-funded conservative news media gives the Republicans. "By having a powerful media of its own -- from TV networks to nationwide talk radio, from news magazines to daily newspapers -- the conservative movement can give its stamp to events during the crucial few days when the public is paying attention," writes Robert Parry. "By the time, the truth comes out -- if it does -- it's often too late to change the outcome." In addition to election 2000, Parry analyzes the influence of the conservative media on overall coverage of the Clinton administration, the nomination hearings of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and current issues such as global warming and the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty.