Bias admission gets 'no comment'

An admission of election reporting bias by the Washington Post drew a "no comment" from the White House today.

The response came from White House spokeswoman Dana Perino to a question from Les Kinsolving, WND's correspondent at the White House.

The Post's admission came in a column by Ombudsman Deborah Howell, who wrote that the newspaper's op-ed pages favored Democrat Sen. Barack Obama by endorsement and in print. But Obama "deserved tougher scrutiny than he got," Howell said, "especially of his undergraduate years, his start in Chicago and his relationship with Antoin 'Tony" Rezko, who was convicted this year of influence-peddling."

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Howell also wrote that the Post "did nothing" on Obama's admitted drug use as a teenager, nor did the newspaper give vice presidential-elect Sen. Joe Biden the scrutiny he deserved, instead going over GOP vice presidential candidate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin "with a fine-tooth comb."

One-sidedness like that was a "gaping hole" in the newspaper's coverage, Howell wrote.

The admission of bias, however, was rejected by Shepard Smith of Fox News.

When confronted with a claim of one-sided coverage, he responded, "That's preposterous."

"The mainstream media reflected what was happening in this nation. It did not drive it. The blogs didn't drive this movement. The media did not drive this movement. Barack Obama did not lose this election. It was his to lose. It was not John McCain's to win," he said.

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"The Republicans had no shot unless the Democrats gave it to 'em, and they didn't. And to blame the media is a copout and ridiculous," Smith said.

Kinsolving asked of Perino, "Since you are the president's chief media officer, you are no doubt aware of the news that the ombudsman of the Washington Post admitted in print that that newspaper showed extensive favoritism towards candidate Obama."

"And my question: Have you wondered why she waited until after the election to admit this, while blaming no one at the Post by name for this biased reporting and editing?"

"I won't comment on it, except to say that I read the ombudsman column every weekend," Perino said.

Howell noted the newspaper "ran far more laudatory opinion pieces on Obama, 32, than on Sen. John McCain, 13. There were far more negative pieces about McCain, 58, than there were about Obama, 32."

She added, "One gaping hole in coverage involved Joe Biden, Obama's running mate. When Gov. Sarah Palin was nominated for vice president, reporters were booking the next flight to Alaska. Some readers thought The Post went over Palin with a fine-tooth comb and neglected Biden. They are right; it was a serious omission."

In a second question, Kinsolving asked, "The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, which is Obama's hometown – noted, in his express opposition to Roe v. Wade: 'If the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision were still settled constitutional law, Mr. Obama would not be president.' And my question: Does the president agree or disagree with Cardinal George?"

"All I would say is that the president has said that he thinks it was a wonderful and inspiring moment when president-elect Obama won on Tuesday night, a week ago," said Perino.

George suggested the U.S. should rejoice over the election of a black president but immediately challenged Obama, who is vigorously pro-abortion, on the issue of life.

"Today, as was the case a hundred and fifty years ago, common ground cannot be found by destroying the common good," George said. "The common good can never be adequately incarnated in any society when those waiting to be born can be legally killed at choice."

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Previous stories:

Shepard Smith on media bias: 'Preposterous!'

Stunning proof of mainstream bias

NBC admits bias toward Obama

F-bomb dropped on Fox's Shepard Smith

Fox's Shepard Smith goes unpunished