ABC News Anti-Gun Bias

ABC News Anti-Gun Bias
Date: May 25, 2006 5:04 PM




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NEWS RELEASE
ABC NEWS BIAS: ASSIGNS ANTI-GUNNER ON STAFF TO COVER GUN ISSUES
BELLEVUE, WA – It looks like ABC News has no problem at all with the appearance of bias, now that they’ve assigned a reporter who used to work for Handgun Control, Inc. to cover firearms-related stories, the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) said today.

Washington correspondent Jake Tapper once worked for Handgun Control, according to a piece he wrote when he worked for Salon News. His obvious bias greatly alarms SAF founder Alan M. Gottlieb.

“This is the same ABC News that rushed to the air this week to report that Republican House Speaker Denny Hastert is under investigation by the Justice Department, when the Justice Department said he wasn’t,” Gottlieb noted. “This is the same news network that added George Stephanopoulos, a former top to anti-gun President Bill Clinton. Now they’ve got a former staffer for an extremist gun control group reporting on firearms issues.

“It is no wonder why so many American citizens believe there is an institutional bias in the national press,” Gottlieb continued. “MSNBC’s Chris Matthews once worked for anti-gun Congressman Tip O’Neill and wrote speeches for Jimmy Carter. NBC’s Tim Russert was chief of staff for anti-gun Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and was a counselor for Mario Cuomo, an avowed gun prohibitionist. Does anyone see a pattern here?”

SAF urges gun owners to express their disappointment to ABC News by e-mail at: support@abcnews.go.com, or via mail to ABC News, 7 West 66th Street, New York, NY 10023.

“Tapper has an established anti-gun bias, and for a network that claims objectivity, having him report on gun-related stories is insulting,” Gottlieb said. “What if he is assigned to cover this summer’s conference on global gun control being held at the United Nations? I’m going to be there. Can I expect him to approach this subject with an open mind? His history with Handgun Control, and his writings in Salon tell me his mind is made up.

“Why is it that ABC does not include Tapper’s affiliation with a gun control organization in his biographical information,” Gottlieb wondered. “Is this to shield the network’s bias against guns?

“The American public wants news, not advocacy,” Gottlieb concluded. “We expect factual and fair reporting, not subtle spin or propaganda.”