Glenn Beck reveals major announcement coming about future of his show at rally Saturday in Florida

Most of conservative pundit Glenn Beck's book signing events in Florida this weekend will be seriously brisk affairs; he's scheduled to hit seven different cities on Friday and Saturday, culminating with a noon stop in Tampa and a 3 p.m. rally/singing at The Villages retirement community.

But his stop at The Villages promises to be a special event. There, Beck says he's going to reveal details on The Plan -- a future direction for his Fox News Channel show, which is now the third most-popular program on the most-watched cable TV news channel.

"Coming this January, my whole approach changes on this program," said Beck in a clip from his Fox News Channel show widely circulated on the Internet. "Personal responsibility is dead in this country; it's time that we got the little paddles -- poof! -- and bring the body back."

Organizers in Tampa expect about 800 people to show for his stop there, as the host barrels between locations in a huge bus emblazoned with his logo -- whipping through a tight schedule arranged by a team of planners with the precision of a political campaign. Store staffers have already been told there won't be time to personalize his signatures or to talk with many people from the local press.

But his stop at The Villages may be different. The retirement community is a favorite for conservative politicians and authors -- former Arkansas governor-turned Fox News host Mike Huckabee drew a crowd of about 1,000 Monday to sign copies of his book A Simple Christmas. Former Alaska gov. Sarah Palin drops by Tuesday to sign copies of her new book, Going Rogue.

See Beck's announcement below:

Fox News slips up on video again, while Daily Show welcomes Lou Dobbs and explains Palin-hatin'

The Sarah Palin book tour continues to be the gift that keeps on giving for media watchers.

First, Fox News had to apologize today for telling viewers Wednesday that video from a campaign appearance by Palin last year before adoring throngs was footage from a recent book tour stop.

The flub highlights the ongoing controversy over whether outspoken conservatives such as Palin are widely popular or appeal to an excited niche. And its the second time in as many weeks that Fox had to apologize for leading viewers to believe old footage was new.

It also highlights something I said Sunday on CNN. The problem with having opinionated news networks isn't necessarily showcasing opinion, it's the lack of transparency and accuracy when programmers are actively and deliberately bending reality to fit their preconceived ideas.

I actually think this was an honest mistake -- mostly because Palin is drawing crowds at her book signings, so deception wasn't necessary (in fact, as I write this, MSNBC is broadcasting from a crowded Palin book signing). But when you've had your finger on the scale in the past, it's hard to argue innocence in the future.

The Daily Show also had several great segments Wednesday; particularly a bit where host Jon Stewart explains that critics object to Palin because her positions on issues are mostly conservative-friendly code words and phrases strung together in rambling sentences which sometimes don't even make sense. 

Later, he complimented former CNN host Lou Dobbs for his consistency in upholding abhorrent and wrong views.

Check some of the video below:

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Former WFTS-Ch. 28 general manager Bill Carey hired as news director in New York City

There have been rumblings for a while that former WFTS-Ch. 28 general manager Bill Carey might land a job as news director at New York CW affiliate WPIX.

The station made it official today, announcing Carey as its new news director, importing him to his New York hometown from a job as station manager and news director at WQAD in Moline, Ill.

Carey resigned his job at WFTS six months after he was arrested and accused of burglary and battery following a hit-and-run crash. Police said Carey initially didn't stop after the accident and struggled with the other driver to take back his license after she announced plans to call law enforcement. Carey maintained he was the victim of a misunderstanding.

Hillsborough County prosecutors decided not to file charges against Carey, after the victim in his case signed a waiver of prosecution and reached a civil settlement with him for an undisclosed sum.

Now he's taking the reins at a TV station in the country's largest market.

Click below to read the press release:

Handling Sarah Palin week: What to do when a major newsmaker with credibility problems blitzes the media

As Sarah Palin kicks off a media blitz this week to hawk her new book, Going Rogue, you have to wonder how the national media got hornswoggled into this mess.

Even as major interviews with infotainment figures such as Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters air in syndicated TV and on ABC, reporters from the Associated Press have fact-checked Palin's quickly-written memoir and find it to be full of misleading, sometimes inaccurate statements.

Palin also makes claims about how she was treated by the campaign of then-running mate John McCain during their bid for the White House which have been denied by others who worked there. In particular, former officials there refute her claim that she was billed $50,000 for expenses related to her vetting at a vice presidential candidate -- saying the McCain campaign did not bill her and was not asked to help cover any expenses she might have incurred on her own. (See the St. Pete Times' fact checking Web site PolitiFact's area on Palin here)

So how will journalists treat Palin when she sits down? If, for example, Barbara Walters' pre-taped interviews don't address these issues, should ABC News feel hoodwinked? (Click here for a summation of Palin's Oprah appearance by the Chicago Sun-Times; the interview airs here at 4 p.m. on WFLA-Ch. 8)

Jonathan Martin of Politico summed up the issue in an appearance today on MSNBC: "Should we in the media treat Sarah Palin like a conventional politician, who may run for office someday, or a political personality -- somebody on par with a Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity?"

My question: What's the difference? Especially given that media personalities such as Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck are inspiring and/or promoting politically active advocacy groups and movements?

Palin seems to have avoided hard news environments in her initial interviews for the book, rightly concluding that those who love her will believe whatever she says and those who dislike her won't be swayed by an interview with a hard news reporter.

But anybody who interviews her without bringing up the numerous inconsistencies already revealed about Going Rogue risks their own credibility while furthering Palin's rather opportunistic media strategy.

Lou Dobbs' CNN departure brings media bias argument to the forefront

Ever try to get a word in edgewise when two siblings are fighting?

Then you know how I felt on Sunday morning, trying to get in-between Baltimore Sun TV critic David Zurawick and CNN staffer-turned-conservative talk radio guy Chris Plante on Howard Kurtz media show for CNN, Reliable Sources.

The subject at hand: The reasons behind and meaning of "advocacy journalist" Lou Dobbs' resignation from CNN last Wednesday. Plante brought the conservative media party line -- that Dobbs was undone by a liberal media and liberal activists who couldn't abide his conservative stands on illegal immigration.

(If the New York Post is right, and Dobbs got $8-million from his $12-million deal to walk away, I wish the liberal media would conspire against me like that. No wonder he says the split was "amicable.")

Zurawick brought the appropriate response -- are you crazy? -- and proceeded to pronounce Dobbs a "disaster" for CNN's long-established brand as a hard news haven.

I was stuck in the middle, trying to have a reasoned discussion between two guys yelling at each other and interrupting everyone (I'm a huge fan and friend of David Z., by the way, but when he goes on cable TV, this mild-mannered journalist turns into a tiger).

I was struck by a bunch of things during this bit of TV theater:

  -- It's always odd to discuss media stories involving CNN on a CNN media show. I kept wondering why Kurtz didn't have CNN/U.S. president Jon Klein or some other CNN executive on to tell us directly what was going on with Dobbs. And how weird was it to ask me about Dobbs successor, John King, who just happened to be anchoring the show which surrounded Reliable Sources, State of the Union?

-- Plante conveniently overlooked the most important issue at hand; Dobbs consistently aired false or misleading information to buttress his point of view, which just happened to be that hordes of illegal immigrants from Mexico are bringing untold ills to America. Such work is shoddy journalism at best and racist at worst; if you're going to call yourself an advocacy journalist, you've got live up to both sides of the term.

-- In a media world where consumers have more choice than ever, cable channels' move toward creating "news" channels which bend and manufacture facts to echo their viewers' worldview only makes sense, at least economically. But that is directly contrary to the role of journalists, whose job often requires digging up stories which challenge conventional wisdom and the assumptions of the audience. Journalists are also required to follow the facts wherever they lead, even if the resulting story doesn't fit a preconceived mold.

-- Conservatives have essentially challenged many of the notions journalists use to define news, insisting that they betray a liberal bias. But replacing those criteria with ideas that bend toward conservatives' biases -- America is always a great nation, government is usually bad, etc. -- doesn't produce better journalism. It just produces reports which affirm what the audience wants to believe. And we have seen in our economic meltdown and how federal disaster response fell apart after Katrina, how objective facts have a way of obliterating how we'd like to see life.

-- In a telling interview replayed on NPR's On The Media, Dobbs justified his approach by essentially saying he was experienced and accomplished enough that he deserved to have a level of autonomy on CNN that no other anchor had. But even the best writers need editors, and any justification which says 'I'm great, so by definition anything I do is great,' is mostly a recipe for problems.

I wrote a story for Sunday's newspaper on the implications of Dobbs' departure, particularly how it reflects on the growing confluence between politics and media.

Dobbs will appear on Fox News Channel host Bill O'Reilly's top-rated show The O'Reilly Factor tonight; it will be interesting to see what these two, very smart guys, who have built empires on pandering to ideologues, have to say to each other. 

Check the video of my Sunday appearance below:

Hillsborough Sheriff's deputy sues WTSP-Ch. 10's owner and reporter Mike Deeson over inmate wheelchair dumping story

A deputy in the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is suing the owner of CBS affiliate WTSP-Ch. 10 and reporter Mike Deeson, saying the station aired a story unfairly edited to make it appear the officer was laughing at quadriplegic jail inmate Brian Sterner when he was dumped from a wheelchair.

A lawyer for Cpl. Steven Dickey filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Hillsborough County Circuit Court, seeking a judgment in excess of $15,000. His action contends WTSP’s story on the incident drew the officer unfairly into the controversy and led to global ridicule when the footage became a viral sensation on the Internet.

The lawsuit accuses WTSP of deliberately editing video of the moment on Jan. 29 2008 when inmate Brian Sterner was hurled from his wheelchair, making it appear that Dickey participated and was laughing at Sterner’s difficulty.

Ken Tonning, general manager at WTSP, declined to comment. But an attorney for WTSP owner Gannett Co. wrote a letter to Dickey's lawyer Nov. 2 maintaining the station's story was a fair and accurate portrayal of video from the incident provided by the sheriff's office.

“The gist of the station’s report is exactly that of the government’s tape: That deputies dumped Mr. Sterner out of a wheelchair and Mr. Dickey – aware of Mr Sterner’s treatment – found something amusing about the situation,” wrote Gannett attorney Barbara Wall, who also said the officer is a public official requiring a high level of proof to demonstrate any defamation.

Look below to see footage from the sheriff's office and WTSP's story. (In the bottom clip, Dickey walks into the camera frame at 1:24, then walks past smiling at 1:59):

CNN announces John King as permanent replacement for Lou Dobbs in early 2010

John King, the host of CNN's Sunday program State of the Union, has been named as the permanent replacement for outgoing 7 p.m. weeknight anchor Lou Dobbs, who abruptly resigned Wednesday after more than 25 years working at the cable newschannel.

The choice of King, a former reporter for the Associated Press who has steadfastly avoided the opinionating many anchors indulge on cable news, answers one of the biggest questions CNN faced when Dobbs' departure was announced.

Given CNN's sagging primetime ratings and the success of rivals featuring more opinionated shows in prime time, some wondered if Dobbs' departure would give the channel a chance to change its middle-of-the-road approach.

(it may also offer a statement on the advantages of mastering new technology early; King distinguished himself during the 2008 elections by nimbly handling CNN's touch-screen video wall display during election returns and political analysis segments.

Scheduled to start early next year, King's show is expected to focus on politics and analysis -- it remains to be seen how this show would be different than the show airing right before it, Wolf Blitzer's Situation Room.

Until King debuts, the channel plans to feature a rotating lineup of anchors at 7 p.m.

And CNN expects to replace King as host of the Sunday State of the Union program, though no name has been released yet.

The speed of the King announcement also hints this was something CNN management may have seen coming; lending credence to news stories saying Dobbs had met with the channel's executives several times.

Click below to read CNN's release:

Should CNN replace abruptly departing Lou Dobbs with Rick Sanchez?

As Latino groups began to step up their protests against CNN "advocacy anchor" Lou Dobbs, the one time business expert and last remaining anchor from the newschannel's earliest days abruptly announced he was leaving the channel, effective today.

In a long statement, Dobbs told his audience about the move during his 7 p.m. show, saying "some leaders in media, politics and business have been urging me to go beyond my role here at CNN and to engage in constructive problem-solving, as well as to contribute positively to a better understanding of the great issues of our day.  And to continue to do so in the most honest and direct language possible."

This was not the first time Dobbs had left CNN; an anchor at the newschannel since its 1980 inception, he departed for two years in 1999 to join the Web site Space.com. (Citing unnamed sources, the Web site AllYourTV.com says Dobbs is considering a run for political office, perhaps president)

Dobbs has faced criticism from various groups over statements expressed on his CNN show and his radio show, from suggestions that the issue of President Obama's birth in the U.S. may be an open question to his refusal to correct mistaken reporting about illegal immigrants spreading leprosy in America.

Dobbs turned resistance to illegal immigration into a cornerstone of his programs, drawing heated criticism from Latino groups which accused him of demonizing Hispanics and spreading misinformation about the negative impacts of illegal immigrants.

(I experienced his wrath firsthand a few years ago, when I had to end a 2006 interview after he questioned my intelligence and abilities three different times; the situation was so combative, a CNN public relations staffer called me back after the interview ended to apologize)

A group called BastaDobbs.com -- which says it is a Latino-led grassroots coalition of several organizations urging CNN to fire Dobbs -- released a statement earlier today announcing a digital "sit-in" on the newschannel's iReport service. In this protest, members would send thousands of anti-Dobbs personal messages into CNN's Web site devoted to citizen journalism. The group had also protested during CNN's launch of its Latino in America series, arguing that the newschannel could not be fair to Latinos if it kept Dobbs on its payroll.

None of this was mentioned directly in statements released by Dobbs and CNN tonight. And despite the anchor's talk of moving on, no specific reason was given for the anchors abrupt departure -- announced without fanfare or a successor named (The New York Times quotes a spokesperson from Fox saying it has not had discussions with Dobbs for the Fox News Channel nor Fox Business Network).

Given the damage Dobbs punditry has done to its brand with Latinos, perhaps CNN will consider replacing him with Rick Sanchez, the former Miami anchor who has turned their 3 p.m. hour into a showcase for his Twitter-fed reporting and occasional opinionating, often on issues affecting Hispanics.

It would certainly be a delicious irony. And there's not nearly enough of that in the media game these days.

Daily Show discovers Fox News manipulated footage while Fox News fact checks Sarah Palin

I'm not sure what's more amazing: That Fox News exposed a falsehood spread by conservative darling Sarah Palin, or that the Daily Show dug up footage suggesting the channel should be fact checking its own programs, too.

(UPDATE: Sean Hannity admitted on his show Wednesday that he used "incorrect video" in his interview with a lawmaker who attended an anti-health care change rally in the nation's capital last week. What he didn't do, was speak on the effect of what he called an "inadvertent mistake" -- which essentially suggested the rally last week drew crowds the size of a much larger rally in September.)

On Tuesday, the right-leaning cable channel presented a short report on a Palin speech last week where she groused about the phrase "in God we trust" being moved to a subordinate position on the $1 coin, implying that the current Democratic administration must have had something to do with it.

This is the kind of malarkey which normally rockets around the conservative media echo chamber for weeks, fed by pundits who have a vested interest in spreading misinformation. But Fox News offered a brief report echoing a story Saturday in Politico noting the change in the dollar coin was developed and approved under GOP president George W. Bush and reversed by Congress in 2007.

You can debate why Fox News took the time to debunk this relatively unimportant item; it's a handy response to people who accuse the channel of favoring the right, while knocking down a story which ultimately might have made Republicans look worse once the truth was known.

But the Daily Show presented footage Tuesday suggesting that pundit Sean Hannity may have cribbed images of the large Glenn Beck-inspired Sept. 12 rally in Washington D.C. and led his audience to believe it was footage of the much smaller anti-health care change rally held Thursday.

Host Jon Stewart aired a clip from Hannity's interview with a legislator who was at last week's protest, pointing out that the footage of the rally begins with a sparse crowd milling under trees with golden leaves in fall, then seems to show a much bigger crowd standing under green trees.

Comparing Hannity's footage to images of the September protests Beck aired on his show, Stewart said "If I didn't know any better, I would think they just put two different days together and acted like they didn't."

Here's Hannity admitting his "mistake":

Here's the Daily Show's original report, followed by a clip of Fox News taking Palin down a peg:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Sean Hannity Uses Glenn Beck's Protest Footage
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch agrees with star Glenn Beck; says President Obama made racist statement

What a difference an election can make.

In May 2008, News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch sang Barack Obama's praises, calling him "a rock star" and the likely winner of November's presidential contest. That was an endorsement which meant something, given Murdoch's reputation as a supporter of conservative politics and bankroller of both the right-friendly Fox News Channel and New York Post newspaper.

Back then, punditizers like me figured Murdoch had read the tea leaves, expected Obama to win, and wanted to make sure the new administration didn't immediately take on his lengthy list of American TV stations and media outlets.

So what to make of Murdoch's recent statement agreeing with Fox News superstar Glenn Beck when he calls the president a "racist....with a deep seated hatred of white people and white culture."

(UPDATE: A spokesman for News Corp. has told Politico Murdoch does not think the President is racist.)

Murdoch made the statement in an interview with an Australian broadcaster -- which he, by the way, owns a piece of -- where he also talks about charging consumers for online content -- also an about-face for a mogul who initially tried to take down the Wall Street Journal's pay wall after he bought the company.

Slate's most-excellent media columnist Jack Shafer points out that Uncle Rupert has a long history of lying in public statements when it serves his interests, and the only thing you can really trust, is his actions.

So I'm expecting him to walk back these comments the next time he needs some kind of government exemption to keep his TV empire intact here in America.

Check out his words here; comment comes at about 18 minutes: