Op-Ed Column: NBC Ignores Kucinich's Grilling of Rumsfeld

It's bad enough that Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) is marginalized and mocked by big media because, aside from - and due to - standing against nearly everything corporate America desires, he doesn't have the fund-raising ability to compete against the money machines of the front-runners.

Our citizens watch helplessly (or obliviously) as Kucinich and other fund-raising challenged candidates struggle to get in a word edgewise during the debates. Meanwhile, as we do every four years in this country, we then must suffer the mainstream media received notion that voters, you see, are growing frustrated with having to listen to all those minor candidates in addition to the "serious" contenders. Of course, in reality, those minor candidates scarcely receive enough attention for voters to remember their names let alone their ideas, which, were they given equal time, may actually challenge big money candidates to address issues more honestly and thoroughly while bringing new issues and ideas into the national political dialogue.

Sadly, we've grown accustomed to our elections having more to do with who can raise the most money than who might make the best president. To steal a friend's email signature quoting Bill Moyers: "There's a cancer eating at the heart of [American] democracy and it's money in politics. If free speech means you have to buy it, then only those who can afford it have free speech."

But when one of these marginalized candidates is making news, big news, yet the mainstream media refuses to cover it, then something even more intentionally misleading and disgraceful is at work here.

Kucinich's grilling of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld at the Pat Tillman hearing the other day, which focused on whether the Department of Defense had a "press strategy" to shape coverage of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, was the stuff of legendary political showdowns. Far better than any exchange at the hearing, it also happened to reveal what's at the heart of this issue.

Unfortunately, most Americans will never see it.

Rumsfeld had for years fed a cowed media and Republican-controlled Congress the kind of lies that Dr. Seuss might have dreamt up had he owned a black heart: his explanations centering around "known knowns," "known unknowns" and "unknown unknowns"; the dissonant dollops of "gee-whiz" and "golly" in the face of life and death questions about the war he was prosecuting; the monarchal mix of condescension and snap surliness.

Well, on Wednesday, Congressman Kucinich wasn't having any of it. Like no journalist or politician had during Rumsfeld's reign as defense secretary, Kucinich (yes, that Kucinich, the one painted by big media as the perennial prince of political lightweights) stood toe to toe with Rumsfeld. And won. Truly unwavering, in measured questions and responses, the congressman from Ohio pulled no punches and outmaneuvered the former defense secretary.

Rumsfeld reacted the way most bullies do when confronted with an earnest and feerless force of truth and justice.

First, the former defense secretary was taken aback by the directness of Kucinich's question, "Was there a Department of Defense press strategy with respect to the war?" Then he tried to scuttle the inquiry with some of that ol' flip sarcasm that used to regularly send our press corps into titters: "If there was, it obviously wasn't very good." Yet this back-fired. Kucinich, justifiably angered by the response, redoubled his efforts, pointing out, "Well you know maybe it was very good because you actually covered up the Tillman case for awhile, you covered up the Jessica Lynch case, you covered up Abu Ghraib, so something was working for you."

By the end of the questioning, Rumsfeld, reduced to a stammering, defensive man, appeared somewhat stunned and fatigued, his narrative embarrassingly feeble. Kucinich finally unmasked the former defense secretary in public as the shameless disinformation war minister he's always been. (Kucinich also provided a window into how the Bush years might have gone without a rubber stamp Congress and an obedient press corps. Watching the congressman eviscerate Rumsfeld's evasions, you realize the enormity of the handicap availed to Rummy all those years. As with Karl Rove, Rumsfeld's "genius" demanded a fixed deck.)

Yet in the NBC Nightly News report filed by correspondent Chip Reid, the Kucinich-Rumsfeld exchange is completely scrubbed. We see only snippets of Rumsfeld's defense. Reid fails to show any of Kucinich's questions. This crucial context is jettisoned. And Rumsfeld, of course, comes off looking exceedingly better than he did during the hearing.

Another brilliant piece by NBC's resident Washington stenographer Chip Reid, who appears to have a special knack for this type of reportage. You know, that disingenuous school of journalism that says, "Hey, I'm simply reporting what they said," but cherry-picks who "they" is and has undue influence on which particulars of what was said reaches the public.

NBC should make an on-air apology for this glaringly deficient coverage. It would not only be a responsible correction of journalistic negligence, but would also have the added benefit of informing Americans that some minor candidates, like Mr. Kucinich, are greater than the sum of their bank accounts.

We'd all be a lot richer for it.

(Here's the full exchange between Kucinich and Rumsfeld; scroll to the bottom of the page for video. Do not miss this! And here's Reid's report; scroll down to the bottom right video: "Rumsfeld, generals grilled in Tillman hearing.")

Comments

[MediaBloodhound]

NBC Ignores Kucinich's Grilling of Rumsfeld

[Marques Lyons]

I totally agree. I'm always amazed when I go vote how there are more than one group of people wanting to be President yet there's only a couple of names that the media would allow me to know.

It's not right. We need some way of being able to spotlight all of the candidates (from every party) so we can make up our own mind as to who we feel would be best to run this country.

[td]

Chip Reid looks at his paycheck every 2 weeks and sees that it comes from GE...not you and me. He knows what his overlords want him to say, as does Brian Williams, Tim Russert, Jim Miesklawieski (sp?) and all the other corporate media whores getting 6-figure paychecks. GE gets what it pays for. Disney/ABC and Viacom/CBS are equally culpable in their quest to meet Fox News at the bottom.

[mark]

GE:WE BRING GOOD THINGS TO DEATH!

I applaud Kucinich for standing up to these arrogant Bush administration officials and ask the tough questions.
If these cabinet officers can't recall the events of the recent past than they should be removed as incompetent and impeached. These people represent George W Bush and with his blessings they are not answering the tough questions which have to get asked during a long conflict.

[DAN]

ya know who SHOULD be running for president in MY opinion? The ONLY 2 that know the truth and aren't afraid of it. Dennis Kucinich (D) and Ron Paul (R).

[Louis]

"ya know who SHOULD be running for president in MY opinion? The ONLY 2 that know the truth and aren't afraid of it. Dennis Kucinich (D) and Ron Paul (R)."

Amen!

[scuttle]

Saw Reid’s report the night it aired—what a disgrace. Chipster’s piece shows Rummy telling the committee that he didn't cover up and that all the men next to him (retired generals Myers and Abazaid) are men of great integrity who would never think to do such a thing as covering up the Tillman matter. That was basically the whole report. Then, a half hour later I watch David Shuster's report on Hardball and I find out that there was a demonstration against Rummy and Crew in the hearings by anti-war peeps, that Abazaid told Myers about the suspicions that Tillman's killing was by "friendly fire" and that Myers admitted he already knew the suspicions and when asked who told him about all this before even hearing it from Abazaid, Myers said, "I don't recall." Both “our leaders” and the MSM like Reid are pathetic.

[Griifin]

NBC are complicit in the illegal war. They will never address what Kucinich is implying because that would blow the lid off the whole racket. They'll let keith Olberman say a few words but won't ever address directly war lies, conspiracies, or coverups. They know who butters their bread. I hope those bastards know they are responsible for so many innocents dying. They are dircetly responsible. And all for a few dollars and some material goods. I'm agnostic but I hope there is a hell so these pricks can go there.

[Kahoneez]

" Complicit " is correct. The main stream infotainers won't mention Kucinich's legitimate concerns, hell they won't even ask the tuff questions .
They won't mention OIL, there hasn't been one documentary about the U.S.'s oil ambitions in Iraq OR Afghanistan, nor will they say the word "OCCUPATION", nor have they mentioned the huge oil workers UNION STRIKE in Iraq. These complicit media sycophants know if they did, they have a lot of SPLANNIN to do. The strike is over the oil laws forced on them by bush .

[Ed Chainey]

I want to see even more of what Dennis Kucinich has to say every time I see and hear him.

Rummy got his well-deserved come-uppance.

That NBC chose to ignore this newsworthy story just shows how un-newsworthy NBC has become!

[scoter]

NBC is such a left wing, communist rag it should apologize to all 4 people who still watch it.