Dobson’s Focus complains about Media Matters report

March 15, 2007

I’ve been curious how conservatives would respond to this week’s Media Matters report about the conservative tilt of the Sunday-morning talk-shows. To quickly review, MM examined the guests of the Sunday shows — Meet the Press, ABC’s This Week, CBS’ Face the Nation, and Fox Broadcasting Co.’s Fox News Sunday — and found that they have consistently given Republicans and conservatives an edge over their Democratic and progressive counterparts over the last few years. The recent shift in power in Washington has yielded mixed results, at best.

Would the right question Media Matters’ methodology? Apparently not, the study was legit. Would conservatives argue that Republicans deserve more air time? No, that’d be a tough sell.

Instead, James Dobson’s Focus on the Family sent an item to members yesterday complaining that the Sunday talk-shows are still liberal.

“I get plenty of phone calls from journalists who want Dr. Dobson to appear on one these shows — but it’s never to give him an open mic to talk about how our ministry helps families stay together,” [Gary Schneeberger, media liaison for Focus on the Family founder Dr. James Dobson] said. “They want him to talk about some contentious political issue — and there’s little doubt about the kinds of questions they want to ask or the disapproving tone with which they would ask them.”

Let me get this straight. Focus on the Family disapproves of the Sunday shows because they won’t give Dobson “an open mic”? Journalists on news programs expect political figures to “talk about some contentious political issue”? You don’t say.

I was particularly fond of the notion that Russert & Co. might ask conservatives questions with a “disapproving tone.” The shows clearly favor Republican/conservative guests, and stack the deck against the left, but it’s not good enough for right because hosts may not be fawning enough.

I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.

Dobson won’t be satisfied until the Sunday morning gasbags show well-known Democrats being burned at the stake. Just like the Good Old Days.

  • The shows clearly favor Republican/conservative guests, and stack the deck against the left, but it’s not good enough…

    In principle, just having more conservatives than liberals as guests might be misleading, if conservatives were consistently insulted or mistreated, or had their mikes cut (like that’s ever happened). I’m not sure that the MM study takes that into account; I doubt it, since how guests are treated is subjective, whereas it’s easier to count raw numbers of guests.

    I’m not saying this is what’s happening. Conservatives are notoriously thin-skinned; they think it’s oppression when they aren’t allowed to oppress others.

  • I disapprove of American Idol, because they never give me an open mic to talk about how we should get out of Iraq. They always want me to sing some ridiculous pop song, and there’s little doubt about the kinds of comments they want to make, or the disapproving tone with which they would make them.

  • Let me offer a different perspective on what these comments might have meant…James Dobson’s organization Focus on the Family is in business to provide assistance to families in the form of books, teaching materials, church bible studies, etc. They were not founded to be a political organization. In recent years, Dobson has stepped into the political arena on occasion to discuss issues he believes are relevant to traditional nuclear families. Those issues include abortion, gay marriage, and even such far reaching topics as judge appointments (or as they like to say “activist judges”).

    However, Dobson is not a politician. I think he offers up his opinion on political matters when he believes it is relevant to his primary mission (again, helping families). But if you are the leader of an organization, I would think you would most want to talk about your organization, and what it does well.

    So I think this sentiment is the backdrop, with which they contrast by saying that mainstream news programs don’t want to hear about their organization, they just want Dobson to represent what most people would see as a radical viewpoint. Because, let’s face it, the perception is that to score ratings, you need some fireworks. I would bet that he’s probably speaking from experience…I’m sure he’s been on TV panels before and got beat up for his stance on abortion, homosexuality, etc., so he’s not eager to do it again.

    I don’t think Schneeberger is suggesting that Dobson wants, or deserves, an open mic on these shows to promote FotF. I’m sure he understands it is a news show, and FotF isn’t news. In fact, Dobson has his own radio show where he gets to espouse his views. In addition, he does speaking engagements, so there is an audience when he wants to say something.

    So I don’t think Dobson “disapproves” of the Sunday shows because he doesn’t get to go on and plug FotF. It’s just not his scene, man. So chill out. 🙂

  • One can never forget the Right’s scenario: even though they controlled all three branches of government for the last several years, they remain VICTIMS.

  • Thanks Addison. I am always searching for dialog that challenges my position, and your note is written in a style that I will actually read instead of dismissing out of hand.

  • Here’s more from the Dobson item:

    “When [Media Matters] analyzes so-called conservative bias,” he said, “it completely ignores the fact that the program is hosted by a liberal journalist.”

    Gary Schneeberger, media liaison for Focus on the Family founder Dr. James Dobson, agreed

    So they’re blaming it on the liberals that Dobson has to discuss contentious matters.

  • So I don’t think Dobson “disapproves” of the Sunday shows because he doesn’t get to go on and plug FotF. It’s just not his scene, man. So chill out.
    Comment by Addison

    New book, “Sunday talk shows are just my scene, man.” by Austin Powers James Dobson.

  • “…it’s never to give him an open mic to talk about how our ministry helps families stay together…”

    That’s called advertising. People pay for that.

    “…and there’s little doubt about the kinds of questions they want to ask or the disapproving tone with which they would ask them.”

    Just maybe the “disapproving tone” has to do with FoF and Dobson rather than “conservative” views?

  • “Sunday morning gasbags”

    Well said. How often is anything said on Sunday morning that we dont already know? I’d rather go to church on Sunday than watch those shows and I’m an agnostic. The occasional gaffe or outrageous statement will show up on the net post haste anyway.

  • But if you are the leader of an organization, I would think you would most want to talk about your organization, and what it does well.

    So when Dobson hosts and takes part in these “Justice Sundays” or whatever they’re called to denigrate judges and specifically influence Christians to interfere in the judicial system, he’d really rather be just talking about his organization. Right.

    The problem with people like Dobson is that they only want to spew their venom in controlled circumstances before friendly audiences where they and their views can’t be challanged. Dobson seems to find plenty of other platforms to flap his yap and inject himself into politics without hiding behind the only wanting to talk about his organization.

    If the guy wants to be a public speaker and have a voice in the public debate, then he should subject himself and his views to the same public scrutiny as everyone else. I don’t understand why religious figures need to inject themselves into the political debate, but then when they are challenged by others with a different political viewpoint, they need to plead special treatment because they’re religious.

  • oh yeah – and if Dobson and his organization are tax-exempt for religious purposes, he really has no business commenting on political matters anyway.

  • A couple of things here are silly on their face.

    Dobson is by any measure a political operative. He injects himself into political situations and never shies away from mixing the political with the religious. Just look at all his purely political activism on the Supreme Court justice appointments. Not to mention the litmus test he applies to candidates regarding whether he will turn out his constituency in their favor. He is not one to render to Ceasar what is Ceasar’s.

    Second, “When [Media Matters] analyzes so-called conservative bias, it completely ignores the fact that the program is hosted by a liberal journalist.” Riiiiight. Just ask Dick Cheney about how liberal Tim “we can control the message” Russert is, let alone Tweety’s macho Republican man-love or Fox News.

    And if Dobson only wants to live in a world of softball questions, he can limit his media exposure to outlets that won’t take a critical look at his stances.

  • Screw Dobson. He’s got so much media exposure already it’s disgusting.

    How about putting a few decent bloggers on, and let them go over the stories that the Old Media either ignored or fucked up during the previous week? I swear, every single story I hear on the MSM has an important chunk missing, which I only know about because of the blogs. It’s as if either the producers simply cannot read or they are deliberately trying to fog the issues by omitting key details which would allow the viewer to understand what they were looking at.

    I suspect it’s the latter, but maybe they’re just inbred idiots. I can’t tell.

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