News Roundup - Hour 1
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-10-22/news-roundup-hour-1
President Obama campaigns in western states to rally Democrats. A federal appeals court keeps the Pentagon’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy intact for now. And Toyota issues another massive recall. A panel of journalists joins Diane for analysis of the week's top national news stories.
Guests
John Dickerson
chief political correspondent for Slate.com and CBS political analyst and contributor. Author of "On Her Trail: My Mother, Nancy Dickerson, TV News' First Woman Star."
Susan Page
Washington bureau chief for USA Today.
Naftali Bendavid
national correspondent, The Wall Street Journal; author of "The Thumpin': How Rahm Emanuel and the Democrats Learned to be Ruthless and Ended the Republican Revolution."
News Roundup Video
The panelists address NPR's firing of Juan Williams following his comments about Muslims earlier this week on Fox News:
Comments
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Farewell Diane, I have enjoyed your show for years, especially the Friday News round up. However, because of the narrow mindedness and arbitrary actions of the CEO of NPR, in firing Juan Williams, I will no longer be listening to NPR. I found Nina Totenberg's past statements, including a wish that Jesse Helms or his Grandchildren got AIDS, detestable, yet, she is still employeed as a REPORTER. Mr. Williams was employeed as a News ANALYST and expected to give his opinion. He simply expressed his feelings in a discussion where he told Bill O'Reilly that O'Reilly was wrong when he said Muslims attacked us on 9/11. The fact that Mr. Williams felt nervous when he got on a plane and saw individuals dressed in such a way that announced that they were Muslim was the honesty we expect from our News Analysts. That piece of a larger statement is in no way racist or bigoted. And that larger statement was fully supportive of Muslims. He expressed the honest feelings that the CEO of NPR probably feels but is too affraid to express. The firing of Juan Williams disgusts me, as I hope it does you. I understand that, if you do agree with me, you may not believe that you can say so publicly, what with the atmosphere of intolerence that apparently exists at the News Network that offers "All Things Considered" as one of its programs. You may be affraid of losing your own job. I do hope that privately you expressed your concerns over this firing. Apparently all things are not considered, now at NPR. Thank You for years of informative programing Sincerely, Bruce Mikula
I support NPR's decision in firing Juan Williams; however, I'm sorry it happened the way it did. Long ago it would have been wise to have told him to choose between NPR and Fox; news or malevolent entertainment---the two do not mix.
I support NPR's decision in firing Juan Williams; however, I'm sorry it happened the way it did. Long ago it would have been wise to have told him to choose between NPR and Fox; news or malevolent entertainment---the two do not mix.
Good morning!
This is a simple question to Don't Ask Don't Tell (DODT) policy of the military.
I have listened to your recent discussions on the constitution and DODT and am bewildered that the that everyone is furious at the courts for exercising their power in protecting the rights of gay soldiers. I full understand that civil rights issues are difficult to pass based on public opinion... after all, it involves giving equal rights to the little guy. But why is this country to completely stuck on the issue of integrating homosexuals into society... they can't marry and must settle for civil unions, they may serve and die for their country but most certainly can't express their sexual orientation or show pride in their partners; we may as well be forced to stand in busses and be forced us to use separate but equal water fountains.
I guess I am just bewildered that the freest country on earth still hasn't given me equal rights next to my straight neighbor... considering my level of education in the sciences in philosophy this is not the best choice for this country in the long run. Can I ever expect this to change??
Good morning!
This is a simple question to Don't Ask Don't Tell (DODT) policy of the military.
I have listened to your recent discussions on the constitution and DODT and am bewildered that the that everyone is furious at the courts for exercising their power in protecting the rights of gay soldiers. I full understand that civil rights issues are difficult to pass based on public opinion... after all, it involves giving equal rights to the little guy. But why is this country to completely stuck on the issue of integrating homosexuals into society... they can't marry and must settle for civil unions, they may serve and die for their country but most certainly can't express their sexual orientation or show pride in their partners; we may as well be forced to stand in busses and be forced us to use separate but equal water fountains.
I guess I am just bewildered that the freest country on earth still hasn't given me equal rights next to my straight neighbor... considering my level of education in the sciences in philosophy this is not the best choice for this country in the long run. Can I ever expect this to change??
Williams appears to be fair when he is reporting for NPR but when he is on Fox he expresses his opinions which to the listeners of NPR seem contradictory to the radio stations values.
This gaff by him was definitely used by NPR to fire him since as the ombudsperson Alicia Shepard of NPR wrote in an open letter 'management felt he had become more of a liability than an asset'.
But the argument will be made that this is a leftist ploy to silence the honest views of people form the right. That is not true, because even though opinions are tolerated bigotry is not; which in this particular case for Williams was true.
In fact I would have expected him to have the most compassion for Muslims since he championed the civil rights movements. How would he feel if someone would have had said "I feel nervous going through the black part of town because statistics show that black people living in the area are mostly responsible for the violence in that neighborhood".
To be a part of a civil society that is based upon tolerance and not ignorance we have to look beyond the stereotypes!!
Unfortunately some so called news agencies do not hold their reporters to similar standards therefore you have people like Keith Olberman, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Arianna Huffington, etc. who do less reporting but more enticing of their viewers/listeners/readers.
Thanks, NPR, for narrowing the debate and lexicon to only "acceptable" views. Double-plus good.
I just wanted to voice my disappointment on how NPR handled the situation with Juan Williams. It seemed like such a rash decision from what I perceived to be a thoughtful, informed, unbiased organization. I'm not sure I can listen to NPR with the same trust that I had previously. They really need to remedy their erroneous decision.
What Juan Williams said was wrong, but there is some merit in that he verbalized his true feelings and didnt harbor them inside. He landed on his feet at Fox; but it would be ironc if the furor over his firing at NPR would be the catylyst that ends government support of NPR.
The Juan Williams/NPR fiasco reminds me of the recent Dept. of Agriculture hasty and wrongful firing of Shirley Sherrod for making a statement about feelings that she once held and overcame. Out of context, both Williams' and Sherrod's statements seem to be biased, but put into context, we came to understand that each of these people is anything but biased or prejudiced.
At least the DOA and the White House admitted their mistake. That probably wont happen with Williams, since according to the NYTimes, NPR seems to have already had it out for Williams due to his affiliation with Fox. Shame.
I am stunned and very upset about the firing of Juan Williams. He has brought balance to NPR and to Fox. He is not a knee-jerk liberal or a knee-jerk conservative, but a very thoughtful analyst. I listen regularly to NPR, Fox, and ABC. I listen to all sides in debates and Juan has always furthered discussions in a positive way.
Dianne, Your request for pledges just touted balanced coverage and I believe that is true on your show.
America is too polarized. The Republican and Democratic Party’s are eliminating their moderates and contributing to the polarization and now NPR has taken a big step to the left by firing one of its respected moderates. Where are moderates supposed to go to get balanced news coverage?
I have valued Juan Williams’s insights since hearing him with Derrick McGinty and Mark Plotkin in the 90’s. My alarm clock, kitchen radio, and car radios first presets are too NPR and I have been a NPR member for over twenty years. I am MAD MAD MAD at NPR’s management and I don’t want to let balanced reporting slip away without a fight. I am afraid of what comes next. I don’t want the right to take away federal funding for NPR. I don’t want corporations to gain a monopoly on American news coverage.
The editorial integrity of NPR needs to be restored by rehiring Juan Williams and firing Vivian Schiller and Ellen Wiess. This is National Public Radio NOT Liberal American Radio. It will be fascinating to hear what people like E J Dionne, David Brooks, Mark Shields and Dianne Rehm have to say.
Dianne, Your request for pledges just touted balanced coverage and I believe that is true on your show.
America is too polarized. The Republican and Democratic Party’s are eliminating their moderates and contributing to the polarization and now NPR has taken a big step to the left by firing one of its respected moderates. Where are moderates supposed to go to get balanced news coverage?
I have valued Juan Williams’s insights since hearing him with Derrick McGinty and Mark Plotkin in the 90’s. My alarm clock, kitchen radio, and car radios first presets are too NPR and I have been a NPR member for over twenty years. I am MAD MAD MAD at NPR’s management and I don’t want to let balanced reporting slip away without a fight. I am afraid of what comes next. I don’t want the right to take away federal funding for NPR. I don’t want corporations to gain a monopoly on American news coverage.
The editorial integrity of NPR needs to be restored by rehiring Juan Williams and firing Vivian Schiller and Ellen Wiess. This is National Public Radio NOT Liberal American Radio. It will be fascinating to hear what people like E J Dionne, David Brooks, Mark Shields and Dianne Rehm have to say.
If Mr williams had made a comment about jews or blacks nobody will be supporthing him, but because its about muslims its ok. I did not see anybody come to rick sanches's defense.
Please consider what the outcome of a comment about fear of black men or latinos would have wrought. I think Juan Williams has a right to his opinions, but I want a more objective journalist delivering the news of a publicly funded media outlet.
The NPR ombudsman stated that this was NOT the first time that Juan has been admonished for stepping over the line. And that his comments this past week were simply the last straw in a line of infractions. I'm disappointed in your analysts saying this is limited to this one incident. Reporters are entitled to their opinion but I dont expect to hear it in public, I expect to hear the facts from them. This is the standard that few honor anymore, except NPR. And thank goodness for it.
I'm am very disappointed in NPR's dismissal of Juan Williams. It was totally inappropriate.
I have enjoyed listening to Mr. Williams. No, I am not a Fox news listener, my political views are very progressive. However, Mr. Williams was one of very few African American voices on NPR and offered a different perspective to reporting. No, I was not offended by his remarks, when taken in context to the entire discussion.
Mr. Williams has appeared on Fox for the past ten years while also working for NPR. Since NPR did not object to his other employment, this established a de facto condition of employment that takes precedence over other NPR policies articulated by NPR CEO Vivian Schiller.
However, the reason for this message is Ms. Schiller's comments on Thursday, October 21 before the Atlanta Press Club, where she said that Mr. Williams would have been better served confiding his thoughts to his psychiatrist...... Apology or not, these are outrageous remarks from the NPR CEO.
Thank you
About the matching donation, if I donate $50 and the charitable group matches it to make it $100, will that get me the book Life with Maxy?
I want to make sure that it is understood that not everyone who objects to the firing of Juan Williams is a conservative. My friends and family would laugh at such a description of me, but I think that the firing was a travesty. It gave ammunition to the conservatives who are convinced that NPR is a liberal enclave, and it frankly disgusted me. This is political correctness carried to absurdity.
Ta ta!
I do not support NPR's descision to fire Juan Williams, this is supposed to be a "fair" station, where opions are given all the time about issues without someone being punished . Mr. Williams was only giving his honest feelings when asked and was not handling news in NPR's name at the time. I am disappointed and not sure if I will continue to listen to NPR due to its narrowing view of things.
Here's Juan Williams comment on his firing:
"This is evidence of one-party rule and one sided thinking at NPR that leads to enforced ideology, speech and writing. It leads to people, especially journalists, being sent to the gulag for raising the wrong questions and displaying independence of thought."
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think Solzhenitsyn got paid two million dollars a year in Siberia.
I do not support NPR's descision to fire Juan Williams, this is supposed to be a "fair" station, where opions are given all the time about issues without someone being punished . Mr. Williams was only giving his honest feelings when asked and was not handling news in NPR's name at the time. I am disappointed and not sure if I will continue to listen to NPR due to its narrowing view of things.
Thank you!
Diane - I'm glad to hear you bring up the situation surrounding Helen Thomas. Glenn Greenwald on Salon.com recently wrote a very insightful post about the double standard in today's political and journalistic discourse, whereby anti-Muslim bigotry is widely tolerated, while those perceived as expressing similar (or even more mild) animus toward other groups are harshly punished. In addition to Helen Thomas, he cites Octavia Nasr and Rick Sanchez.
Frankly, I'm glad to see NPR take a stand on this issue -- the public dialogue that seems to more and more consistently target Muslims, and even Arabs in general, gets harder to listen to every day.
As a 'center-right' individual I listen daily to Joe Scarborough on the otherwise liberal-leaning MSNBC programming. With Juan William's gone (from npr, he'll do magnificently elsewhere) the 'center-left' has lost a valuable spokesperson on public radio.
Strident Right = Limbaugh, Hannity
Strident Left = Olberman, Maddow
Right = O'Reilly
Left = Matthews
Center Right = Scarborough
Center Left = (doesn't exist)
I'll continue to listen to npr with the understanding that their left-leaning viewpoint needs to be understood through a pragmatic filtering process.
What is "Muslim garb" anyway? Is there any such thing? The 9/11 terrorists dressed just like any other travelers. Juan Williams's worst offense was the ignorance of that comment coming from a news commentator or analyst.
I think it's a disgrace that Juan Williams was fired. I both listen to NPR and watch Fox News Sunday Morning where Juan is often a commentator. I can separate the 2 roles he has....and the supposedly "intelligent" listeners to NPR should be able to differentiate as well.
I also think that the comment by the NPR CEO concerning Juan "he should have said it to his psychiatrist" was unconscienable and she should be fired - if NPR is as concerned about what she said as what Juan said. An apology on the website is not enough.
I have thought for some time that a role as an NPR correspondant was not reconcilable with appearance on Fox news The problem is not that FOX is show business, which it is. The problem is that it is vicious and destructive in the way it presents its stories. Juan Williams should actually be ashamed of himself for even associating with these people His continued presence there demonstrates to me that he is not a serious jouirnalist.
I would have probably handled the firing differently. the haste demonstrates only how overheated the climate is at the moment. But I have for a long time objected to Williams' role on NPR and I am glad he is gone.
This caller alleges the Stewart rally and NPR are non-partisan. That kind of assumption displays the arrogance of the liberal side.