Don't Blame Us, Blame the Newspaper We Copied It Out Of

That's the title of a post by Mark Steyn when he gave me a shout out over my observations about the blame game. Mark noted: "It's their choice to copy blindly any slab of hooey appearing in the Post and Times that happens to suit their prejudices without checking it for themselves."

You can add the Associated Press to the growing list of blind copiers.

"WASHINGTON — In a Sept. 19 story about the community organizing group ACORN, The Associated Press, based on an account in The Washington Post, erroneously quoted a conservative journalist saying he targeted the organization for hidden-camera videos because its voter-registration drives bring minority voters to the polls.

The Washington Post on Tuesday printed a correction about the quote. Although ACORN registers people mostly from those groups, the maker of the videos, James E. O'Keefe, did not specifically mention minorities, the newspaper said."

Notice how the AP blames the Washington Post for its error. Also note the AP based its correction on the Post's correction and not on its own investigation of the facts! Sadly, this passes for jounalism these days.

Update: More here from the Post repoter involved.

The AP fact checks Obama

Yes, that AP. Shame they didn't do their job during the campaign.

More errors in CIA interrogation briefing list

The AP is trying to cast doubt on the CIA and thereby support Pelosi. But, the errors are minor and the CIA disputes most of them. That doesn't stop the AP from trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill trying to protect Pelosi.

Take the Rockerfeller briefing for example.

"The CIA matrix also reported that Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., then the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, was briefed on Feb. 4, 2003."

No it didn't and the AP admit that two paragraphs later.

"Little said that "on the Rockefeller briefing, the chart plainly indicates that he wasn't there and was to be briefed individually later. That's in fact what our records show. The chart makes no claim as to if or when that briefing occurred."

And then there's Goss.

"The CIA chart also shows former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Porter Goss attended a March 8, 2005, briefing as a member of Congress. However, Goss was at that time the director of the CIA. He took that job in November 2004.

"On the March 8, 2005, briefing, we were true to the records," Little said. "Although Mr. Goss was CIA director at that time, the underlying records list him as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. There's a record of an earlier briefing that lists Rep. (Pete) Hoekstra as chairman."

Bottom line, Goss was there but his title was listed wrong. Big deal.

You have to love the irony in the AP story as it has this at the end.

"(This version CORRECTS to show that Obey is a Wisconsin congressman.)"

You can't make this stuff up.

Fact checking Obama by the AP

Now they want to fact check him? Too late, you guys annointed him and now we have to suffer.

McClellan: A Bush turncoat, or truth-seeker?

DEB RIECHMANN of AP already made her mind up and decided to rewrite history.

"McClellan was ordered to say that White House aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby were not involved in leaking Plame's identity. Later, a criminal investigation revealed that they were. "

Really? Care to point to that revelation Deb? She can't because Richard Armitage was the leaker and not Rove or Libby. But hey, why let the facts get in the way.

Iraq - Thousands return to safer Iraqi capital

Nice to see the AP reporting the good news out of Iraq.

"BAGHDAD - In a dramatic turnaround, more than 3,000 Iraqi families driven out of their Baghdad neighborhoods have returned to their homes in the past three months as sectarian violence has dropped, the government said Saturday. "

Iraq - Ramadi war zone now rare bright spot

The AP grudgingly admit we're winning in Iraq.

"rare bight spot"? Compare that to this AP report.

US - Kyoto: The AP rewrites history

again.

"Under the administration of U.S. President Bill Clinton, the United States joined a U.N. meeting in Kyoto and agreed to the protocol. But the United States rejected it under the administration of President George W. Bush, Clinton's successor. "

In fact, it was rejected in 1997 under the Clinton administration.

"(1) the United States should not be a signatory to any protocol to, or other agreement regarding, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change of 1992, at negotiations in Kyoto in December 1997, or thereafter, which would--"

The vote under the Clinton administration? "(Passed by the Senate 95-0)"

Iraq - AP propaganda photo of the week

Now this is funny.

AP shills for Ward Churchill

In fact, Dan Elliott outright lies.

"DENVER - A professor who was fired after comparing some Sept. 11 victims to a Nazi sued the school Wednesday, saying officials retaliated against him for exercising his right to free speech."

That is simply not true and Elliott notes it in the very next paragraph.

"Ward Churchill was ousted by the University of Colorado's governing Board of Regents after three faculty committees accused him of plagiarism, fabrication and other research misconduct."

And they didn't just accuse him Elliott, they found him guilty of those charges. Further, the Regents stated his firing had nothing to do with his comments.

"The Regents said his dismissal was based on other writings and that his firing was unrelated to his Sept. 11 comments. The academic investigation did not include the Sept. 11 essay but began after university officials concluded it was protected by the First Amendment and that he could not be fired for writing it."

And yet Elliott writes "A professor who was fired after comparing some Sept. 11 victims to a Nazi...".

That's the left wing media for you.