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Temper Tantrums and ABC News10/13/2003 Here is how Linda Douglass, apparently piqued by the outcome of the California recall, began the first news update of Good Morning America, 10/08/2003: "Schwarzenegger acknowledged that the recall campaign was the result of a statewide temper tantrum, that Democrats who run the legislature must be in shock and itching for revenge." Interestingly, Douglass offered no actual quote and none can be found by a Google search. He did say, during his victory speech Tuesday night, "Shall we rebuild our state together, or shall we fight amongst ourselves? For the people to win, politics as usual must lose." So how did Douglass get from those comments to a "statewide temper tantrum"? It is interesting to note that she is not the first ABC newsperson to accuse the voters of having a temper tantrum. Peter Jennings used that term to dismiss the will of the people when they gave the Republicans control of the House and Senate in 1994. "Some thoughts on those angry voters. Ask parents of any two-year-old and they can tell you about those temper tantrums: the stomping feet, the rolling eyes, the screaming. It's clear that the anger controls the child and not the other way around. It's the job of the parent to teach the child to control the anger and channel it in a positive way. Imagine a nation full of uncontrolled two-year-old rage. The voters had a temper tantrum last week….Parenting and governing don't have to be dirty words: the nation can't be run by an angry two-year-old." - Peter Jennings, 11/14/1994, ABC Radio Linda Douglass' oddball paraphrasing of Governor-elect Schwarzenegger's actual words indicates that the paternalistic elitism at ABC News does not reside entirely with Peter Jennings, but is instead a part of the company culture. How dare the voters think for themselves! How dare they vote their conscience! How dare their conscience differ from the will of ABC News! No wonder viewers are voting with their remote and clicking in droves over to Fox News Channel. If you would like to share your thoughts with Linda Douglass, the contact information is below: Linda Douglass Phone 212-456-7777 Good Morning America contact page Read more here: ABC's Douglass Dismisses Recall as a "Statewide Temper Tantrum" It is interesting to note that this is not Linda Douglass' first outing with twisting the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger. On Thursday, October 2, on World News Tonight, she proclaimed that Schwarzenegger was an admirer of Hitler. Although the New York Times, the source of this misquote, corrected themselves in the late Thursday and Friday editions, Douglass waited until Sunday to correct her inaccuracy - and then only half-heartedly. Read the entire run-down in the Media Research Center's 10/06/2003 CyberAlert. ABC Fails to Note Depth of Its Arnold "Admired" Hitler Misquote When you feel your personal media bias tolerance gauge rising into the red zone, don't throw stuff at the TV screen! Send your suggestion to outrage@fairpress.org! Each week, one hideous example of media bias will be selected for closer examination. Hmmmmmm . . .
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