VITAMEDIAS
Bush Lies, Media Swallows: President Bush is a liar. There, I said it, but most of the mainstream media won't. [...]
The President's "rhetoric has taken some flights of fancy," he has "taken some liberties," "omitted qualifiers" and "simply outpace[d] the facts." But "Bush lied"? Never.
Ben Bradlee explains, "Even the very best newspapers have never learned how to handle public figures who lie with a straight face. No editor would dare print this version of Nixon's first comments on Watergate for instance. 'The Watergate break-in involved matters of national security, President Nixon told a national TV audience last night, and for that reason he would be unable to comment on the bizarre burglary. That is a lie.'" [...]
George W. Bush does not lie about sex, I suppose--merely about war and peace. Most particularly he has consistently lied about Iraq's nuclear capabilities as well as its missile-delivery capabilities. [...]
Reporters and editors who "protect" their readers and viewers from the truth about Bush's lies are doing the nation - and ultimately George W. Bush - no favors.