CNN has not been immune from criticism in its production of news programming. These are controversies and allegations of bias that have been directed at CNN (these refer to both the domestic version of CNN and CNN International): The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Operation Tailwind

In 1998, CNN, in partnership with corporate sister Time magazine, ran a report that Operation Tailwind in 1970 in Indochina included use of Sarin gas to kill a group of defectors from the United States military. The Pentagon denied the story. Skeptics deemed it improbable that such an extraordinary and risky atrocity could have gone unnoticed at the height of the Vietnam War's unpopularity. CNN, after a two-week inquiry, issued a retraction. [1]. The story's producers, April Oliver and Jack Smith, were summarily fired. April Oliver has been highly critical of CNN's handling of the story saying that CNN bowed to pressure from high-ranking officials to kill the story. Ms. Oliver describes the ordeal in Kristina Borjesson's book 'Into the Buzzsaw: Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press (2002)'. 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Time (whose trademark is capitalized TIME) is a weekly American newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. ... Operation Tailwind was a covert incursion into southeastern Laos by a company-size element (Hatchet Force) of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACSOG or SOG) on 11 September 1970, during the Vietnam Conflict. ... Sarin, also known by its NATO designation of GB (O-Isopropyl methylphosphonofluoridate) is an extremely toxic substance whose sole application is as a nerve agent. ... A defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. ... The military of the United States, officially known as the United States Armed Forces, is structured into five branches consisting of the: United States Army United States Navy United States Marine Corps United States Air Force United States Coast Guard; these comprise five of the seven United States Uniformed Services. ... Kristina Borjesson is an independent journalist who has won major awards for her work in both print and broadcast media. ...

Accusations of bias

CNN has come under criticism by conservatives claiming that CNN has liberal bias. Critics, such as Accuracy in Media and MRC, have claimed that CNN's reporting contains liberal editorializing within news stories, and have jokingly referred to CNN as the "Clinton News Network," the "Communist News Network," "Chicken Noodle News," or "Clearly Not Neutral".[2] [3] American conservatism is a constellation of political ideologies within the United States under the blanket heading of conservative. ... Liberal bias is a common phrase used in American political discourse to express the view that the American media generally has a liberal bias. ... Accuracy In Media (AIM) is an American organization which monitors the news media in the United States. ... Image:BBozell. ...

Some liberal observers have claimed that CNN has a conservative bias. For example, media watchdog Media Matters has documented several hundred separate instances of what it sees as conservative editorializing during CNN broadcasts [4]. Look up liberal on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Liberal may refer to: Politics: Liberalism American liberalism, a political trend in the USA Political progressivism, a political ideology that is for change, often associated with liberal movements Liberty, the condition of being free from control or restrictions Liberal Party, members of... Conservative bias is the mirror image of liberal bias, a belief that the media is biased in favor of conservative views. ... Media Matters for America is a non-profit organization founded by former conservative (now liberal activist) David Brock to refute and/or otherwise analyze conservative influence on the media. ...

It is also under fire for showing too much entertainment stories and as the founder Ted Turner said "the perverted of the day".

Lou Dobbs

In 2000, conservative business news reporter Lou Dobbs left CNN, reportedly due to heated clashes with then-president Rick Kaplan over programming priorities and questions about Kaplan's political objectivity. [5] Dobbs returned the following year at the behest of CNN founder Ted Turner. Lou Dobbs (born September 24, 1945) is the anchor and managing editor of CNNs hour-long weeknight program Lou Dobbs Tonight, an editorial columnist, and host of a syndicated radio show. ... Rick Kaplan, who served as President of CNN (1997-2000) and Senior Vice-President of ABC News (2003), was named President of MSNBC in February, 2004. ...

Mr. Dobbs in 2006 again became one of CNN's most controversial hosts. His program Lou Dobbs Tonight presents itself as a voice for true conservative values and opposes the neo-conservative movement. He has gained both controversy and acclaim from negative opinions of the Bush administration and Republican congress expressed in ongoing nightly segments called "War on The Middle Class", "The Selling of America" and "Broken Borders". Neoconservatism describes several distinct political ideologies which are considered new forms of conservatism. ...

Leniency towards George W. Bush administration

After 9/11

Amongst the criticisms levied against CNN, as well as the other major US news channels, is the charge that CNN took a lenient approach to the Bush administration, particularly after the terrorists attacks of September 11th 2001. At the 2002 Newsworld Asia conference held in Singapore, Rena Golden, the executive vice-president and general manager of CNN International, was quoted as saying: "Anyone who claims the US media didn’t censor itself is kidding you. It wasn’t a matter of government pressure but a reluctance to criticize anything in a war that was obviously supported by the vast majority of the people. And this isn’t just a CNN issue — every journalist who was in any way involved in 9/11 is partly responsible." [6] A sequential look at United Flight 175 crashing into the south tower of the World Trade Center The September 11, 2001 attacks (often referred to as 9/11—pronounced nine eleven or nine one one) consisted of a series of coordinated terrorist[1] suicide attacks upon the United States, predominantly...

Invasion of Iraq

Lead-up to war

Critics take particularly strong exception to the handling of the Bush administrations rhetoric leading up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. CNN’s own veteran reporter Christiane Amanpour characterized the behavior of the news media as "self-muzzling" and as "cheerleaders for the Bush war drive against Iraq". CNN coverage of the Iraq war has been criticized by international journalists for much the same reason. An editorial in the German publication Süddeutsche Zeitung compared CNN war coverage to "live coverage of the Super Bowl", and the Qatar based Al Jazeera has long criticized CNN for selectively portraying US soldiers as heroes. It should be noted that the bulk of the criticism is directed towards the version of CNN broadcasted within the United States; CNN International is considered more 'sober'. [7][8][9] Combatants Coalition Forces: United States United Kingdom South Korea Australia Poland Romania others. ... Christiane Amanpour Christiane Amanpour (born January 12, 1958) (in Persian: ‎) is chief international correspondent for the CNN. // Shortly after her birth in London, her mother Patricia and father Mohammed, an Iranian airline executive, moved the family to Tehran. ... The Süddeutsche Zeitung is a leading German quality newspaper. ... Al Jazeera logo Al Jazeera (الجزيرة), meaning The Island or The (Arabian) Peninsula (whence also Algiers) is an Arabic television channel based in Qatar. ...

General war coverage

CNN's Iraq war coverage has been repeatedly criticized as pro-US, and several online news sources have been highly critical of an alleged pro-war slant.[10][11][12]

Emphasis on human interest over atrocities

CNN had also been criticized for excessively pushing 'human interest' stories and avoiding depictions of the violent images of events during the Iraq war; the result of all this being an alleged 'propagandistic' presentation of news. [13] Some critics have claimed that this constitutes a systematic bias in favour of the war. A human interest story is a type of news story that is concerned with the activities of a few named people. ...

Indians' petition on pro-Pakistani bias

On January 11, 2002, Rajiv Malhotra, announced a petition to CNN on Sulekha, a networking hub for Indians worldwide. Malhotra, an Indian entrepreneur and founder in 1994 of the Infinity Foundation, solicited signatures on petitiononline.com. He concluded, "Good reporting is not about deciding what is right or about taking sides, but about representing the major perspectives of a situation. I do not demand that CNN agree with India. But CNN must stop ignoring, subverting, and trivializing the positions taken by one-sixth of humanity." [14] January 11 is the 11th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...

The site issued a press release on February 1, indicating that the petition had garnered over 55,000 signatures and that its initiators had met with CNN officials in Atlanta. The News India-Times reported on the January 30 meeting in its March 1 issue in the story "Concerns conveyed to CNN on coverage" by Prita Malhotra. [15] February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

Jon Stewart accuses Crossfire of "partisan hackery"

In October 2004, Comedy Central's The Daily Show host and comedian Jon Stewart created controversy when he berated hosts Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala on CNN's political debate show Crossfire. He accused both commentators of 'partisan hackery' and claimed that their style of discourse had been 'hurting America'. The Daily Show (currently The Daily Show with Jon Stewart) is a Peabody and Emmy-winning half-hour American satirical news television program produced by and run on the Comedy Central cable television network. ... Jon Stewart (born Jewathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962) is a nine-time Emmy-winning American comedian, satirist, actor, author, and producer. ... Tucker Carlson, from a December 6, 2004 broadcast of CNNs Crossfire. ... Paul Begala (born May 12, 1961) is a political consultant, a commentator, and a former advisor to President Bill Clinton. ...

Jon Stewart made a number of points, major among these include the theater and absurdity of cable news, dishonest 'debate' where eloquence and persuasion are more important than finding the truth, and the use of the media as part of politicians' strategy. Eloquence (from Latin eloquentia) is fluent, forcible, elegant or persuasive speaking in public. ...

In early 2005 CNN cancelled Crossfire; the legitimacy behind Jon Stewart's argument was cited by CNN president Jonathan Klein as one of the reasons behind the cancellation. [16][17]

Eason Jordan

Admits lobbying and minimizing atrocities

In April 2003, Eason Jordan wrote an article for the New York Times stating that he lobbied the Iraqi government for 12 years in order to maintain a CNN presence in Iraq. He also admitted to withholding what would be considered newsworthy information of the government's atrocities, citing fears that releasing news would potentially endanger the lives of Iraqis working for CNN in Baghdad, some of whom had already been subject to beatings and torture. [18] Eason Jordan was Chief News Executive for CNN, and had been with the news network from 1982 until his resignation in 2005. ...

Resignation after accusations by blogger

In February 2005, Eason Jordan resigned from CNN. The resignation came in response to controversy sparked after allegations arose on a blog that he had accused the U.S. Military of purposely killing journalists. While Jordan acknowledged his remarks were not sufficiently clear, he denies he ever meant to imply that the US government was intentionally targeting journalists. [19]

Large "X" over Cheney's face

On Monday November 21, 2005, CNN flashed a large "X" over Vice President, Dick Cheney's face during a speech that aired live on CNN. CNN later apologized and said the X appeared due to a technical glitch and no human error was involved. The network said the X was used by a computer to mark a space where one visual element is to segue into another, and is not supposed to be seen by the audience. Indeed, an internet blogger discovered that some text accompanied the "X" but was blocked out by CNN's regular on-screen text. The blogger soon deciphered the message "Transition begins after 5 frames of black," suggested CNN's explanation to be true.[20][21] Richard Bruce Dick Cheney (born January 30, 1941) is the 46th and current Vice President of the United States, serving under President George W. Bush. ...

Temporary ban from Iran for mistranslation

In January 2006, CNN was banned in Iran as an expression of condemnation when CNN mistranslated a live broadcast of President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. In the translation, CNN quoted Ahmedinejad as saying "the use of nuclear weapons is Iran's right." According to a release from the Iranian government, the president said "Iran has the right to nuclear energy." and went on to say "a nation that has civilization does not need nuclear weapons and our nation does not need them." The ban was lifted a day later after CNN issued an official apology for the mistranslation. [22] Order: Sixth President of Iran First Vice President: Parviz Dawoodi Term of office: August 3, 2005 – present Preceded by: Mohammad Khatami Succeeded by: Date of birth: October 28, 1956 Place of birth: Aradan, Iran Political party: Islamic Society of Engineers Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (محمود احمدی‌نژاد; born October 28, 1956), also written Ahmadinezhad, is...

Glenn Beck

In January 2006, Ken Jautz, president of CNN Headline News hired right-wing talk radio host Glenn Beck, giving him a primetime show which premiered May 8, 2006. Jautz stated that Beck was "cordial," and that his radio show was "conversational, not confrontational." [23] However, some left-leaning watchdogs like Media Matters for America and FAIR have claimed that Beck has a history of controversial statements made on his radio show [24][25][26][27][28]. January 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accuses European nations of trying to complete the Holocaust by creating a Jewish camp Israel in the Middle East. ... CNN Headline News is a spin-off network from the original Cable News Network (CNN) television news network in the United States and Canada. ... Glenn Beck (born February 10, 1964) is a conservative American talk-radio and television host. ... Screenshot from Media Matters for America (Jan 6, 2006) Media Matters for America, founded in 2004 by formerly conservative journalist and author David Brock, is an American organization that hosts a website featuring watchdog journalism. ... Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR), founded in 1986, is an American organization that works against and documents what it perceives as bias in the media, censorship, and erroneous reporting. ...

Airs Bush rehearsal live during immigration speech

On May, 15, 2006, CNN aired a rehearsal of President George W. Bush's immigration reform speech live. "The president is rehearsing and the network pool inadvertently went to the president as he is rehearsing," anchor Wolf Blitzer said. Report of Event . The Eastern Timber Wolf (Canis lupus lycaon) has been running rampant across the American grass-lands, herding cattle off cliffs and putting tacks on highways to cause accidents. ...

Hurricane Katrina comments

On the September 1, 2005 edition of The Situation Room, host Wolf Blitzer said the following about the numerous Hurricane Katrina victims, who were seen wading through the flooded streets of New Orleans: "... so many of these people, almost all of them that we see, are so poor and they are so black ..." [29] September 1 is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the CNN news program. ... The Eastern Timber Wolf (Canis lupus lycaon) has been running rampant across the American grass-lands, herding cattle off cliffs and putting tacks on highways to cause accidents. ... Lowest pressure 902 mbar (hPa; 26. ...

Microphone gaffe during Bush speech

On August 29, 2006, during a CNN broadcast of President George W. Bush's speech on the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall, CNN anchor Kyra Phillips' microphone was left on while she was in the bathroom. Portions of a personal conversation were broadcast live for over a minute and a half, during which Phillips offered advice on men, criticized her sister-in-law for being a "control freak," and praised her husband. The conversation audio was mixed with the President's audio feed and both were discernable. Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh criticized CNN for not cutting Phillips' microphone, and questioned whether or not technical personnel at CNN were aware of the incident [30]. CNN later apologized for the on-air gaffe. Phillips on CNN Kyra Phillips (born 8 August 1968) is a news anchor for CNN, where she has been reporting since October 1999. ... Rush Hudson Limbaugh III (born January 12, 1951) is an American radio talk show host. ...

CNN Anchor Curses and Walks off the Set

On August 4, 2005, CNN contributor Robert Novak walked off the set during a live broadcast of the CNN show Inside Politics, on which he appeared along with Democratic strategist and analyst James Carville and moderator Ed Henry.

During a discussion of Republican representative Katherine Harris's just-announced 2006 campaign for the U.S. Senate and her claim that newspapers tried to tarnish her image by manipulating photos of her, Novak claimed he had experienced the same thing leading to a skeptical response from Carville. Novak responded by saying "don't be too sure she's going to lose...all the establishment's against her and I've seen these Republican – anti-establishment candidates who do pretty well." Novak mentioned Ronald Reagan and Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) before seeing Carville preparing to talk. Novak cut into his comments and said "Just let me finish what I'm going to say, James. Please, I know you hate to hear me, but you have..." Carville cut in and said that Novak has "got to show these right-wingers that he's got backbone, you know. It's why The Wall Street Journal editorial page is watching you. Show 'em you're tough." A senate is a deliberative body, often the upper house or chamber of a legislature. ... Thomas Allen Tom Coburn, M.D. (born March 14, 1948) is a medical doctor and a Republican U.S. Senator from Oklahoma. ...

Novak responded "Well, I think that's bullshit. And I hate that. Just let it go." Novak then removed his microphone and walked off the set.

After the segment ended, Henry apologized to viewers for Novak's leaving the set "a little early," adding: "I had told him in advance that we were going to ask him about the CIA leak case. He was not here for me to be able to ask him about that. Hopefully, we'll be able to ask him about that in the future."

They were never able to ask Novak about the CIA leak case. This was the last time he would be seen on CNN as he was suspended indefinitely after the incident. In a statement, CNN called the outburst "inexcusable and unacceptable," and apologized to its viewers. Novak was the last person to have appeared on the network since its debut weekend back in 1980. 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

On December 16, 2005, CNN's main competitor, Fox News Channel announced that Novak had signed a deal to do undisclosed work for the network. Novak stated that he would have left CNN even if his August incident didn't happen. He announced his retirement from CNN a week later saying his tenure at CNN lasted longer than most marriages. He now contributes to Fox News. The Fox News Channel (FNC) is a United States-based cable and satellite news channel. ...

Alleged propaganda outlet for Insurgents

In October 2006, Press Secretary Tony Snow accused CNN of "propagandizing" the American public. Insurgents located in Iraq had filmed some of their attacks on American soldiers. CNN obtained the tapes from the insurgents and rebroadcast them in America weeks before national elections were to occur.^[1] Snow said during a press conference, "your network has shown pictures of snipers hitting Americans, which was used as a propaganda tool, so the fact is that -- it shows real sophistication on the part of these guys, because it creates the impression that Americans are sitting ducks, and that these guys are capable, when, in fact, while you have a capable enemy, they're dying in much greater numbers and suffering much greater damage."^[2] As a result of CNN's news reports, Representative Duncan Hunter asked The Pentagon to remove embedded CNN reporters, claiming that "C-N-N has now served as the publicist for an enemy propaganda film featuring the killing of an American soldier."^[3] Tony Snow Robert Anthony Tony Snow (born June 1, 1955) is the White House Press Secretary for the George W. Bush administration. ... Duncan Lee Hunter (born May 31, 1948), American politician, has been a Republican member of the House of Representatives since 1981 from the 52nd District in northern and eastern San Diego County (map). ... The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located at 48 N. Rotary Road, Arlington, Virginia 22211 (Map). ...

Opinion Research Corporation

On January 12th, 2007, Opinion Research Corporation announced a "formal polling partnership" with CNN. Since ORC's parent company, InfoUSA, is controlled by Vinod Gupta, a noted donor to, fundraiser for, and supporter of Bill and Hillary Clinton,[31] critics have questioned the reliability of CNN polls regarding Hillary Clinton's likely 2008 presidential run. Opinion Research Corporation, based in Princeton, New Jersey, is a demographic, health, and market research company. ... The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ... A holding company is a company that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors. ... Vinod Gupta Vinod Gupta is the chairman and CEO of infoUSA (previously known as American Business Information, Inc. ... Vinod Gupta Vinod Gupta is the chairman and CEO of infoUSA (previously known as American Business Information, Inc. ... A term used in David Cay Johnstons book Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich - and Cheat Everybody Else, to describe wealthy individuals (the Upper class) or corporations who use political contributions to influence US Government fiscal policy. ... Campaign finance in the United States is the financing of electoral campaigns at the federal, state and local levels. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ... Hillary Rodham Clinton (born Hillary Diane Rodham on October 26, 1947) is the Biggest loser/retard these united states have seen from New York. ... In statistics a valid measure is one which is measuring what it is supposed to measure. ... This is a collection of scientific, nation-wide polls that have been conducted relating to the U.S. presidential election, 2008. ... New York Senator and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton has expressed interest in the 2008 United States presidential race. ...

References