MSNBC retracts false Palin story; others duped

[LiberalNation]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/palin_hoa..._0pFU5GCoDW7oF

NEW YORK – MSNBC was the victim of a hoax when it reported that an adviser to John McCain had identified himself as the source of an embarrassing story about former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, the network said Wednesday.

David Shuster, an anchor for the cable news network, said on air Monday that Martin Eisenstadt, a McCain policy adviser, had come forth and identified himself as the source of a Fox News Channel story saying Palin had mistakenly believed Africa was a country instead of a continent.

Eisenstadt identifies himself on a blog as a senior fellow at the Harding Institute for Freedom and Democracy. Yet neither he nor the institute exist; each is part of a hoax dreamed up by a filmmaker named Eitan Gorlin and his partner, Dan Mirvish, the New York Times reported Wednesday.

The Eisenstadt claim had mistakenly been delivered to Shuster by a producer and was used in a political discussion Monday afternoon, MSNBC said.

"The story was not properly vetted and should not have made air," said Jeremy Gaines, network spokesman. "We recognized the error almost immediately and ran a correction on air within minutes."

Gaines told the Times that someone in the network's newsroom had presumed the information solid because it was passed along in an e-mail from a colleague.

The hoax was limited to the identity of the source in the story about Palin — not the Fox News story itself. While Palin has denied that she mistook Africa for a country, the veracity of that report was not put in question by the revelation that Eisenstadt is a phony.

Eisenstadt's "work" had been quoted and debunked before. The Huffington Post said it had cited Eisenstadt in July on a story regarding the Hilton family and McCain.

Among the other victims were political blogs for the Los Angeles Times and The New Republic, each of which referenced false material from Eisenstadt's blog.

And in July, Jonathan Stein of Mother Jones magazine blogged an item about Eisenstadt speaking on Iraqi television about a casino in Baghdad's "Green Zone."

Stein later realized he'd been had.

"Kudos to the inventor of this whole thing," Stein wrote. "My only consolation is that if I had as much time on my hands as he clearly does, I probably would have figured this out and saved myself a fair amount of embarrassment."

[suedanim]

I mean...fine, great... but its whatever, because the other Palin stories weren't false (McCain didn't defend her or deny them and neither has all of the senior staff. Only one staffer came to her defense and she was the one PALIN blamed for her Couric failure) and MOST OF ALL neither were the Katie Couric interviews, her horrendous performance during the debate with Joe Biden or her deliberate hate inciting speeches. She's a train wreck... on her own steam and doesn't need anyone making up stories to make her look worse. She does that just fine every time she opens her mouth.

[toolman846]

"I mean...fine, great... but its whatever,............"

No, what you mean is fine fucking OK, as long as it's THEM on the receiving end, and not your little darling, ala the "free public hanging" story. Go choke on your bigotry.

[clownboy]

What's the anger about toolman? The MSM got momentarily duped by a Palin smear, it's not like that didn't happen on the other side of the fence (the Michelle tape among others). What Sue is saying makes sense, the PalinPals have been trying to use this to bury her numerous other legitimately reported fuckups as made up as well. Are you falling for this tactic?

[suedanim]

Originally Posted by clownboy

What's the anger about toolman? The MSM got momentarily duped by a Palin smear, it's not like that didn't happen on the other side of the fence (the Michelle tape among others). What Sue is saying makes sense, the PalinPals have been trying to use this to bury her numerous other legitimately reported fuckups as made up as well. Are you falling for this tactic?

Exactly. I'm just fed up with the endless accusations...guilt by association.. trips against the Obama's...while the Republican's seemingly last, best, great, white hope... Sarah Palin... who quite ably defeated herself from beginning to end... gets cut breaks.

The MSM.... gave the whole Wright smears.... major press... all for free.. Played and replayed every smearing, sneering ad... from the celebrity crap using Paris Hilton to the smears using Ayers and Palin got right in the middle of it, even initiating it before McCain approved it.

The way I see it... the right has ZERO complaints about the way the MSM treated Obama.

So.. ok... someone acted a fool. At LEAST MSNBC admitted it. But, this one lie doesn't negate the Couric interview or her performance during the debate.

[potter]

You will all please note the details...the story was NOT false...the source of the story was false .

Same tactic used on the "Bush skipped out on his Guards commitment" where the paper was forged, but the content of the paper was true.

[suedanim]

Originally Posted by potter

You will all please note the details...the story was NOT false...the source of the story was false .

Same tactic used on the "Bush skipped out on his Guards commitment" where the paper was forged, but the content of the paper was true.

You're right! Which IS the bigger story init?


From the article:

The hoax was limited to the identity of the source in the story about Palin — not the Fox News story itself. While Palin has denied that she mistook Africa for a country, the veracity of that report was not put in question by the revelation that Eisenstadt is a phony.

Important too... MSNBC didn't break the story... FOXnews did... Then the phony took credit for it with MSNBC.

Palin has denied everything, in fact, claiming she only requested a diet Dr. Pepper the whole time she was running for VP.

Anyway... I just find it really odd that republicans would look to her as a go to person for the future of the party. If so...the GOP is dead.

[Underhill]

Originally Posted by toolman846

"I mean...fine, great... but its whatever,............"

No, what you mean is fine fucking OK, as long as it's THEM on the receiving end, and not your little darling, ala the "free public hanging" story. Go choke on your bigotry.

It's not ok. But it doesn't mean Palin is exactly brilliant.

[ninjalooter1701]

Originally Posted by potter

You will all please note the details...the story was NOT false...the source of the story was false .

Same tactic used on the "Bush skipped out on his Guards commitment" where the paper was forged, but the content of the paper was true.

Which is the same tactic of "We have recently learned that Saddam Hussein has tried to acquire quantities of enriched uranium."

[R Lance]

FIRST BOOK OF DEMOCRAT
Date: Friday, November 14, 2008 7:32:22 AM [View Source]






OBAMA IS MY SHEPHERD,
I SHALL NOT WANT.

HE LEADETH ME BESIDE STILL FACTORIES.

HE RESTORETH MY FAITH IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.

HE GUIDETH ME IN THE PATH OF UNEMPLOYMENT.

YEA, THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE VALLEY OF THE BREAD LINE,
I SHALL NOT GO HUNGRY.

OBAMA HAS ANOINTED MY INCOME WITH TAXES,

MY EXPENSES RUNNETH OVER MY INCOME,

SURELY, POVERTY AND HARD LIVING WILL FOLLOW ME ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE.

THE DEMOCRATS AND I WILL LIVE FOREVER
IN A RENTED HOME..

BUT I AM GLAD I AM AN AMERICAN,
I AM GLAD THAT I AM FREE.

BUT I WISH I WAS A DOG AND OBAMA WAS A TREE.

[Suraklin]

On the left of your keyboard there is a key that most often has 'Caps Lock' or something similar on it - it has a purpose...

OR IF I SAY IT IN CAPS DOES IT MAKE LIES TRUE?

[Neko]

Originally Posted by Suraklin

On the left of your keyboard there is a key that most often has 'Caps Lock' or something similar on it - it has a purpose...

... marking out the resident nutjobs on any website.

[donquixote99]

I assume "necessity" may also be blamed for the posting of what is, content aside, an unbelievably awful poetic parody?

[donquixote99]

Originally Posted by potter

You will all please note the details...the story was NOT false...the source of the story was false .

Same tactic used on the "Bush skipped out on his Guards commitment" where the paper was forged, but the content of the paper was true.

But...but...there is other information that suggests Bush may have taken French Leave of the guard. You got any other source for the 'Palin doesn't know the meaning of the word 'Africa'' thing?

[ninjalooter1701]

Originally Posted by Suraklin

On the left of your keyboard there is a key that most often has 'Caps Lock' or something similar on it - it has a purpose...

OR IF I SAY IT IN CAPS DOES IT MAKE LIES TRUE?

Ninja, be nice to our conservative posters.

[toolman846]

"What's the anger about toolman? The MSM got momentarily duped by a Palin smear, it's not like that didn't happen on the other side of the fence (the Michelle tape among others). What Sue is saying makes sense, the PalinPals have been trying to use this to bury her numerous other legitimately reported fuckups as made up as well. Are you falling for this tactic? "

"Reported fuckups"? You mean, like having such known-and-still-not-repentent terrorist "friends", to the point he would not even be able top get a simple secrity clearance, let alone become privy to the innermost secrets this country holds? You mean, like sitting there like a stoten bottle, sucking it up, for twenty years, listening to Mr. "God damn America!" and apparently having no problem with that worst kind of divisive, racist rhetoric? That is, until it became politically inconvenient? Seems fine to some when the shoe's on the other foot, but, holy shit! - don't be without your earplugs when WE have to wear it!

The election's OVER! You can all stop the drumbeat any time now. Give it a fucking rest.

[ninjalooter1701]

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/800/

"If Barack Obama would apply for a job with the FBI or with the Secret Service, he would be disqualified because of his past associations with William Ayers."

Chain e-mail on Friday, October 10th, 2008 in our inbox

Ah yes. The posting of false e-mails is contagious.

The truth fades into the background
False

A chain e-mail has been burning up the Internet with the allegation that Sen. Barack Obama is not eligible for FBI or Secret Service jobs because of his acquaintance with former antiwar radical William Ayers.

The implication is that anyone who wouldn't qualify for a federal law enforcement job has no business as commander in chief of the U.S. armed forces.

One version of the e-mail we received on Oct. 10, 2008, had the subject heading, "FW: unbelievable food for thought."

"Just passing along info that came to me," it began. "This is something to think about no matter what other concerns may be on your plate. If Barack Obama would apply for a job with the FBI or with the Secret Service, he would be disqualified because of his past associations with William Ayers, a known (and unrepentant) terrorist. If elected President, he would not qualify to be his own body guard!"

It's worth noting that the president, no matter who he or she may be, automatically gets access to any classified information, and in fact has the authority to decide who else in the government gets access to it. Just by virtue of having been elected to the U.S. Senate, Obama already has access to a great deal of secret intelligence information.

Still, that says little about how Obama would fare in a background check, since none is required for either job.

An FBI spokesman said the bureau would not comment on whether any individual would pass a background check, and the Secret Service did not return numerous calls on the matter. So we asked outside experts whether Ayers would pose a problem for Obama.

Ayers was a founder in 1969 of the violent antiwar group the Weathermen, which took responsibility for at least 12 bombings between 1970 and 1974. A pipe bomb attributed to the group killed a police officer and severely injured another in 1970, and three of the group's own members were killed in a 1970 explosion in a Greenwich Village townhouse in which they were making bombs. Ayers was investigated in connection with the group's activities, but the charges were dropped in 1974 due to prosecutorial misconduct. He emerged from hiding, earned a doctorate in education from Columbia University, and is now a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Like Obama, he lives on the South Side of Chicago.

Obama and Ayers are both active in politics and civic life in the city. They both volunteered at two different charities, the Woods Foundation and the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, and Ayers hosted a small gathering for Obama and then-state Sen. Alice Palmer in 1995 as Obama planned to run for the seat Palmer was vacating.

Were Obama to apply to the FBI, he would have to fill out Standard Form 86, a background-investigation form used by the entire U.S. intelligence community. The more detailed iterations of the Internet rumor allege Obama would have to disclose his past connections to Ayers on the form, particularly in a section titled "Association Record." It asks seven questions along the lines of these two:

"Have you EVER been an officer or a member of, or made a contribution to, an organization dedicated to the use of violence or force to overthrow the U.S. Government...?"

The Secret Service did not return our calls for comment about the agency's application procedures, but its Web site indicates that applicants must fill out a modified version of the form called the SF-86A, which asks: "Are you now or have you ever been a member of any foreign or domestic organization, association, movement, group, or combination of persons which is totalitarian, fascist, communist, or subversive; or which has adopted or shows a policy advocating or approving the commission of force or violence to deny other persons their rights under the Constitution of the United States, or which seems [sic] to alter the form of government of the United States by unconstitutional means?"

Note that the agencies ask whether the applicant himself has engaged in this behavior – not whether the applicant knows anyone who has. Ayers' militant activity occurred in the '60s and '70s, when Obama was a child. Even Obama's harshest critics do not allege he had anything to do with them.

So there is no reason to believe Obama would have to disclose his relationship to Ayers, experts said.

"There is nowhere on the form that Obama's relationship to Ayers as it exists or existed would even come up," said Mark Zaid, a Washington attorney who specializes in security-clearance work. "It would never come up unless somebody mentioned it during a background investigation."

Moreover, even if it did come up, there's no reason to believe it would impede Obama's hiring, Zaid said. "Given what has been said publicly about their relationship, I can't fathom that it would ever get more than a moment's attention," he said.

A second lawyer specializing in security clearances, Elizabeth Newman of the Washington, D.C., firm Kalijarvi, Chuzi & Newman, concurred that the Ayers connection would pose no problem for Obama, even if it did come to the attention of the investigators.

"They would care if there was a recent relationship with someone who is currently on trial or currently considered to be advocating violent overthrow of the government," she said. "But not something that was 20 or 30 years ago."

A third security-clearance lawyer, Mark Riley of Odenton, Md., who is also a retired Army intelligence officer, was slightly less dismissive of the Ayers issue, saying it was "something they would investigate."

But Riley leaned toward the conclusion that the Ayers connection would not cost Obama a security clearance. "The issue is what is Obama's relationship with him in his adult life," Riley said. "If he didn't have one, other than they sat on a board and maybe had the same political causes, that's not enough to deny a fellow a clearance."

So all three of the attorneys we contacted agreed unequivocally that Obama's relationship with Ayers would not be an automatic disqualifier, as the claim suggests.

In fact, Zaid said someone with Obama's record – a law degree from Harvard, teaching experience at the University of Chicago Law School – would be an excellent candidate.

"The agencies would be fighting over him," Zaid said. "As an outright claim, this statement is false."

We agree. It's False.

[potter]

Originally Posted by donquixote99

But...but...there is other information that suggests Bush may have taken French Leave of the guard. You got any other source for the 'Palin doesn't know the meaning of the word 'Africa'' thing?

I have no source saying it wasn't true...same with the "Bush desertion of his duties"

I had no problem with Palin until she started her ficticious hatemongering. That I cannot tolerate.

[LiberalNation]

I had no problem with Palin until she started her ficticious hatemongering. That I cannot tolerate.

and so no proof for the claims against her are needed. They must be true cuz I can't stand that woman.