Former CBS anchorman Dan Rather says there is a huge double-standard in the media when it comes to coverage the Barack Obama campaign receives, which is clearly made evident in the lack of scrutiny given to comments Obama’s vice presidential running mate Sen. Joe Biden made earlier this week.
On Sunday, Biden said that electing Obama president will generate “an international crisis” within the first six months of his new administration because America’s enemies will want to test Obama.
“Watch — we’re gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy,” Biden assured. “I don’t know what the decision is going to be, but I promise you it will occur. As a student of history, and having served with seven presidents, I guarantee you it is going to happen.”
Rather, speaking today on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” cable program, told host Joe Scarborough that if Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin had said such a thing about her running mate John McCain, it would be “the top story in every major American paper and on every network.”
Rather says the Obama campaign “can’t be happy” about Biden’s comments and is surprised there haven’t been more political ramifications to Biden’s gaffe.
“Certainly if Sarah Palin had said this, it would be above the fold in most newspapers today," Rather said. "But let me point out that what happens on the Internet may be as important, or more important, than what’s happening in newspapers,” he added, referring to the spotty mainstream media coverage.
“I’ll be surprised if this doesn’t have a run on the Internet, because if Sarah Palin had said this, the newspapers would have jumped all over it, and so would the major television outlets.”
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