BOSTON, Mass. – March 12 – Tomorrow, Media Matters for America and Reps. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) and Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) will hold a press conference to discuss “If It’s Sunday, It’s Still Conservative,” a report documenting the continued dominance of Republican and conservative voices on the Sunday network talk shows. The progressive media watchdog organization and the members of Congress are expected to call on the networks to provide more balance on their influential Sunday shows.

DETAILS:

Who:               Paul Waldman, Senior Fellow, Media Matters for America

Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY-22)

Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA-06)

Congressman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-09)

What:              Press conference to address the new Media Matters report “If It’s Sunday, It’s Still Conservative: How the Right Continues to Dominate the Sunday Talk Shows.”

            When:             Tuesday, March 13, 2007 @ 11 a.m.

Where:           Cannon Terrace

                                    Cannon House Office Building

KEY FINDINGS:

• Despite previous network claims that a conservative advantage existed on the Sunday shows simply because Republicans controlled Congress and the White House, only one show, ABC’s This Week, has balanced both sides overall since the congressional majority switched hands in the 2006 midterm elections.
  
• Since the 2006 midterm elections, NBC’s Meet the Press and CBS’ Face the Nation have provided less balance between Republican and Democratic officials than Fox Broadcasting Co.’s Fox New Sunday despite the fact that Fox News Sunday remains the most unbalanced broadcast overall.
  
• During the 109th Congress (2005 and 2006), Republicans and conservatives held the advantage on every show, in every category measured. All four shows interviewed more Republicans and conservatives than Democrats and progressives overall, interviewed more Republican elected and administration officials than Democratic officials, hosted more conservative journalists than progressive journalists, held more panels that tilted right than tilted left, and gave more solo interviews to Republicans and conservatives.

BACKGROUND:

The report analyzed ABC’s This Week, CBS’ Face the Nation, NBC’s Meet the Press, and Fox Broadcasting Co.’s Fox News Sunday, classifying each of the more than 2,000 guests in 2005 and 2006, as well as guests since the 2006 midterm elections, by party or ideology. It follows on last year’s report, “If It’s Sunday, It’s Conservative,” which analyzed more than 7,000 guests on the Sunday shows during the Clinton and Bush presidencies and found a Republican-conservative tilt during both administrations. The new findings demonstrate that, despite some improvement, the Sunday shows as a whole still don’t offer a full range of political views to the public.

Launched in 2004, Media Matters for America is a not-for-profit, progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.

Media Matters for America is a not-for-profit, progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media. Media Matters for America is the first organization to systematically monitor the media for conservative misinformation every day, in real time. For more information, visit www.mediamatters.org.

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