ACORN and the MSM Must Go — and They Can Take Obama with Them

posted at 11:30 am on September 26, 2009 by Howard Portnoy
[ Media ]   

Thanks to the efforts of fledgling journalists James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles, the name ACORN has finally made headlines among major players in the mainstream media. “House Prohibits Federal Money to ACORN,” the New York Times screams out on September 18. (The screaming does not occur until page A15, but fact the that the story is covered at all is something for the NYT .) The Washington Post confesses in a column by its ombudsman, Andrew Alexander, dated September 20 that it was tardy in reporting the ACORN sting operation. (Alexander doesn’t squander the opportunity to take a pot shot at Glenn Beck who was instrumental in exposing the ACORN sting, referring to Beck as “theatrically unhinged.”) ABC News is not quite so gracious, reducing the ACORN story to so much “noise,” adding “we’re not in the business of noise.”

Why does the mainstream media have such a big problem reporting the growing scandals surrounding ACORN? The reason resides in:

1. The findings of a poll conducted by Sacred Heart University revealing that 89.3% of Americans believe “the national media played a very or somewhat strong role in helping to elect President Obama” and
2. The fact that Obama, despite his protestations to the contrary, has a long history with ACORN, which has long been a dirty operation.

When the Wall Street Journal ran an editorial on Obama’s ties to ACORN on October 18, 2008, the writers noted in the second paragraph that ACORN — a “militant advocacy group” — had been on their radar for years. Putting aside completely the recent sting operation, ACORN has been investigated in two states for voter fraud. The organization also played a major role in the subprime loan meltdown by shaking down bank executives, forcing them to lower credit standards.

None of this merited so much as a nod from the mainstream media during the election, this despite Barack Obama’s having worked side-by-side with ACORN in Project Vote in 1992 and having represented the organization in 1995 in a case against Illinois to increase access to the polls. During the campaign, the Obama team paid an ACORN affiliate $832,000 reportedly for “staging, sound, lighting.” It was later revealed that the funds were used to get out the vote.

Obama promised to bring “hope and change” to the country. Now that he has been elected president, it is indeed time for change, and we should all hope that it is forthcoming. ACORN must be exposed fully as the corrupt enterprise that it is. Obama’s connections with ACORN need to be fully explored, with congressional investigations into how much he knew about the group’s dirty dealings and when he knew it. Finally, the mainstream media has forsaken its obligation. It needs to be allowed to fail where it is failing. Courage, Dan Rather.

Cross-posted at Zombie Contentions

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