Thread: Hispanic congressmen demand corporate action against CNN hos

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Hispanic congressmen demand corporate action against CNN host

Elana Schor in Washington guardian.co.uk, Monday April 28 2008

The anti-immigration views of CNN host Lou Dobbs have made him a darling in the ratings but a nemesis among US Latinos, whose frustration has risen to the Washington corridors of power.

After their requests for a meeting with the chief executive of CNN's parent company were rebuffed, Latino members of Congress condemned the TV network for failing to recognise the "potentially dangerous" consequences of Dobbs's "divisive commentary".

Dobbs has become a sensation thanks to his populist outbursts against undocumented immigrants, whom he calls "aliens" and accuses of "invading" America to steal jobs.

The TV host also has targeted the Democratic presidential candidates, naming one segment "Hillary's hypocrisy" and describing Barack Obama's endorsement by Latino governor and former Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson as "pandering to ethnocentric special interests".

Joe Baca, the chairman of the congressional Hispanic caucus, told the Guardian that CNN's parent company should be held accountable for the content of programmes the network airs.

"Words matter and words have power. One-sided rhetoric can lead other programs to cite opinions as fact and adopt polarising word choices as the standard," Baca, whose caucus is influential within the Democratic party, said.

Baca and Latino senator Robert Menendez, a close ally of Hillary Clinton, said they were "deeply offended" by the lack of response from Time Warner, which owns CNN, to their criticism of Dobbs.

"It is additionally offensive that you [failed to respond] on a topic as important and sensitive as your company's treatment and portrayal of Latinos in this country," the two members of Congress wrote to Time Warner chief executive Jeff Bewkes last week.

Despite its political clout, the Hispanic caucus is unlikely to succeed in reining in the popular Dobbs. The president of CNN offered Baca and Menendez a meeting but noted that Time Warner "never interferes with the editorial decision-making of its news operations".

Earlier this month, Dobbs's televised criticism of Pope Benedict XVI for urging the US to adopt a compassionate immigration policy - which the host dubbed "bad manners" - sparked the ire of Catholic groups on both the left and right but brought no ramifications.

La Raza, a grassroots Latino group, also launched a campaign earlier this year called We Can Stop the Hate, attempting to curb anti-immigration TV hosts' misinformation and aggression.

However, the Hispanic caucus has a record of successfully pressing for greater deference to their concerns in the media. Filmmaker Ken Burns agreed to add recognition of Latino soldiers to his World War II documentary, The War, after meeting with Hispanic members of Congress last year.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/ap ... television

Absolutely DISGUSTING behavior for the people's representative. They just can't stand that "free speech" thing. They are playing "third world politics." Public officials have NO business interfering. I wonder if they realize how much their bias and animosity for the rule of law shows and how they appear to the American people. They are nothing but a bunch of worthless rabble rousers!

Originally Posted by gofer

Absolutely DISGUSTING behavior for the people's representative. They just can't stand that "free speech" thing. They are playing "third world politics." Public officials have NO business interfering. I wonder if they realize how much their bias and animosity for the rule of law shows and how they appear to the American people. They are nothing but a bunch of worthless rabble rousers!

You can tell they don't watch him or they would know he is FOR immigration and against ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION. They always conveniently leave that adjective in front of the word, alien or immigrant. This guy is having illegal's call him and send him emails but he hasn't watched the Lou Dobbs Show or youtubes.... idiot
They need emails until they "get it."

Baca and Latino senator Robert Menendez, a close ally of Hillary Clinton, said they were "deeply offended" by the lack of response from Time Warner, which owns CNN, to their criticism of Dobbs.

I am deeply offended by the presence of a Hispanic Caucus within congress that discriminates and works for the self-interests of an ethnic group at the expense of all Americans.

"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism - ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or any controlling private power."
Franklin D. Roosevelt

Contact Joe Email:
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Hispanic congressmembers attack CNN over Lou DobbsJohn Byrne
Published: Monday April 28, 2008



China isn't the only one mad at CNN.

Leaders of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, a coalition of 21 Latino congressmembers, dispatched a letter Friday to Time Warner CEO Jeffrey Bewkes complaining that the network's news coverage is slanted against immigration and has adopted the rhetoric of outspoken CNN host Lou Dobbs.

CHC Chairman Joe Baca (D-CA) and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) expressed outrage that their appeals to meet privately with CNN have gone ignored, and that their letter to Time Warner's CEO have instead ended up on the desk of CNN's president.

“We are deeply offended that you did not take the time or effort to respond to a request from twenty Members of the United States House of Representatives and a United States Senator, but instead simply passed the letter along to Mr. Walton,â€

Originally Posted by MyAmerica

Baca and Latino senator Robert Menendez, a close ally of Hillary Clinton, said they were "deeply offended" by the lack of response from Time Warner, which owns CNN, to their criticism of Dobbs.

I am deeply offended by the presence of a Hispanic Caucus within congress that discriminates and works for the self-interests of an ethnic group at the expense of all Americans.

"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism - ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or any controlling private power."
Franklin D. Roosevelt

Ditto

A treat for you folks in IL and/or Chicago...

His guest will be Luis Gutierrez UR Rep (IL-4th) - the unapologetic apologist for illegal aliens in the US. I can hardly wait... (yawn).

Joe Baca, the chairman of the congressional Hispanic caucus, told the Guardian that CNN's parent company should be held accountable for the content of programmes the network airs.

Further confirmation that Baca is a radical who can't win the debate on its merits, so he wants to shut down the debate and free speech. Memo to Baca: no matter how much you whine, the majority of Americans reject amnesty and instead want our existing laws enforced.