Thread: "Diamonds v. Pearls" Student Blasts CNN

Diamonds v. Pearls" Student Blasts CNN


(Updated With CNN Response)
16 Nov 2007 11:21 am

Maria Luisa, the UNLV student who asked Hillary Clinton whether she preferred "diamonds or pearls" at last night's debate wrote on her MySpace page this morning that CNN forced her to ask the frilly question instead of a pre-approved query about the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository.

"Every single question asked during the debate by the audience had to be approved by CNN," Luisa writes. "I was asked to submit questions including "lighthearted/fun" questions. I submitted more than five questions on issues important to me. I did a policy memo on Yucca Mountain a year ago and was the finalist for the Truman Scholarship. For sure, I thought I would get to ask the Yucca question that was APPROVED by CNN days in advance."

Now, Luisa is getting "swamped" with critical e-mails.

So what happened?

Writes Luisa:

"CNN ran out of time and used me to "close" the debate with the pearls/diamonds question. Seconds later this girl comes up to me and says, "you gave our school a bad reputation.' Well, I had to explain to her that every question from the audience was pre-planned and censored. That's what the media does. See, the media chose what they wanted, not what the people or audience really wanted. That's politics; that's reality. So, if you want to read about real issues important to America--and the whole world, I suggest you pick up a copy of the Economist or the New York Times or some other independent source. If you want me to explain to you how the media works, I am more than happy to do so. But do not judge me or my integrity based on that question."Rivals to Clinton believe that the debate audience had a pro-Clinton tilt. UNLV was responsible for distributing most of the tickets.

In a separate post, Luisa provides the question she wanted to ask:

Yucca Mountain, NV is the proposed site for the country's nuclear waste repository. Despite scientific evidence that it is a vulnerable site, the federal government continues to push for the plan to move forward. The evidence relied on is unsound and the risks involved in transporting high-level radioactive waste across the country are high. What will you [Sen. Clinton] do to ensure that the best site/s is/are chosen for the storage of spent nuclear reactor fuel?Sam Feist, the executive producer of the debate, said that the student was asked to choose another question because the candidates had already spent about ten minutes discussing Yucca Mountain.

"When her Yucca mountain question was asked, she was given the opportunity to ask another question, and my understanding is that the [diamond v. pearls] questions was her other question," Feist said. "She probably was disappointed, but we spent a lot of time with a bunch of different candidates on Yucca Mountain, and we were at the end of the debate."

Greg Sargent of TPM Election Central has a CNN spoxperson giving a slightly different story...

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http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/arc ... asts_1.php

..Well, I had to explain to her that every question from the audience was pre-planned and censored. That's what the media does. See, the media chose what they wanted, not what the people or audience really wanted. That's politics; that's reality.

It may be reality, but it is also stiffling our freedom to question our politicians in an open forum. If the MSM can't broadcast the truth, then it shouldn't be in business. I think the debates should be more of a free-for-all, a more spirited event than this censored, fake facade that serves as a Q and A session which is always malconstructed by the MSM.

We will get the chance
Hold your breath

Because the media is OWNED by special interests (without getting too specific), and I am getting angrier by the day because of this.

3 points.

1. If you control the dissemination of information, you control policy.
2. If you control the printing of money, you own the country.
3. He who who votes, has no power, he who counts the votes has all hte power.

1. Who controls the media?
2. What is the FED and 'who' runs it?
3. Diebold voting machines - enuff said.


*********************************************8

I applaud the student for coming forward with the truth.

I e-mailed Senator Chambliss about getting a law that prevents the MSM from ruling out anyone from national debates. Told him it prevented the American public from being more informed voter...that was 2 weeks ago..still no answer. He's responded to every other issue I have e-mailed him about..but not this one!

People, pay close attention, you can tell them you will ask a scripted question and then just ask what you will. The worst they could do is cut you off. So what. Ask the questions you want. Remember "FREEDOM OF SPEECH?"

Originally Posted by jp_48504

People, pay close attention, you can tell them you will ask a scripted question and then just ask what you will. The worst they could do is cut you off. So what. Ask the questions you want. Remember "FREEDOM OF SPEECH?"

Great idea, JP. After the media sees that people refuse to ask the scripted questions and the TV audience sees people being cut off left and right, they will get the idea that something is wrong.

It certainly was not a "debate"!!! It was a shameless, shameful, scripted, rehearsed production from the corrupt Clintonista machine! Bill Clinton and his attack team have been micro-managing every second of Shrillary's campaign and CNN has lost any trace of credibility they might have had before the debate.

There should be a law against having any Clinton in the WH again! He is so diminished and disgraced and she is obnoxious!

CNN plants questions to protect Hillary
Posted: Saturday, November 17, at 3:51 pm

Word on the street is that Hillary's staffers are extremely pleased with CNN's Wolf Blitzer for his softball questioning of Sen. Clinton during Thursday's Las Vegas debate. Blitzer "was outstanding, and did not gang up like Russert did in Philadelphia. He avoided personal attacks, remained professional and ran the best debate so far." Who were the questioners upon whom Blitzer called? According to CNN, they were "ordinary people, undecided voters.â€