Salon: The Ben Barnes blackout

[kskiska]

Even with new video of the Texas pol saying he's "ashamed" of helping President Bush get his National Guard slot, the story gets little play from the media.

Faced with fresh news in the ongoing debate about the presidential candidates' military service during the Vietnam War, the media blinked this weekend, doing its collective best to ignore an embarrassing new revelation by the prominent Texas politician who says he landed President Bush a coveted pilot spot in the Texas Air National Guard during the height of the Vietnam War, and is now "ashamed" of his actions.

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The Associated Press did pick up the story of Barnes' highly embarrassing comments over the weekend, and the Washington Post ran a 300-word version of the wire story, as did the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Kansas City Star, and the Contra Costa Times. The New York Times, the Dallas Morning News and the Houston Chronicle ran their own, equally brief staff-produced accounts. (The Times' story was buried deep inside, next to a big takeout on GOP-connected Swift Boat Vets leader John O'Neill.) The Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Contra Costa Times inserted a sentence or two about Barnes' comments into larger campaign trail dispatches. The Austin American-Statesman ran the longest story, at roughly 600 words. According to a search of the Nexis electronic database, those were the only major newspapers in the country that even mentioned the Barnes revelation.

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Given the press' past behavior, both in embracing the Swift boat allegations and in its lead-footed approach to the ongoing National Guard story, it's unlikely reporters will seize the initiative and further investigate the Barnes story. It's also worth noting that the Democrats haven't been aggressive in pushing the Barnes story to the media, either. (Imagine how GOP attack dogs would hype a revelation from a politician who pulled strings to get Kerry his medals.) On the off chance the media decides to pursue the Barnes story on its own, reporters might want to ask White House spokesman Scott McClellan about his effort to dismiss Barnes' Guard comment. "It is not surprising coming from a longtime partisan Democrat. The allegation was discredited by the commanding officer. This was fully covered and addressed five years ago. It is nothing new," said McClellan.

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The press may get one more shot at covering the National Guard angle. In a brief interview with the AP, Barnes suggested he might have more to say on the issue later in the week. If the press ignores Barnes a second time it will be obvious journalists just are not interested in covering the lingering presidential Vietnam debate fairly.

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http://salon.com/news/feature/2004/08/30/barnes_update/index.html