In yet another example of the shameless double standard at the Los Angels Times, today's edition (Sunday October 10, 2004) gives recognition to a dumb internet theory that President Bush was equipped with a listening device during the first debate last week. The Associated Press piece, entitled "No One Besides Kerry Was Bugging Bush in the First Debate, Aides Say," is published on page A39.

        What is remarkable is that the Los Angeles Times chose to publish this bogus story, yet it totally ignored a legitimate question about John Kerry and his adherence to the debate rules. A video replay of the first debate clearly shows Senator Kerry removing a white, square object from his coat pocket as he approached the podium at the start of the event. (Kudos again to LittleGreenFootballs for great video!) This is in clear violation of the debate agreement (available here), which says,

"No props, notes, charts, diagrams, or other writings or other tangible things may be brought into the debate by either candidate.... Each candidate must submit to the staff of the Commission prior to the debate all such paper and any pens or pencils with which a candidate may wish to take notes during the debate, and the staff or commission will place such paper, pens and pencils on the podium..."

        Much of the mass media also chose to ignore this issue. A Kerry operative, in a Monday October 4, 2004, article, told the New York Post that the object was "a pen." Hmmm. Watch the video. The object being removed by Kerry looks nothing like a pen. Either way, Kerry most definitely violated the debate rules, and the Los Angeles Times ignored this.

 

TheMediaReport.com says ... The Kerry campaign appears in full swing at the Los Angeles Times.