MSNBC - Another Scandal - Deceptive Tape Edit?

Good Grief! When will they ever learn? MSNBC sure seems to be following in the footsteps of its Big Brother, NBC. It appears the Romney tape they played for Morning Joe was mis-labeled, perhaps in a deliberately deceptive manner. Romney supporters who were at the campaign event disputed the appearently edited version of the tape alerting the BlazeTV staff. Judge for yourself over at the Blaze, where they provide the original and then the C-Span version.  MSNBC Scandals and Follies

NBC Broadcast Deceptive Tape Edit Draws More Attacks

As you recall, NBC engaged in a selective editing job on the 911 tape in the Trayon Martin deadly shooting - a quick refresher here: Can you trust NBC?

Today Reuters summed up the latest news on the controversy in this article: NBC probe centers on staffer in shooting story error  And they go on to make the point that "Public pressure has been building on the network to fully explain the incident - which critics charge has inflamed racial tensions in an already volatile situation." The edited tape version now has been quoted and requoted in many circles without correction. Read more after the jump.

WAPO Nails it, NBC Tape Edit Distortion Apology Absolution

Goodness, NBC investigation completed, and, guess what, half an apology ensues. See it here:  NBC Apologizes (kind of) for deliberate tape distortion

Hey, newspeople, the first lesson you should have learned about reporting are the 5 W's: Who, What, Where, When, and WHY! So how does your investigation reporting fulfill the basic requirements of journalism?

Who? Fail! Not even a job title.
What? "production process error" Nope, too vague.
Where? Not even a continent named.
When? Sometime in the production process, between getting the tape and airing it.
Why? No explanation at all.

When will they ever learn?

Someone, a person, or human being, edited the tape, or was directed to edit the tape by someone, a human being, and specifically edited out portions of the sound track, in a studio located possibly located in an NBC production office, before the program lineup review by the production staff, most likely either to reinforce an editorial position of the production staff, or simply to titillate viewers and drive ratings. Of course, I am just guessing, based on just a bit of knowledge and experience in the broadcast industry, working for a reputable group.

A sad day indeed, to consider the present state of this once great broadcast media. I wonder what David Sarnoff would say today.
   He did formulate Sarnoff's Law -  which states that the value of a broadcast network is proportional to the number of viewers. And he did say that "Competition brings out the best in products and the worst in people". But he also demanded truth and accuracy in the news, tolerated no overt or covert agenda in broadcast journalism on his network, then delivered the best news broadcast of the day. 

I guess there is a reason many of us fondly recall the golden years of Television.

Can you trust NBC? Deliberate Deceptive Distortions

NBC looks to stand for Never Believe Communications these days as more examples of deliberate distortion of the news seem to pop up latey. The latest one is quite serious, the editing of the recording of a 911 call in the Trayon Martin incident. NBC aired what they stated was a copy of the 911 tape that implied George Zimmerman voluntered a racist description during the call.

Here is what NBC aired and represented as the 911 recording:  “This guy looks like he’s up to no good.  He looks black.”

Here is what the recorded 911 call actually said:

Zimmerman: This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.

Dispatcher: OK, and this guy — is he black, white or Hispanic?

Zimmerman: He looks black.

Quite a difference. Why would they do this? Sensationalism? This was broadcast on the Today Show, not on MSNBC, by purported journalists.

Shame on NBC. The results of this investigation should prove of interest.    

NBC Deception: Selective editing deliberate, investigation started

Some more recent NBC Controversy:

NBC Mislabels photo: Romney "Shoe Shine" actually a security check.

NBC Fail: CNBC Names wrong company advising Dealerships be closed in Bailout.

NBC Misleads: HuffPo reveals NBC Deception

And the most famous of all:
NBC Dateline Distortion: Deception in report on GM Trucks, NBC Aplogizes.