***To read the full blog, please check out the complete post on NewsBusters***
Finally, the evening newscasts of ABC and CBS broke their silence on the rape accusation against Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden. While the morning newscast for those outlets had already covered the topic, Thursday night was the first time NBC News had dared to give it airtime. The contrast was stark with how they covered the accusations of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, where their mission was to sink his nomination. This time, they were walking on eggshells as they gingerly came to Biden’s aid.
Their sudden discovery of Reade’s allegations came over a month after she first went public, and after a Media Research Center study exposed their journalistic malpractice of not covering the story nor pressing Biden while they were interviewing him. Appearing to make an attempt at making up for lost time, ABC’s World News Tonight dedicated over four minutes to the story (4:02). NBC Nightly News came in second place with almost three minutes (2:54). CBS Evening News had two minutes, 25 seconds.
And while they ignored the inconstancies in the tall tale told by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, this time they tried to nitpick. ABC and NBC also tried to discredit the accusations by noting that the Trump campaign had “seized” on them.
“Reade tells us, that at the time, she complained to the Senate Personnel Office that Biden had ‘Made her feel uncomfortable,’ but she says she did not mention an assault and she has no record of the complaint. She says she shared similar concerns with three other staffers in Biden's office. All three of those staffers tell ABC News that's not true,” declared ABC congressional correspondent Mary Bruce on World News Tonight.
Bruce also suggested that Reade’s “claims have evolved,” citing how she was a part of a group of women who came forward last year to expose Biden’s inappropriate touching. “At that time, Reade came forward to say Biden touched her on the shoulder and neck in a way that was, quote, ‘Uncomfortable,’ but she did not mention any kind of an assault. Nothing like the incident she describes today,” Bruce said.
ABC even tried to call into question Reade’s political affiliation as a Democrat, because the Trump campaign was listening to her.
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