Filed under: Journalism, ABC, ABC News, Charles Gibson
Charles Gibson came up the big loser in the ABC News Facebook debate last night when he made one of the cardinal sins of journalism: Not knowing what he was talking about when asking a question. Late in the Democratic debate, the anchor tried to query the candidates about tax cuts, and, in a moment worthy of George Bush (the elder) not knowing the cost of a gallon of milk, suggested that a married couple who teach at New Hampshire’s Saint Anselm College would make approximately $200,000 per year. No candidates even had to correct him before the audience started laughing, with an embarrassed Gibson realizing he was projecting his NYC sensibilities on a much different landscape.
Big Head DC has learned that a married couple teaching at the college is much more likely to earn less than $100,000 per year.
Later in the debate, when ribbed about the incident by John Edwards, Gibson had this to say about bringing up college professors: ”I shouldn’t have done that, apparently”
The full transcript of the incident follows: Read more…
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In 
Howie Kurtz, the media writer for the Washington Post, today 
We’ve long been telling you that ABC News 
A press release sent this evening by Hustler publisher Larry Flynt confirms that a phone number belonging to ABC newsman Sam Donaldson appeared in the records of the alleged “DC Madam” Deborah Jeane Palfrey, as Big Head DC 
Right, Sam Donaldson IS in the phone records of Deborah Jeane Palfrey’s defunct Pamela Martin & Associates, but it isn’t significant. Have you ever dialed the wrong number before? Sam’s relatives did, since one of Palfrey’s numbers was one-digit off from Donaldson’s, so she kept getting calls from them, and over-and-over again.
Look, I understand this has all been unpleasant for you, but why do you and Mr. Cook insist on fixating on the salacious-side of this story? I mean, honestly, why not leave your desk, drive over to Alexandria, Va., and go talk to Ronald Roughead? While you’re at it, why not track down some leads on the people prosecuting Ms. Palfrey? In addition, you need to check on the SAIC connection and lobbying…oh, never mind. Ms. Palfrey stands behind my assertions that you guys wanted salaciousness and that when it didn’t pan-out with Donaldson, the problems began. Both you and Mr. Cook are a major disappointment, along with Larisa of Rawstory, Huffpo, and the rest of the media. All you’re doing is making a site that’s a copy of all the same problems the MSM currently embodies. Change the focus, and you might be doing something, otherwise, it’s just gossip. However, I was impressed with the Leola McConnell story, though I think she’s got a lot of proving to do with her story — if she’s still alive.
“ABC is conducting a social experiment gauging the reactions of the general public to displays of affection between members of the same sex,” 