Politics

The Anatomy of a Lie: Right-Wing "Media Trackers" Strikes Again with Libelous Smear

The Wisconsin-based, right-wing website Media Trackers reached a new low on Monday when it printed a libelous story against the partner of State Rep. Mark Pocan, accusing him of sending bizarre text threats to a volunteer for Chad Lee, Pocan's opponent in his race for Congress. Although Media Trackers took down the story late in the day, the damage had been done. It was picked up by right-wing sources in Wisconsin and across the nation. The organization's "mea culpa" fails to apologize or take responsibility for its role in the smear and the outlet still has a picture of Pocan and his partner Phil Frank on the front page of its website with a note that it would "continue to follow developments in this story" -- as if there were a story to follow.

Did Romney Shift Climate Change Stance to Appeal to Kochs?

With millions of Americans feeling the wrath of Hurricane Sandy, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney is comparing the massive recovery effort to cleaning up "rubbish and paper products" from a high school football field. But don't expect him to discuss how Sandy's severity is directly linked to climate change. Romney shifted his position on climate change in October 2011, around the same time he was seeking support from billionaire industrialist David Koch, a major funder of climate change denial groups and whose profits could be impacted by limits on carbon emissions.

CMD and Common Cause Prevail in Open Records Lawsuit Against ALEC Legislators in Wisconsin

Lawmakers Acknowledge That They Cannot Evade the Open Records Law by Shifting Official Correspondence to a Personal E-Mail Account

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 30, 2012
CONTACT: Brendan Fischer, Brendan@prwatch.org; Nick Surgey, nsurgey@commoncause.org

Five Wisconsin state legislators have agreed to turn over any correspondence and documents with or related to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and held on their personal email accounts; the action settles a lawsuit brought by the Center for Media and Democracy and Common Cause.

Meet the Network Hiding the Koch Money: "Donors Trust" and "Donors Capital Fund"

- Connor Gibson, Greenpeace

Earlier this year internal documents from the Heartland Institute, a major hub of climate change denial and right-wing extremism, were publicly leaked. The documents exposed the Heartland Institute's funders and strategies for attacking climate science, and led to a mass exodus of Heartland's corporate funders.

NFIB's "I Built My Business" Astroturf Bus Tour Gets Rolling in Wisconsin

The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) "I Built My Business" astroturf bus tour started rolling through Wisconsin this week in support of Republican candidates for office. NFIB advertises itself as the nonpartisan "Voice of Small Business," but CMD's new web resource NFIBexposed.org presents a wealth of facts that challenge that assertion.

On NFIB Conference Call, Romney Urges Employers to Tell Employees How to Vote, Just Like the Kochs

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney suggested to business owners they tell their employees how to vote on a June conference call organized by the National Federation for Independent Business (NFIB), an organization the Center for Media and Democracy has recently exposed as a partisan lobbying group advancing big business interests.

In Massachusetts, even the "People's Pledge" Can't Keep Out the Outside Money

The U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts is currently among the closest in the country, with the most recent polls showing a razor-thin lead by Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren, who hopes to unseat Republican incumbent Senator Scott Brown this November. The Massachusetts race is unique among national Senate races, as outside money is playing a significantly diminished role thanks to a pledge signed by both candidates that has helped keep outside spending on television, radio, and Internet ads in check.

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