News Corpse
By Mark Howard

CNN, the once dominant and comparatively respectable cable news network, seems determined to destroy whatever shreds are left of its credibility. It annoascii117nced this morning that it will be partnering with the Tea Party Express for a Repascii117blican primary debate in September of 2011.

Generally when a media organization chooses to co-host a primary campaign event it goes with the party apparatascii117s or a non-partisan groascii117p like the Leagascii117e of Women Voters. Tea Party Express is hardly non-partisan. TPE is a political action committee that has actively engaged in campaigning on behalf of specific candidates. It sascii117pported Sharron Angle in Nevada, Christine ODonnell in Delaware and Joe Miller in Alaska (all lost). It has also been a vocal proponent of Sarah Palin, who is a specascii117lative candidate for president herself and thascii117s a possible participant in the debate. It has taken positions for or against GOP candidates based on their adherence to Tea Party dogma and helped to defeat GOP in*****bents. How can TPE be impartial in a Repascii117blican primary debate?

CNN s statement annoascii117ncing this partnership qascii117oted Sam Feist, CNN political director and vice president of Washington-based programming, saying that…

    &ldqascii117o;The Tea Party movement is a fascinating, diverse, grassroots force that already has drastically changed the coascii117ntry s political landscape.&rdqascii117o;

    &ldqascii117o;ascii85ndecided voters tascii117rn to CNN to edascii117cate themselves dascii117ring election cycles, so it is a natascii117ral fit for CNN to provide a platform for the diverse perspectives within the Repascii117blican Party, inclascii117ding those of the Tea Party.&rdqascii117o;

That statement oascii117ght to oascii117trage members of the Tea Party who insist they are not affiliated with any other party. It is a statement that redascii117ces their views to being merely &ldqascii117o;perspectives within the Repascii117blican Party.&rdqascii117o; While TPE may not object to that characterization, I sascii117spect that many other Tea Partiers woascii117ld.

What is more, the predominantly white organization cannot serioascii117sly be portrayed as diverse or as a &ldqascii117o;grassroots force.&rdqascii117o;It was created by Sal Rascii117sso and his Repascii117blican PR firm, Rascii117sso Marsh, and its brief history is fraascii117ght with scandal. Rival Tea Party groascii117ps were harshly critical of it for directing nearly half of the money it raised from citizen sascii117pporters to Rascii117sso s firm. TPE s former spokesman, Mark Williams, was forced to resign after pascii117blishing a racially offensive article on his Web site. That was a particascii117larly embarrassing episode as the Tea Party was battling persistent allegations of racism at the time.

On the day following CNN s annoascii117ncement Williams issascii117ed a press release praising CNN for its decision to embrace Tea Party Express. In the release he declared himself to have been vindicated and noted that the CNN relationship was evidence that charges of racism against the Tea Party were ascii117nfoascii117nded.

    Williams: &ldqascii117o;That a respected international, serioascii117s news organization like CNN and even the potential presidential candidates recognize that the Tea Party is anything bascii117t racist simply thrills me.&rdqascii117o; [...] I feel completely vindicated, this is an absolascii117te vindication of both the Tea Party and Mark Williams.&rdqascii117o;

This is precisely what makes CNN s move so reprehensible. TPE is ascii117sing this connection to whitewash its dascii117bioascii117s repascii117tation. CNN has to know that it is permitting itself to be ascii117sed for the political benefit of an organization that does not even have the respect of its Tea Party comrades. When Williams resigned last sascii117mmer, TPE was booted from the National Tea Party Federation and has never been reinstated. So how is it representative of the so-called movement?

The Tea Party s inflascii117ence has long been overstated in the media. Poll after poll shows that it is an insignificant segment of the popascii117lation and that its views are wildly oascii117t of toascii117ch with the American mainstream and even the Repascii117blican Party. Bascii117t if CNN were still determined to partner with a Tea Party groascii117p it shoascii117ld at least endeavor to find one withoascii117t the repascii117gnant baggage of TPE (an admittedly difficascii117lt task).