The view from The New York Times -- Romney and Ryan didn’t win a single debate
By Dan Gainor, Clay Waters
Published October 24, 2012
| FoxNews.com
Forget the Detroit Tigers. Their four wins in a row vs. the Yankees were nothing. The real sweep came when Obama/Biden took down the evil Romney/Ryan combo in four straight debates – three wins and a tie.
That’s according to Alessandra Stanley, “The TV Watch” columnist for The New York Times. She reviewed all four debates this election season – three presidential debates and the one vice-presidential debate -- and clearly spun things for the Democrats each time.
Only one problem with that – Romney is widely believe to have wiped out Obama in the first debate, just not according to Stanley.
Even the liberal media conceded Romney won the first debate. Remember MSNBC's Chris Matthews and his oft cited "freak out" afterwards? Here's how his meltdown was reported by Politico, "[Matthews] blasted Obama’s debate performance, saying he went into the night 'disarmed.' What Romney was doing tonight, unlike Obama, was 'winning,' Matthews said."
Even Vice President Joe Biden implied a loss when he said “his boss ‘clearly’ made up for his performance in the first presidential debate.” Of course, what’s to make up for if he won?
Matthews wasn't alone there was a parade of shrill MSNBC lefties who thought Obama lost the first time with host Ed Schultz saying he was “absolutely stunned.” The left-leaning Huffington Post declared “ROMNEY WINS THE NIGHT.” And Current TV's Al Gore, a former vice president himself, even blamed Obama’s poor performance on the high altitude in Denver.
But then again, Obama didn’t truly lose.
Stanley's Oct. 4 review of the first debate, “The Choirboy and the Headmaster, and a Faceoff Without Fireworks,” implausibly found it a draw. There miraculously were no “scale-tipping” moments, though in some historical revisionism she referred to "the president’s dismal performance” a week later in her October 12 review of the vice-presidential debate. There, naturally, she found (according to the headline) a “Night of Withering Ripostes, Mostly Delivered by Biden.”
Biden, too, came under intense criticism from many in the chattering class for his massive number of interruptions and his constant laughter. Both have become talking points for the GOP. Even many journalists were reluctant to give Biden the win. “CNN analysts largely saw the debate as a draw,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The headline over Stanley’s Oct. 17 review of the second presidential debate claimed that “In Debate’s Dance, Romney Has More Missteps.” She called Romney the loser for “peevishly calling on” moderator Candy Crowley, despite the mountain of criticism that Crowley later received for inserting herself into the debate. “Mr. Romney had more bad moments than the president, particularly when he challenged Mr. Obama’s claim that he early on called the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, a terrorist attack, and Ms. Crowley backed Mr. Obama’s version of events,” she added.
Three for three.
Finally, Stanley's take on Monday night's debate, which she gave to Obama, made the front of Tuesday's paper: “Role Reversal Gives President Harder Line, and Punch Lines.”
“Monday night’s debate provided an odd role reversal that made Mr. Romney seem on the defensive, particularly because he at times stuttered and sputtered in his haste to make his points. He pronounced foreign names and countries correctly, but also carefully, worried perhaps that a mispronunciation would sink his credibility. Usually, it is Mr. Obama who seems professorial and long-winded. There were long moments when Mr. Romney made the president sound succinct and sharp-edged.”
With those sharp analytical skills, it seems Stanley is primed not just to cover politics, but she might have a future covering baseball. Somewhere deep in the minor leagues.
This article is part of our ongoing series of "bias alerts" which focuses on calling out bias in the media. For additional bias alerts click here
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Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012...n-didnt-win-single-debate/print#ixzz2AQHvdZKI
By Dan Gainor, Clay Waters
Published October 24, 2012
| FoxNews.com
Forget the Detroit Tigers. Their four wins in a row vs. the Yankees were nothing. The real sweep came when Obama/Biden took down the evil Romney/Ryan combo in four straight debates – three wins and a tie.
That’s according to Alessandra Stanley, “The TV Watch” columnist for The New York Times. She reviewed all four debates this election season – three presidential debates and the one vice-presidential debate -- and clearly spun things for the Democrats each time.
Only one problem with that – Romney is widely believe to have wiped out Obama in the first debate, just not according to Stanley.
Even the liberal media conceded Romney won the first debate. Remember MSNBC's Chris Matthews and his oft cited "freak out" afterwards? Here's how his meltdown was reported by Politico, "[Matthews] blasted Obama’s debate performance, saying he went into the night 'disarmed.' What Romney was doing tonight, unlike Obama, was 'winning,' Matthews said."
Even Vice President Joe Biden implied a loss when he said “his boss ‘clearly’ made up for his performance in the first presidential debate.” Of course, what’s to make up for if he won?
Matthews wasn't alone there was a parade of shrill MSNBC lefties who thought Obama lost the first time with host Ed Schultz saying he was “absolutely stunned.” The left-leaning Huffington Post declared “ROMNEY WINS THE NIGHT.” And Current TV's Al Gore, a former vice president himself, even blamed Obama’s poor performance on the high altitude in Denver.
But then again, Obama didn’t truly lose.
Stanley's Oct. 4 review of the first debate, “The Choirboy and the Headmaster, and a Faceoff Without Fireworks,” implausibly found it a draw. There miraculously were no “scale-tipping” moments, though in some historical revisionism she referred to "the president’s dismal performance” a week later in her October 12 review of the vice-presidential debate. There, naturally, she found (according to the headline) a “Night of Withering Ripostes, Mostly Delivered by Biden.”
Biden, too, came under intense criticism from many in the chattering class for his massive number of interruptions and his constant laughter. Both have become talking points for the GOP. Even many journalists were reluctant to give Biden the win. “CNN analysts largely saw the debate as a draw,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The headline over Stanley’s Oct. 17 review of the second presidential debate claimed that “In Debate’s Dance, Romney Has More Missteps.” She called Romney the loser for “peevishly calling on” moderator Candy Crowley, despite the mountain of criticism that Crowley later received for inserting herself into the debate. “Mr. Romney had more bad moments than the president, particularly when he challenged Mr. Obama’s claim that he early on called the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, a terrorist attack, and Ms. Crowley backed Mr. Obama’s version of events,” she added.
Three for three.
Finally, Stanley's take on Monday night's debate, which she gave to Obama, made the front of Tuesday's paper: “Role Reversal Gives President Harder Line, and Punch Lines.”
“Monday night’s debate provided an odd role reversal that made Mr. Romney seem on the defensive, particularly because he at times stuttered and sputtered in his haste to make his points. He pronounced foreign names and countries correctly, but also carefully, worried perhaps that a mispronunciation would sink his credibility. Usually, it is Mr. Obama who seems professorial and long-winded. There were long moments when Mr. Romney made the president sound succinct and sharp-edged.”
With those sharp analytical skills, it seems Stanley is primed not just to cover politics, but she might have a future covering baseball. Somewhere deep in the minor leagues.
This article is part of our ongoing series of "bias alerts" which focuses on calling out bias in the media. For additional bias alerts click here
Print Close
URL
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012...imes-romney-and-ryan-didnt-win-single-debate/
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012...n-didnt-win-single-debate/print#ixzz2AQHvdZKI
