Tuesday night, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal recounted to the nation an anecdote about his experiences on the ground during Hurricane Katrina, citing a meeting with Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee. On Wednesday night’s telecast, apparently relying exclusively on the speculations of left-wing bloggers far from Louisiana, MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann called Jindal a liar, not only saying that this anecdote was “apparently not true” but claiming that Jindal was “about 75 miles away in Baton Rouge” and “when he did tour the immediate disaster area, he did so by air, flying over it.”
If NBC News has any respect whatsoever for factual accuracy, it will require Olbermann to retract that accusation and make a public apology to Jindal on air.
The facts are recounted in this post. To start with, there is no affirmative evidence to support the claim that Jindal invented the meeting with Lee (who has since died), and there is affirmative evidence to support Jindal’s recollection: the third person in the meeting, Jindal’s Chief of Staff, backs up his story. The bloggers’ case against Jindal rests largely on the fact that he has told many stories about his experiences during Katrina but hasn’t told this particular story every time he’s spoken or written on the subject - a highly speculative basis for calling a man a liar, and one that’s not even accurate, as Jindal has recounted this particular anecdote in the presence of RedStaters as well as in an interview with Rush Limbaugh following Jindal’s 2007 election. (Jindal’s initial meeting with Lee during the crisis was also referenced in this post, which ran on the front page of RedState in August 2007, while Lee was still alive). Newell Normand, Lee’s Democratic successor, confirms that Jindal worked with Lee regularly during the flooding that followed the hurricane.
Far more scurrilous, however, is the broader assertion made by Olbermann and his cast of Iagos that Jindal wasn’t even there during the flooding, a claim that is about as credible to people in Louisiana as telling New Yorkers that Rudy Giuliani wasn’t in Manhattan on September 11. NBC News, which supposedly has a national newsgathering operation, couldn’t be bothered to check with any of the people in Louisiana law enforcement who worked with Jindal during that crisis, including a Democratic sheriff who appeared in a televised campaign commercial for Jindal in 2007. In a way, this is worse than Dan Rather: Olbermann was taken in not by documents three decades old peddled by a supposed eyewitness but by fever-swamp bloggers’ armchair theories about events that unfolded less than four years ago, during a crisis that dominated the national news at the time and radically altered Louisiana politics, as to which there are plenty of witnesses with fresh memories. He misrepresented Jindal’s role in the crisis barely a year and a half after Jindal was elected governor, in part on the basis of having done more during Katrina as a Congressman than the sitting Governor. Olbermann’s account is not only false in its particulars, it could not possibly have gotten the essence of the story more backwards.
NBC News must do the right thing and order Olbermann to retract his accusation and publicly apologize, on air, into the same nationally televised microphone they paid to give him to peddle this slander in the first place. You can call the NBC News switchboard at 212-664-4444 to let them know what they have to do.
State Run Media
itdiehard Friday, February 27th at 12:03PM EST (link)Good luck get the apology
I assume that means that you didn't make the call.
Moe Lane Friday, February 27th at 12:23PM EST (link):shrug: Your privilege, but frankly: why should the rest of us care if you’re wishing us luck?
Check out my new blog at http://moelane.com/.
http://twitter.com/moelane
My (blogging-related) wish list.
I will make this evening
itdiehard Friday, February 27th at 12:30PM EST (link)But I don’t expect any results. NBC, CBS and others have show a pattern of this behavior
Fair enough, but we can't win...
Moe Lane Friday, February 27th at 12:31PM EST (link)…if we never try.
Check out my new blog at http://moelane.com/.
http://twitter.com/moelane
My (blogging-related) wish list.
I will not be calling
Jack_Savage Friday, February 27th at 3:24PM EST (link)Here’s why.
In order to even consider an apology, NBC would need to be a credible news organization, and Olbermann would need to maintain credibility in order to keep a job. This is simply no longer the case. Olbermann is some mutant product of what passes as journalism today, a full throated lap dog to a party and an agenda, aided and abetted by Microsoft and NBC. What he says doesn’t need to be true, or even a little bit true - it simply needs to advance The Cause. Even an outright lie that advances The Cause is preferred over a truth that does not.
Truth and credibility are not the point in anything that comes from NBC.
I will also go a step further in saying that MSNBC, in particular, has lost any sense of decency or humanity. The hatred that has been seething in Mathews, Olbermann and Maddow is now in the open and has complete and full reign over both them and the MSNBC playground that they bully.
Instead of calling I will take some time and pray that I live to see sweet justice delivered. Sorry.
NBC Affiliates in Louisiana
Uma Richie Friday, February 27th at 12:22PM EST (link)WDSU Main: (504) 679-0600
NBC 33: (225) 766-3233
NBC33 feedback form: http://www.nbc33tv.com/info/contact
KALB (affiliate with both CBS and NBC): (318) 445-2456
And of course, don’t forget about your own local station.
……………………………………………………………………………..
“We hold our heads high, despite the price we have paid, because freedom is priceless.” -Lech Walesa
Olbermann calls on David Brooks as his conservative
E Pluribus Unum Friday, February 27th at 12:40PM EST (link)Sums up his warped idea of reality.
Carthago delenda est
Do your conservative t-shirt Christmas shopping at EPU Gear. Save the conservative muse, save the world.
I think that works both ways in this case EPU....
Attack Mode Friday, February 27th at 12:52PM EST (link)The fact that Brooks would be in league with Olberman says all I need to know about Brooks.
“Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper” Peter Griffin…Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity….or else!!!
Steel-Belted Radial Right Winger
“I’ll create 5 million jobs from out of unicorn farts and pixie dust” Justatron paraphrasing Obamessiah…yes I love it that much.
Surely you jest
kchand Friday, February 27th at 12:44PM EST (link)“If NBC News has any respect whatsoever for factual accuracy…”
This is the “Fake but Accurate” media.
——————–
Vista really sucks!
There does
BlueLandRed Friday, February 27th at 12:50PM EST (link)seems to be a little softness in Jindal’s story.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0209/Jindal_aide_Story_was_set_after_Katrina.html
I’m betting that’s enough that Olbermann feels completely justified in his statements… which, for the record, I haven’t seem because he’s not exactly my favorite talking head.
BlueLandRed...Ben Smith is a hack..IMHO...
Attack Mode Friday, February 27th at 12:56PM EST (link)check back on that story and you can see an update that basically refutes the original intent of the story and reinforces the Jindal story and the fact that Olberman is consistently a liar.
“Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper” Peter Griffin…Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity….or else!!!
Steel-Belted Radial Right Winger
“I’ll create 5 million jobs from out of unicorn farts and pixie dust” Justatron paraphrasing Obamessiah…yes I love it that much.
That's not the most artful statement
Dan McLaughlin Friday, February 27th at 1:11PM EST (link)but basically, this all took place in the days after the storm hit, probably around Thursday, while the city was still under water.
“No compromise with the main purpose, no peace till victory, no pact with unrepentant wrong.” - Winston Churchill
I live in St. Bernard parish
sdan Friday, February 27th at 1:19PM EST (link)and contrary to what may have been said Bobby Jindal was the first politician to step foot in my parish besides the people who live here. He was the one who got the ball started. Since we live directly across the river from Jefferson parish I have no reason to doubt that he was in Jefferson too. I don’t have any personal knowledge of this but by reading this article and the links it seems many others do. Bobby got to work while other politicians whose job this was stood around with their fingers up an uncomfortable part of their bodies.
If you follow the updates
Dan McLaughlin Friday, February 27th at 2:52PM EST (link)Ben Smith is walking back a bit. As I said, the spokeswoman didn’t make this crystal clear but Jindal’s people aren’t backing off a word of his speech, just clearing up the sequence of events.
“No compromise with the main purpose, no peace till victory, no pact with unrepentant wrong.” - Winston Churchill
Actually, at this point Jindal's people are ticked...
Moe Lane Friday, February 27th at 3:56PM EST (link)…and calling this what it is: liberal blogger bs.
Check out my new blog at http://moelane.com/.
http://twitter.com/moelane
My (blogging-related) wish list.
Olbermann
MrTwangy Friday, February 27th at 2:35PM EST (link)Everytime this guy opens his mouth I just want to cock punch him..
Mind your language, please.
Moe Lane Friday, February 27th at 2:41PM EST (link)Both in profanity and sentiment.
Check out my new blog at http://moelane.com/.
http://twitter.com/moelane
My (blogging-related) wish list.
I wouldn't count on an apology
fiery Friday, February 27th at 3:46PM EST (link)I just telephoned and voiced my outrage and asked that Mr. Olbermann issue
an apology. I doubt that it really matters to these people. It is no wonder that
NBC/MSNBC are in the tank when it comes to ratings. What legitimate news
person would go on the air and make statements gleaned from info. they
found on the internet. No wonder they lack credibility. But to watch their on air
arrogance is mind boggling, especially Mr. Olbermann. Didn’t his career start in
sports? I have never watched his show, but wonder why people watch his
show when he came from a sports background. My oh my, if I remember correctly during the presidential campaign Palin was criticized for her lack of experience,but people want to get their political information from a
sportscaster. I don’t get it. But I guess I am just not as smart as those liberal
news people from MSNBC. I prefer to watch sports on tv and get my news from real news people.
You're barking up the wrong tree
markg8 Friday, February 27th at 4:14PM EST (link)Jindal’s own spokesperson admitted the story is a lie.
Here’s what Jindal said in his speech:
During Katrina, I visited Sheriff Harry Lee, a Democrat and a good friend of mine. When I walked into his makeshift office I’d never seen him so angry. He was yelling into the phone: ‘Well, I’m the Sheriff and if you don’t like it you can come and arrest me!’ I asked him: ‘Sheriff, what’s got you so mad?’ He told me that he had put out a call for volunteers to come with their boats to rescue people who were trapped on their rooftops by the floodwaters. The boats were all lined up ready to go - when some bureaucrat showed up and told them they couldn’t go out on the water unless they had proof of insurance and registration. I told him, ‘Sheriff, that’s ridiculous.’ And before I knew it, he was yelling into the phone: ‘Congressman Jindal is here, and he says you can come and arrest him too!’
But now Jindal’s story is that he overheard Lee recalling the incident days later to an interviewer on the phone.
His anecdote in the speech was nonsense, a lie. He wasn’t in Lee’s office when Lee was screaming into a phone. Lee didn’t offer to let anyone arrest both he and Jindal.
Never mind my comment below then, maybe ....
GarWil Friday, February 27th at 4:36PM EST (link)If this is true, then I’m really disappointed in Jindal. He seems to have a lot of good qualities and talents, but you can’t go out and embellish the record like this, especially for a high-profile event like the GOP response.
Not good. at. all.
Read the update to Ben Smith's post
Dan McLaughlin Friday, February 27th at 4:52PM EST (link)You are grasping at straws here.
“No compromise with the main purpose, no peace till victory, no pact with unrepentant wrong.” - Winston Churchill
Was it worth it, burning an account to defend racists?
Moe Lane Friday, February 27th at 4:54PM EST (link)Don’t actually care, sorry.
Not sorry, actually.
Blam.
Check out my new blog at http://moelane.com/.
http://twitter.com/moelane
My (blogging-related) wish list.
Perhaps what needs to happen....
GarWil Friday, February 27th at 4:28PM EST (link)….is for Jindal to request a spot on Olberman’s show to answer his charge in person, assuming Jindal is being truthful and I suspect he is.
That way, Olberman is forced to either face the situation of someone buoyed by the truth comfortably confirming the story and thereby being obligated to apologize — or being exposed as a coward for not allowing him to appear.
It’s a win-win for Jindal, again assuming that he’s being entirely accurate. Olberman would get publicity, but it would be extremely damaging publicity — either way.
Jindal answering Olberman...
NRPax Friday, February 27th at 7:10PM EST (link)OK, that is a version of the Fairness Act I can get behind.
Olberman is slime, slime does not apologize
Doc Holliday Friday, February 27th at 7:27PM EST (link)and even if it does, it is worth nothing.
Molon Labe!
Why are yall discussing
AKSteveB Friday, February 27th at 7:34PM EST (link)Olberman. He is about as relevant to political discourse as Paris Hilton.
Hell is other people - Sartre
Why are yall discussing
AKSteveB Friday, February 27th at 7:34PM EST (link)Olberman. He is about as relevant to political discourse as Paris Hilton.
Hell is other people - Sartre
Unfortunately, a lot of people listen to him.
Fred Maidment Friday, February 27th at 7:50PM EST (link)n/t
How to Start a Business - Fred’s News
Follow Me on Twitter
“I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.”
- - Thomas Jefferson, to Archibald Stuart, 1791
Olberman, Get a Grip!
Fred Maidment Friday, February 27th at 8:00PM EST (link)“Commedian Rush Limbaugh?”
“Conservative Juan Williams?”
“…himself a veritable ‘huddled mass, yearning to breathe free?’”
Quoting a Facebook group comparing Jindal to a congressional paige?
“WTF, Mate?!!”
Does Olberman even listen to himself?
This isn’t news. It’s slander at best.
I’ve long believed that Olberman simply could not find anything to like about conservatives. This pretty much proves it.
How to Start a Business - Fred’s News
Follow Me on Twitter
“I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.”
- - Thomas Jefferson, to Archibald Stuart, 1791