David Folkenflik

Advice for presidential debate moderators: Keep order, out of spotlight

David Folkenflik — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 11:40:54 +0000

PBS' Jim Lehrer came in for widespread criticism last week for failing to control the first presidential debate. Now, moderator Martha Raddatz is confronting partisan criticism in the lead-up to Thursday night's vice presidential debate, the first and only direct confrontation between Republican Paul Ryan and Democrat Joe Biden.

The standards by which Raddatz will be judged are not exactly clear. Professional observers who pay close attention give advice that's seemingly contradictory: Don't cause any waves, but do challenge any clearly misleading statements.

Fake bylines reveal hidden costs of local news

David Folkenflik — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 14:14:27 +0000

Major newspapers in Chicago, Houston and San Francisco are among those this week that have acknowledged they published dozens of items in print or online that appeared under fake bylines.

As was first disclosed by the public radio program This American Life, the items in question were not written by reporters on the staffs of the papers at all but by employees of what is effectively a news outsourcing firm called Journatic.

The episode is at once a professional embarrassment for the papers and a re

Protest role does not cost public radio host her job

David Folkenflik — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 22:06:46 +0000

The host of a public radio opera show that is distributed nationally by NPR will keep her job after drawing criticism for her involvement with an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street protests.

Lisa Simeone, the freelance host of the show World of Opera, also has been acting as a spokeswoman for Washington, D.C., protesters affiliated with the "October 2011" group.

The decision about her role on World of Opera came after Simeone was let go as host of Soundprint — a topical

NPR Ends Williams' Contract After Muslim Remarks

David Folkenflik — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 07:43:00 +0000

NPR News has terminated the contract of longtime news analyst Juan Williams after remarks he made on the Fox News Channel about Muslims.

Williams appeared Monday on The O'Reilly Factor, and host Bill O'Reilly asked him to comment on the idea that the U.S. is facing a dilemma with Muslims.

O'Reilly has been looking for support for his own remarks on a recent episode of ABC's The View in which he directly blamed Muslims for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.